Wheaton College Alumni Magazine Spring 2013 | Page 15

“Up like a rocket, down like the rain . . .
Land on your hand,
check round pinkie and bent thumb.”
These young Suzuki violinists have
practiced this exercise many times. But in
addition to learning bow control and technique,
these children are also learning English and
gaining a very real sense of achievement through
the Community Outreach for Developing
Artists (CODA).
A program of Wheaton’s Community School of
the Arts, CODA provides free early-childhood
music classes and private/semi-private Suzuki
violin lessons to 420 pre-k to second-grade students
and private/semi-private Suzuki violin lessons to
37 students. At World Relief DuPage, another 100
students—children of African, Arabic, Asian, and
Hispanic refugees and immigrants—receive earlychildhood music education and recorder lessons.
Launched in 2006 and funded by grants from
Tyndale House Foundation, DuPage Community
Foundation, and Farny R. Wurlitzer Foundation,
CODA gives young, artistically underexposed
students in the community access to high-quality
music education. Violin teachers Lisa Hirschmugl
and Carol Ourada find it rewarding to watch many
of the children overcome hurdles and to see both
parents and children excited to participate and
eager for concerts and recitals.

An integral part of the CODA
program is the parents’ partnering
with the teachers. CODA’s
early-childhood music teachers
include Kathleen Beers Cathey ’76,
Joyce Anne Wilder, Ann Storm,
and Carol Ouruda.

Anne Sullivan ’79, who teaches CODA flute
and recorder classes, treasures the laughter of
parents and children from countries like Bosnia,
Congo, a