Robbin Gordon-Cartier is this year's Education Award Recipient from the Wharton Institute for the Performing Arts. Gordon-Cartier is the founder of the Elizabeth School District harp program, which is now at the Cicely Tyson Performing Arts School in the East Orange School District. Gordon-Cartier also founded the North Jersey Chapter of the American Harp Society, and presents educational workshops nationwide.
Helen H. Cha-Pyo, artistic director of Wharton Arts, says she is pleased to recognize Gordon-Cartier. "Robbin is an extraordinary educator with a passion for using music to help young people find themselves," she says. "Her talent as a harpist extends from the stage to the classroom to community gatherings as an ambassador of music with messages of hope. She is someone who inspires us all."
The award ceremony will take place on March 10 at the "Together We Celebrate" Annual Gala at Westmount Country Club in Woodland Park, N.J. Gordon-Cartier's harp students at Cicely Tyson will be among the student performers at the gala. Wharton Arts will also honor singer, composer, comedian, and multi-instrumentalist Paul Shaffer with its Lifetime Achievement Award.
Check out our interview with Gordon-Cartier in the September/October 2000 issue, discussing the start of her urban harp program three years after its founding. For more information, visit the Wharton Arts Gala website and Gordon-Cartier's website.
