Kim Collins (left) and Caitlin Meyer (right) have joined the staff of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra in Massachusetts.
The Springfield Symphony Orchestra in Massachusetts has announced the appointment of two new staff members: Kim Collins as audience development and community engagement manager, and Caitlin Meyer as education director.
Kim Collins joined the Springfield Symphony in October. She was most recently director of member services with the Connecticut River Valley Chamber of Commerce, where she led member relations and revised member benefits, onboarding, and retention. She also facilitated networking and member orientation and planned large events for the Chamber. A flutist, she has performed with the Springfield Symphony for over 25 years, and served as orchestra librarian for several years. Collins has performed solo engagements and as a pit musician on Broadway and with touring shows. As an educator, Collins has held faculty positions at several schools and universities, in addition to directing her private music studio. She was a guest teaching artist for the El Sistema-inspired Bravo! Waterbury program and has presented arts integration programs to students throughout Connecticut.
Caitlin Meyer is an education leader, music educator, and professional musician who has taught in China, Tanzania, Israel, and Australia. Before joining the SSO, Meyer was director of programs for a charter school in Bridgeport, Connecticut, where she worked with the Connecticut Institute for Refugees and Immigrants to build arts-integrative culturally responsive programs for newcomers. Meyer founded the Qingdao Visual and Performing Arts Educators Association, which has allowed students in China to participate in arts initiatives as well as international travel. Meyer was music director at Saint Bernard School in Uncasville, Connecticut for seven years, where she grew the music program to include well over half of the student population; musicians in the program performed at locations around the world. Meyer is a current doctoral student at DePaul University in Chicago studying Educational Leadership.
