Written By Megan Melone
Photography By McKendree, McKendree Archives, mckendreemusic
I sat down for an interview with Dr. Nancy Ypma. Dr. Ypma is McKendree’s most senior faculty member and the Director of the Music Department:
Where are you from?
YPMA: Anaheim, California but when I moved down here, I was actually living up in Evanston because I was going to graduate school there.
Where did you go to school and what did you study?
YPMA: I got my bachelor’s at UCLA and then both my master’s and my doctorate at Northwestern University. My undergraduate degree is in music, a BA in music, and my instrument is pipeorgan, which is unusual, but that’s what I play.
And then I got my master’s in my doctorate in what’s called organ performance. When you major in music, you can decide if you want to do music history or theory or pursue what’s called performance which involves a lot of recitals. I also studied secondary music history so I could teach in a classroom.
What’s your current position here?
YPMA: I’m a professor of music, and I just stepped down from the division chair, which means I was over humanities in visual and performing arts for 18 years. I just felt that I didn’t need to be the chair anymore. I enjoyed it because you can help young professors and help make things happen, but it’s time for someone else to learn how to do it. I’m just kind of the director of the music and art department now.
How long have you been here?
YPMA: Well, this is my 38th year, so I’ve been here 37 years, way before you were born. When I first started here, there were professors who had been here since I was in grade school and I thought, how do you stay here that long? It happens.
Why did you first come to work at McKendree?
YPMA: I wanted to teach music at the college level. This was actually a college at that time.
It became a university in 2007, I think. But I always wanted to teach at this level and I wasn’t interested in teaching in the public schools. In life you interview for a job and when you get one, you take it. I was offered a position here and I liked it here and so I’ve stayed.
YPMA: When I first started here, there was no music major. There was a minor in the catalog, but nobody was even minoring. So they were like, you need to rebuild this thing. And I was a bit flustered because this is my first college job. So I said I will try. And so we got the music major added and we added the music ed degree, which is our big one, in 2003. But it was interesting to come teach a school without a music major when I have three degrees of music. We built something and we still have it and it’s been fun.
So you were really instrumental in building the music program.
YPMA: Oh, yeah.
And I was the only music professor when I did. I didn’t know who to talk to about things because I was like, I’m the only one here, so actually the head of the School of Education at that time, her name was Dr. Marcia Pop.
I would go ask her ’cause when you’re a new teacher, a new professor, there were things that happened in the classroom that I was like, I’m not sure what to do. And so I just tell students today, I said, you’re always learning.
When you’re in education, just because you’re the teacher, you’re still learning. A student was teaching me about something else today and I said, I didn’t know that. McKendree said build it. I was a church musician before I came here. And they knew that I knew how to build choirs and I think that was a positive for them hiring me. I was the only music professor for about six years.
That’s really scary. It was, it was. But you just start doing things and building and it’s worked out beautifully.
YPMA: But things continued to change as we built. I directed the choir and I taught every music class there was theory, history, and piano classes. We didn’t have a band when I came either, that came with the football team and the president of the university at that time said, Now we need a band.
So then we got the band.
What’s been the biggest change?
YPMA: Oh, goodness. I mean, the biggest change for me would be that we got this building (The Hettenhausen Center for the Arts). When I first got here there was no music building besides Eisenmeier.
The Choir first started meeting in the Circuit Riders room, the room downstairs at the chapel. Then we had to move to what we now call 1828, but it was called Pearson’s at the time. And Pearson’s was where they held meetings and luncheons so every time there was a meeting we would get kicked out. The students would complain when I was first here, saying we don’t have a building for proper music things or proper practice rooms. And I always laughed because I said, well, maybe we’ll get one in 20 years. And we ended up getting one in 18 years.
Mrs. Hettenhausen, I met her at one of the fine arts concerts, and she was a lovely lady, and she knew I was running the music program. I will never forget it. She said, Well, dear, you need a better place for these concerts.
And I told her, Well that would be nice, in a very doubtful tone because I really meant, I don’t think that’s going to happen. But that would be nice. Yeah, it’s good to dream.
And then she donated this building.
She was a fabulous woman and just so generous. She had no connection to McKendree. She just started coming to the fine arts concerts. And I was so pleased that we finally got our own building.
Now we have a dedicated space and nobody can kick us out of our space.
So what was campus like when you first came here?
YPMA: Oh, it was so different. There are only about 750 students here. So, many things weren’t here like Piper, McKendree West, the new dorms, the Hett. There was just a gravel parking lot where the Piper building is now. I would say the campus is much prettier now, and they’ve made a quad out there which is very nice.
Well, I think the building is adding all the buildings. They added all the teams. When I came, we had track, we had basketball, and soccer was the big thing. We didn’t have football, they added football.I want to say six or eight years after I came they decided to add football, and then they just started adding more and more sports. And I think the student body is much more diverse now with people from other countries and other cultures. But I always tell people, every year’s an adventure. There’s always something new.
I really enjoy the students here, that’s a big plus for this place. They’re great students and they’re fun. And I really have had fun building this program. So I thought, I’ll stay as long as I can teach.
People ask, are you going to retire?
And I say, Not yet, not yet. I’m not ready yet. Another year or two.
I think if you can still do it, it’s great being with young people. They keep you energized. And like I said, the students here have been great to work with, so I like it here. That’s why I’ve stayed. And I think most of your teachers here, to be honest, are great teachers. They love teaching. And I think it’s a good place to be.
