Director, Founder, Instructor
Preschool music, Acadamiacs, Brain Builders, Pre Reading, Piano & Violin summer camps Virginia Anne Dill is the director of the Virginia Beach School of the Arts. An honor graduate of the Conservatory at Shenandoah University, she majored in classical and jazz piano pedagogy studying with Dr. Elizabeth Temple, Dr. James Laster and Dr. Elizabeth Caluda. Virginia specializes in preschool music and loves her students! She is the author of the world's largest library of academic songs, Acadamiacs, creator of Connections: The Brain Development Seminar and lectures on the University level about music, learning and the brain. A master teacher with over 25 years of experience, Virginia is the creator of Preschool for the Arts, the premier arts and academics preschool. Passionate about learning academics through singing, Virginia makes learning FUN for all of her students ages 3 months - adult. Read more about her courses, Music Mommy & Me, Baby School, Acadamiacs, Music Readiness, keyboard class and exciting summer violin and piano camps. 
Violin and viola
Angelina Gandolfo Angelina Weber graduated from McGill University in 2014 with a Master of Music degree, having studied with Mark Fewer and Alexander Read. Previously, Ms. Weber attended the Eastman School of Music graduating with a Bachelor of Music degree with distinction in Violin Performance. She has participated in numerous summer music festivals including the Bowdoin International Music Festival, Meadowmount School of Music, The Castleman Quartet Program, Classical Music Festival in Austria, as well as summer studies at Indiana University. She has played in masterclasses for Rachel Barton Pine, Irvine Arditti, Charles Castleman, Sally Thomas, Cynthia Roberts, and members of the Chiara, Ying, and Takacs String Quartets. As an avid orchestral musician, Angelina has played with the Virginia Symphony, National Academy Orchestra of Canada, Indiana University Festival Orchestra, National Orchestral Institute Festival Orchestra, McGill University Symphony Orchestra, and Eastman Philharmonia. Ms. Weber has performed as guest soloist with the Concordia Symphony Orchestra in Edmonton, and is an Alberta Provincial Music Festival award recipient in the category of Strings, Voice, and Creative Music. Passionate about outreach, she enjoys performing at hospitals, nursing homes, schools, and numerous community functions. 
Piano
Grace Ablang Hare Grace Ablang-Hare, a graduate of Old Dominion University, holds a Bachelor of Music in Piano Performance. A student of Harold Protsman, Grace has performed throughout the Hampton Roads area. She began her teaching career in 2000 at the Virginia Beach School of the Arts and has also been teaching piano at Cape Henry Collegiate School since 2007. Many of her students have continued their careers in the music industry. Grace lives in Chesapeake with her husband, Mark, and their two boys. She enjoys the beach and traveling. Grace loves teaching and watching her students grow as pianists. |
Piano & Voice Lessons, Margaret McLewin Margaret McLewin is an experienced teacher and musician. She attended Shenandoah Conservatory of Music and Byran College. She completed a double major in piano and voice Magna Cum Laude. Post graduate studies include instruction with the David McClosky and Barbara Henneberger from Boston Conservatory and piano pedagogy with master teacher, Christa Hamilton. Margaret has extensive solo and ensemble performance experience and 30 years of teaching experience. She performed with the Virginia Symphony Chorus and Virginia Opera Chorus for seven seasons and taught solfege for Virginia Children’s chorus for three years. Some of her students have gone on to professional music careers in music theater, composition, church music and teaching. Mrs. McLewin enjoys watching students become confident, expressive musicians. Lessons take a sequential, correlated approach, building skills in theory and technique. Margaret's students engage visual, auditory and tactile experiences creating great learning moments! Students will explore various musical styles and repertoire. She is married to Dr. Peter McLewin, pastor of Ingleside Church in Norfolk, Va. They have five married children and six grandchildren. Her other interests include gardening, swimming, reading, sailing and international travel.
Meredith Hazelwood McKee Art Mrs. McKee completed a degree in primary and secondary Art Education from Virginia Wesleyan College. She began her teaching career at the Virginia Beach School of the Arts in 2003 and has since been dedicated to building their art education and enrichment program. Meredith specializes in art classes and programs designed for young artists ages 2-15. She enjoys working with her 2 and 3 year old Mommy and Me students and introducing them to the world of art and especially enjoys watching them grow up through her art program. Meredith has designed a stair stepping art program that allows children to grow over the years into art classes that are appropriate for their age and motor skill level. Students may begin in Mommy and Me art classes or join Meredith in Preschool for the Arts. They, then get to advance to classes such as Crafts, Beginning Drawing, Painting, Mixed Media, and Open Studio. She has also created a Handwriting program for preschoolers and kindergarten age students to help alleviate the tears and struggle at home. With Hampton Roads large Home School community, Meredith has designed an appropriate grade level ART curriculum for home school students at the Virginia Beach School of the Arts. She also runs an awesome summer camp program every year with camp options ranging from the ever famous Jewelry Camp to Clay Camp, Canvas Painting Camp, Sewing Camp, Artist Camp, Mosaic Tile Camp, Culinary Arts Camp, and Paper Mache Camp. Meredith’s art students have also teamed up with Virginia Beaches local Old Beach Farmers Market to design their market t-shirt for the past 5 years and just recently their 12 month calendar. In return, Old Beach displays the student’s art work every spring and summer at their markets. Meredith is married to Chef Andrew McKee owner of McKee’s Custom Cuisine and sous chef at Norfolk Yacht and Country Club. Together they love to travel, have three rescue dogs, and are expecting their first child in the summer of 2015. 
Piano, James Gardner
James Gardner is a Hampton Roads native who has been playing piano and composing since childhood. In 2006, he graduated from Nyack College School of Music in New York, with a Bachelor of Music in Composition, with additional studies in Piano and Organ Performance, Philosophy, and Communications. While at Nyack, James was Editor-in-Chief of the school newspaper, The Forum. He also holds a Master of Music degree from East Carolina University School of Music and a Certificate of Film Studies from the Los Angeles Film Studies Center. While living in Los Angeles, James worked in the music department at 20th Century Fox Studios. As a performer, James has played in hundreds of venues. He is the winner of the Mary K. Whitener Award for Excellence in Piano Performance (2002). James’ original musicals and operas have been performed live in Norfolk, New York, and Los Angeles. He has also served as a Producer and Director of over a dozen live stage productions, as well as Technical Director of Light & Sound for over a hundred live performances and plays. As a composer, James is a multi-year winner of the composition contest of the North Carolina Music Teacher’s Association and the Nyack College School of Music composition contest. James is the Director of Music at St. Nicholas Catholic Church in Virginia Beach and previously served as Director of Music & Liturgy at St. Luke the Evangelist Catholic Church in Raleigh, NC. He resides in Virginia Beach with his wife, Amy, and their three children. 
Preschool for the Arts
Academics Teacher Colleen Ignacio Kindergarten for the Arts
Katie Simmons Katie Simmons received her bachelors degree in Education, specializing in Pre-K - 12 Health and Physical Education from Emory & Henry College, in Abingdon, VA (2010). She then went on to receive her Masters in Education, specializing in distance learning. For the past 5 years Katie has been a full time stay-at-home mom moving around due to Navy life. Katie has done a lot of subbing throughout this time. She did her subbing at Roanoke Catholic School as well as Virginia Beach School of the Arts. Katie said "I have enjoyed being a part of VBSA for a couple years now. I am honored to now teach at this school. I love the concept of learning thru the Arts! I am thrilled to be working with the Kindergarten age group and I cannot wait to see what this year has in store for us all." Katie has been happily married for almost 7 years. Her husband is in the Navy and they have three daughters (5, 3.5, and 1.5) who will all attend classes at VBSA. |
Colleen Ignacio is a retired Naval Officer, who served in the Marine Corps and the Navy. She possesses a Bachelor of Science in Biology from Old Dominion University (2000), a Bachelor of Science in Nursing from Norfolk State University (2012) and a Masters in Nursing Education from South University (2016). Her teaching experience includes serving as Adjunct Faculty at Central Texas College, Adjunct Faculty at ECPI’s Medical Careers Institute and serving in the Children’s Ministry at Calvary Revival Church in Norfolk, Virginia. “I am honored and humbled for the opportunity to help shape the next generation of leaders and scholars!” She has been blissfully married to her husband, Erick, for sixteen years and they have a precocious three year old daughter Ericka; who attends Preschool of the Arts.