The music program at Howard University has a rich history which
may be traced to 1870, when a few courses were offered. In 1892,
the program was organized as a stable department of the Normal
School, and in 1914 it was established as an independent conservatory.
The School of Music (now Department of Music), under the dynamic
leadership of Dean Warner Lawson, was admitted to membership in
the National Association of Schools of Music in 1942, the first
music program in the Washington area to gain such membership.
In January, 1974, the program was reorganized as a department
of the College of Fine Arts. Since the merger of the College of
Fine Arts and the College of Arts and Sciences in August, 1998,
the Department of Music has functioned as one of three arts areas
of the Division of Fine Arts of the College of Arts and Sciences.
The Howard University Charter, as enacted by
Congress and subsequently approved by President Andrew Johnson
on March 2, 1867, designated
Howard University as "a university for the education of youth
in the liberal arts and sciences." The mission of Howard
University as a comprehensive, research-oriented, predominantly
African-American university is to provide an educational experience
of exceptional quality at reasonable cost to students of high
academic potential. Particular emphasis is placed upon providing
educational opportunities for African-American men and women
and
for other historically disenfranchised groups. Furthermore, Howard
University is dedicated to attracting, sustaining, and developing
a cadre of faculty who, through their teaching and research,
are
committed to producing distinguished and compassionate graduates
who seek solutions to human and social problems in the United
States and throughout the world.
Address:
Howard University
College of Arts and Sciences
Division of Fine Arts
Department of Music
2455 6th Street, NW
Washington, DC 20059
Telephone:
202.806.7082 (7083/7084)
Fax:
202.806.9673
Chairman:
Valerie Eichelberger
202.806.7082
