Zemlin says friends and colleagues worked secretly to arrange the award for her. It’s one she says she shares with other music educators.
“In truth, music educators teaching in a global pandemic, we are all music educators of the year. Every single one of us,” said Zemlin. “And if we weren’t working together none of us would be doing well at all. So, I can’t really say that in this year I feel any sort of uniqueness.”
Zemlin has been the Director of Vocal Music at Blaine since 1992 and is currently the Music Department Leader. She says her colleagues were looking for a certain mindset. She describes hers as determination.
“At Blaine High School, we really believe mindset is more important than talent,” Zemlin says. “We talk about a growth mindset, and it’s very important to the success of our students and our staff.”
In college, Zemlin says she was a science and technology kid who accidentally became a music teacher. At one point she was interested in computer science, but kept coming back to music.
“I just couldn’t stop doing it. It was so fun to do music and in all honesty, I wasn’t that great at it. It kept me striving for doing more and learning more,” said Zemlin.
She says one of the great things about music is it can make a life richer and more meaningful, even if it’s not your profession.
“It’s OK if you include in your educational day the things that bring you joy and good relationships,” she says. “And music is one of those things.”
