It is not often that people actually want to go through the junk folder of their email, but Portage High School Orchestra Director Carrie Ann Carlson did earlier this month when she realized a very special memo had been sorted into the wrong digital category.
After receiving a congratulatory email from Portage principal Jen Sass, Carlson went digging through her inbox to find that she had been named the American String Teachers Association’s Outstanding High School Orchestra teacher for 2014. She had been nominated by a friend and fellow Notre Dame Graduate and string teacher.
“It was very humbling to think that somebody in your profession thought enough about you that they would put your name in for an award,” Carlson said.
A committee of four American String Teachers Association members chose Carlson unanimously from the pool of nominees. Carlson speculates that her work with children’s concerts and Zeta electric string instruments helped her stand out, along with Portage’s All Music Award, which is granted to music departments, usually only three or four in the whole state, where every music group (including choir and band) gets top ratings at all contests they attend.
“I don’t think of myself as being anything spectacular,” Carlson said. “I think [my students] know that I work hard every day and we try to do a good job and do a lot of interesting things.”
After the surprise of finding out she had won, Carlson was given the opportunity to go to Fort Wayne for a commencement ceremony.
“It’s been like a whirlwind. When you’re not expecting something like that and then suddenly you’re given an honor, it’s just kind of overwhelming, really,” Carlson said. “But it’s been fun.”
Two of her three children and their families were there to give a speech about Carlson and her character. Her other son is currently serving in the Air Force and could not attend.
“I thought it would be a nice tribute to them and my family, Carlson said. “They sacrifice a lot, too, when their mom or dad is a teacher. You know, we’re gone a lot in the evening and on the weekends, so their whole life, they’ve been living this and they’ve been watching me, so I thought it would be nice if I had Brian and Becky do the tribute for me.”
Carlson explained that her love and passion for music came from her own parents. In high school her mother was a majorette for the school marching band, and her father was a top-ranked percussionist. From them, Carlson inherited some natural talent, although she said she still had to work at it when she started piano at age eight.
“My mom had a great strategy with me,” Carlson said. “She would say, ‘Well, Carrie Ann, would you rather practice your piano or do the dishes?’ So it’s like, ‘Gee, I don’t know, I think I’ll go practice my piano.”
The dedication paid off, and Carlson was able to attend Indiana State University with violin and tennis scholarships that paid for her schooling. She then attended Notre Dame to major in Sonata Literature after working for Chesterton for five years. Finally she received an Artist’s Degree from Duquesne University in Pittsburgh.
Carlson has played in many different orchestras, including the Southwest Michigan Symphony, South Bend Symphony, Whiting Park, South Shore Symphony and La Porte Symphony Orchestras. In many, she holds or has previously held positions like principle second violist and associate concert master.
Of course, for Carlson, there is still something special about high school music at Portage High School. “We’re surrounded by people who are top in their field and to get the all music award and those types of things, and the tradition of having an excellent music department here has been really wonderful, and I do love teaching here,” Carlson said.