Joy Gardner-Acting Teacher

LETTERS OF RECOMMENDATION:

To Whom It May Concern,

It’s my absolute pleasure to recommend Joy Gardner as a Acting and Drama instructor. Joy and I worked together for three years at Heritage Academy where I serve as the Chairman of the Governing Board and Managing Director. 

I thoroughly enjoyed my time working with Joy and have come to know her as someone who puts extensive dedication and focus into her job. She is honest, professional, and incredibly focused on the success of each of her pupils. Beyond that, she has an impressive performance background in professional acting and singing. 

Her knowledge of building character in our youth through her discipline has had a positive impact on our entire school. Joy put this skill set to work in creating unique and engaging performances. 

Along with her undeniable talent, Joy has always been an absolute pleasure to work with. Joy naturally connected with our parents and her fellow employees, fostering positive discussions and collaboration. 

Without a doubt, I confidently recommend Joy as an enthusiastic and knowledgeable artist, teacher, and an all-around great person. Please feel free to contact me should you like to discuss Joy’s qualifications and experience further. I’d be happy to expand on my recommendation.

Best wishes,

Jared Taylor

Chairman/CEO Heritage Academy

JTaylor@HeritageAcademyAZ.com

*******************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

To Whom It May Concern:

I am writing to recommend Joy Gardner.  She is a fantastic teacher, employee, and person.  I worked with Joyat Heritage Academy as a fellow teacher for a year, and two years as her principal.  Joy was always prepared for class.  She constantly worked to improve her lessons so that students would remain engaged.  When Joy would walk into a classroom full of former students, these pupils would cheer her presence.  She had a way of ensuring every student felt special and included.  Students felt valued in her presence.

Joy allows each scholar to shine in their own way.  Joy instituted a performance schedule that allowed students to perform in front of a live audience.  She would provide specific feedback to each student or group to help them develop their acting skills.

Joy Gardner is honestly one of the very best teachers at our school.  I would highly recommend you make her a part of your organization.  You will not be disappointed.  Please contact me with any questions.

~Dr. Travis Moore

Principal Heritage Academy

TMoore@HeritageAcademyAZ.com

**************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

To Whom It May Concern:

I have been asked to write a letter of reference for Mrs. Joy Gardner who is applying for a Drama Teacher’s position at Heritage Academy.  I have known Joy for three years and have found her to be very well informed and an excellent teacher of musical theatre voice and acting.  She worked for me at Mesa Community College – Red Mountain Campus for 1 ½ years and did very well.  The students found her to be personable and very easy to work with, as well as being very knowledgeable in the area of her expertise – voice and acting.  

She has done musical theater and film work both in Arizona and Utah and is presently awaiting the release of a feature film in which she has a leading role.  I have observed her interaction with other faculty, and they have found her to be easy to get along with (as well as helpful in rendering assistance when it was asked for).  Joy is a warm and gregarious personality and is very gifted both as a singer, actress, and as a teacher.  Her work with college level students has been most successful in what I have observed.  

Joy Gardner would be a strong addition to any program that is fortunate enough to hire her.  I would like to recommend her to you for your consideration as an instructor in voice/ acting/drama/musical theatre on your faculty. If you have any additional questions please feel free to contact me. Much success to you on your search.

Best Regards,

Glenn M Bennett, DMA

Assistant Chair Music

Mesa Community College – Red Mountain

7110 East McKellips Road

Mesa, AZ 85207

**************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

To Whom It May Concern:

Joy Gardner has asked that I write a letter of recommendation, and I’m delighted to do so. I have been teaching voice at the University of Florida as an adjunct faculty member since 1987, currently working exclusively with musical theatre students. I have known Joy since 1994 when she began private voice lessons with me during her high school years. Her extraordinary talent as a singer and performer was obvious even then.

Since that time, I have had several occasions to witness her expertise as a teacher of singing and acting, particularly in the area of contemporary musical theatre. She returned to Gainesville for a summer in the early 2000s, and conducted a several‐week private course in musical theatre speech level mix and belting. I was one of the participants, and thoroughly enjoyed the experience. After that, I had a few lessons with Joy specifically to further my understanding of her approach to contemporary musical theatre singing. I have come to know her as an exceptionally good teacher; she is energetic, enthusiastic, warm and efficient. She packs a lot into a half hour lesson!

Later, in 2008, she conducted a few sessions on singing and acting for my students (all BFA Musical Theatre) during their studio class time. Again, her enthusiastic and fun presentations were high‐powered and very effective. Joy would be an extremely valuable asset to any college faculty. If I can be of further help, please feel free to contact me.

Sincerely,

Deborah Sperlich

Adjunct Instructor

College of Fine Arts‐ School of Music

University of Florida

339 MUB P.O. Box 117900

Gainesville, Fl 32611‐7900

sperlich@ufl.edu

**************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

To Whom It May Concern:

It is my understanding that Joy Gardner is currently under consideration for employment at your College. As a member of the committee who hired Ms. Gardner to teach Contemporary Voice at Brigham Young University, it was my responsibility to interview her and observe her teaching. I found her to be not only a gifted performer, but also an excellent teacher. In the time that she taught at BYU we never received a complaint from a student or had any reason for concern about her students’ progress. 

In addition to her teaching skills, Ms. Gardner is an extraordinary person who possesses integrity and grace and her ability to work with others as a team are excellent. In short, I highly recommend Ms. Joy Gardner to you for employment as a voice and acting teacher.

Sincerely,

Gayle Lockwood

Assistant Professor of Music/Voice

Music Dance Theater Program

1136 Richards Building

Brigham Young University

Provo, UT 84602

Gayle_Lockwood@byu.edu

**************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************************

To Whom It May Concern:

It is a pleasure to provide a letter of recommendation for Joy Gardner as she applies for a position as a voice faculty member at Mesa Community College.  I have taught with Joy Gardner for many years as I have served as the Division Coordinator for Voice in the School of Music and also as chair of the interdisciplinary faculty steering committee for the Music Dance Theatre BFA program.  Joy has taught numerous students who were preparing for the Media Music and Music Dance Theatre majors.   Once accepted, Joy has been able to guide them through the development of the various techniques, placements and styles of contemporary and media music for a broad spectrum of applications in today’s music industry.  Jazz, Pop, Musical Theatre, R&B, Country, Mix and Belt are just a few of the styles and placements that Joy is proficient in helping her students discover in their own voices. Her private students always received excellent instruction.  In our juried recitals, the students studying with Joy were well prepared and communicated through their music in a powerful way.  I can’t say enough about her superb teaching in singing and acting.

As an artist/scholar, she always remains professional, available, responsive, and amiable in her interactions with students and colleagues.  Joy creates a comfortable environment for learning and uses a myriad of techniques to help her students think, learn, and feel encouraged while being challenged to improve.  Over the years, she has forged a strong relationship with her colleagues in classical and contemporary voice, working tirelessly to improve every facet of her instruction.  She is able to sift through the diversity of teaching styles and practices to help her students understand how to tackle a new technique.

She is that uncommon teacher who possesses a body of knowledge sufficient to allow her the freedom to approach each student’s learning in a unique way. I see Joy Gardner as a most valuable resource in the lives of voice and acting students in any university setting.  She would be a tremendous asset to your music faculty in this position. As a teacher, her remarkable insight and experience is preparing students for future careers in this highly competitive world of performing arts.  As a performing artist, she is remarkably gifted.  Her recordings, leading roles in live and film productions and smooth performance style set her apart as a total professional.  I would recommend Joy Gardner without reservation for any voice and acting teaching position at the university level.

Sincerely,

Randall W. Boothe

Associate Dean

College of Fine Arts and Communications

Brigham Young University

A-501 HFAC

Provo, UT  84602

Randall_Boothe@byu.edu