Camarillo, Calif., Oct. 15, 2015 – CSU Channel Islands (CI) this month cemented an ongoing relationship with The GRAMMY Museum® in Los Angeles that began five years ago when CI launched an interdisciplinary class called “The Music Museum.”
On Oct. 1, CI became one of just seven universities nationwide to be named an affiliate, which means CI “Music Museum” students will continue to have access to The GRAMMY Museum’s® exhibitions, research programs, internship programs, collaborative marketing and a number of other immersive educational experiences.
“We are honored to be affiliated with The GRAMMY Museum®,” said CI Professor of Economics Dennis Muraoka, Ph.D. “Because they are a pioneer and leader for museums in general and music museums in particular.”
Muraoka created “The Music Museum” course five years ago as one of CI’s signature interdisciplinary courses, which are team-taught courses that immerse students with people working in specific fields.
“All of these classes are unique in the following sense,” Muraoka said. “We take these students out to these institutions and let the people at the institutions talk about what they do.”
Although CI is the seventh to be invited to become an official GRAMMY Museum® affiliate, The GRAMMY Museum® Executive Director Bob Santelli said the University was actually the inspiration for the Educational Affiliates program.
“CSU Channel Islands was the ‘unofficial’ first GRAMMY Museum® Educational Affiliate,” Santelli said. “Professor Dennis Muraoka brought his class to the museum and used it in such a way that made it a mutually beneficial visit.”
The museum staff and CI’s “Music Museum” students collaborated so well, the experience inspired Santelli and his staff to create a GRAMMY Museum® affiliates program that would create connections with music-minded universities all over the country.
“When determining who we invite to become a GRAMMY Museum® University Affiliate, we look at a number of things: the university’s commitment to music education, its interest in popular music studies, classes and seminars pertaining to the music business and popular entertainment, and a high level of academic excellence,” Santelli said.
CI students taking “The Music Museum” class travel to The GRAMMY Museum® every Thursday afternoon throughout the fall semester to learn about all aspects of what it takes to run a music museum from interviewing performers to putting on events to fundraising.
The course is not given during the spring as it is awards season for the museum and the staff is less available, although “Music Museum” students from the fall semester are often involved in putting on spring events.
“The Music Museum” requires team-teaching in performing arts, economics, education and business. CI Music Lecturer Paul Murphy team-teaches the class with Muraoka.
A ceremony to recognize the new affiliation was held Oct. 1 at The GRAMMY Museum® in Los Angeles on an evening that coincided with the regular Music Museum class, which is held on Thursdays from 3 to 5:50 p.m. at the museum.
“The Music Museum” students are working on an end-of-semester project for a traveling exhibit, which they will pitch in December.
The students want to assemble a mobile Beatles exhibit that could be displayed at all the other university affiliates, which are: CSU Los Angeles; University of Southern California; Oregon State University; Delta State University; Monmouth University and Berklee College of Music.
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About California State University Channel Islands
CSU Channel Islands(CI) is the only four-year, public university in Ventura County and is known for its interdisciplinary, multicultural and international perspectives, and its emphasis on experiential and service learning. CI’s strong academic programs focus on business, sciences, liberal studies, teaching credentials, and innovative master’s degrees. Students benefit from individual attention, up-to-date technology, and classroom instruction augmented by outstanding faculty research. CI has been designated by the U.S. Department of Education as a Hispanic-Serving Institution and is committed to serving students of all backgrounds from the region and beyond. Connect with and learn more by visiting CI's Social Media.