K-Stater shares love for music with children by starting his own school
When you step into a room filled with preschoolers learning how to make music, the
noise you are greeted with may not immediately sound very harmonious or melodic.
You might hear some shouts and giggling, and different rhythms and musical notes compete
against each other as the children learn and experiment with instruments and their
voices.
Yet to music educator Zach Seckman ’17, that sound is beautiful, because it’s the
sound of children discovering the joy of music.
After graduating from Kansas State University with a degree in music education, he
founded Seckman Music School in Wichita, Kansas. The school offers classes for kids
from 4 to 18 years old and celebrates its fifth anniversary this summer.
“My experiences at K-State were literally life-changing for me,” Seckman said. “Without
K-State, I wouldn't be in this position that I'm in, being able to run my own music
school, being able to be a published composer, a published curriculum author. The
experiences that I've had up there just generally shaped me into the musician and
the business owner that I am today.”
As a child, his creative spark first pushed him towards a career in architecture.
He remembers drawing blueprints and floor plans, and he still has a folder filled
with those drawings.
Yet as he grew older, he said he started taking his music classes more seriously.
He was involved in percussion in high school and advanced into leadership roles.
“That’s when I realized, ‘Why not make that a career?’” he remembers.
He started giving private music lessons in high school and continued through his time
as a K-State student.
He credits his experiences in the K-State Marching Band for instilling in him the
values of grit, hard work, dedication and determination — values he weaves into his
school and the music curricula he develops.
“Being able to further my education at a place that I'm able to learn and work and
do those things alongside fellow students literally from around the world, that was
able to open my eyes up to experience different cultures, work with different people
and things like that,” he said of his time at K-State. “That opened me up to what’s
possible.”
As a college student, his original plan was to teach within the school system in a
traditional classroom setting, but eventually he was drawn to the flexibility and
freedom of starting his own music school. He said the skills he learned from his K-State
education degree continue to be helpful as he designs his own curricula and creates
lesson plans.
One of the programs he is most proud of is the “Little Jammers” series of group classes
that offer exposure to piano, guitar, drums and singing for children ages 4-7. He’s
been able to turn “Little Jammers” into a licensed program currently taught in three
other states with more expansions planned later this year.
And regardless of whether he’s teaching a private lesson or in a group setting, he
makes sure each student receives personalized, one-on-one attention.
“It's basically building those connections — that's first and foremost with my philosophy
of teaching,” he said. “That lets me get to know the student, what their likes and
dislikes are, and gauge what's going to be the best way to teach the information to
them or present the information to them, whether they learn best by tinkering and
playing on the instruments, or whether that's reading from a book, or whether that's
watching a video or me describing something, or writing something out for them. We
focus on the kids before we focus on the music.”
He believes it’s important for children to have a creative outlet, where they feel
free to be themselves and explore their creativity.
“Music helps brighten their day,” he said. “It helps lift the kids up.”
Learn more about Seckman’s work
Learn more about the Little Jammers curriculum
