Welcome to my e-portfolio! My name is Katie Carpenter. I am a vocal performance and music education double major at the Schreyer Honors College of Pennsylvania State University. This space will be a place for me to display some of my work which has helped me grow this year at Penn State. My Rhetoric and Civic Life class has allowed me to explore important aspects of my life through the pieces of work that are displayed on this page. It is incredibly important for college students to understand rhetoric and to be able to express and communicate effectively with others. I believe that a successful music teacher, particularly at a high school level, needs to be able to perform well, teach effectively, model leadership skills, and be well-rounded in order to connect with students from a variety of backgrounds and with different passions. I have included links to some of my activities this year which have helped me to stay involved in sports and community service in addition to my primary studies in music and education.
I think that it is very important for me to be able to communicate and present my opinions and to advocate my beliefs to my students, to other professors, fellow performers, and even administrators. After participating in a full year of self-exploration and deliberation, I think that I have become more understanding, more open-minded and more engaged in the issues of the world. My passion blog called “Unmasking the Media” has helped me to keep up with current issues and to recognize the incredible power of rhetoric to impact society. I realized while working on my advocacy project that I could tap into that rhetorical power and work toward making a change in an unfair policy. My civic issues blog gave me a chance to explore current issues in education which directly impact me as I train to be a teacher. I hope to continue to grow in my rhetorical skills throughout my college life and beyond.
