Meet Mrs. Donaldson

Name: Mrs. Kate Donaldson, BME, MMT, NBCT

Music Educator at  Vestavia Hills Elementary Dolly Ridge

School email:  donaldsonka@vhcs.us

About The Teacher

My Name is Kate Donaldson and I am your child's music teacher.  I am so excited to be a part of Dolly Ridge School.  This is my 35th  year teaching, and my 22nd year with Vestavia Hills City Schools, and Dolly Ridge is such a great place to be!  I wanted to take a moment to tell you a little bit about myself, and to tell you what you can expect this year.

I graduated from Auburn University with a degree in Music Education and did not think I wanted to be a teacher, so I went straight to graduate school at Florida State University and earned a Master's of Music Therapy.  I then moved to England and the only job available was an Elementary Music position.  I have explained to your children that sometimes you try something you don't think you will enjoy (like broccoli) and you unexpectedly find something you LOVE.  I taught in England for three years with the Department of Defense, and then taught Elementary music for ten years in Auburn.  I absolutely adore teaching.  I am so fortunate to be able to teach this age group all day, every day.  I received my National Board Certification in 2009 and certified again in 2019.  I also have Orff and Kodaly' certifications.

I have two wonderful sons.  Jake is a graduate of Samford University and is now an employed graphic designer for WebMD here in town and married to a wonderful young lady named Nicholle, who is also a graphic designer.  Zack graduated from  Mississippi College where he got a Business degree and pitched on their baseball team.  He is now the pitching coach for Mississippi College.  I was fortunate to be able to teach my boys and feel much better prepared to tie into elementary curriculum ideas.  I work hard trying to integrate the music curriculum with the regular curriculum and we have a lot of fun in the process.  I also have a wonderful husband, Dave, who loves being part of the Dolly Ridge family as well.

We have amazing online resources with our subscriptions to Quaver Music and MusicPlay.com.  I can't wait to share these with your kids.

Please feel free to email me about any concerns or suggestions!

I am looking forward to a great year with your children!

Please note:  Our district strongly recommends for their employees not to communicate with students or parents via a social network.  I am always available via Parentsquare or by email.