The WNYK Alumni of the Month spotlight will be on Kristie Vaval, a 2019 magna cum laude graduate of the Nyack College School of Music. A conversation with the member of the New York State Pi Chapter of Alpha Chi National Honor Society who earned her Bachelor of Music in instrumental performance will air live on Monday, November 22 at 2:30 p.m. and will re-air on Tuesday, November 23 at noon, and again on Tuesday, November 30 at 4:00 p.m.
Raised in a family of missionaries, Kristie attended kindergarten, primary school and two years of college in Haiti. When her father learned from a friend about the Christian college in New York that offered a bachelor’s degree in music, Kristie was thrilled at the notion that such a program existed. It didn’t take her long to be sold on enrolling at Nyack.
While studying at Nyack, the gifted singer and musician, who first studied violin and then the recorder, has had the unique experiences of performing twice with the Nyack Chorale on the stage of New York City’s world-renown Lincoln Center; with the School of Music during a Global Service-Learning trip to Italy; and at mid-town Manhattan’s prestigious Steinway Hall—all opportunities she doubts would have come her way at any other school.
Today, the alumna whose heart was sold on using her knowledge gained at Nyack to give back to others has returned to her alma mater serving in the School of Music front office as a full-time staff member.
Tune in to WNYK and hear how Kristie Vaval’s journey as a student has led her to come full circle.