On March 19, Provost Noel Painter, Ph.D., announced that Washington Garcia, Ph.D., will be serving as Stetson University’s new dean of the School of Music.

Three years ago, Stetson University began their search for a new dean of the School of Music. After selecting Timothy Peter, D.MA., in 2019 to serve in the position for two years, in 2020 the School of Music’s search committee, comprised of faculty, advisors, and students, initiated their second attempt at finding a new dean. After finalizing and interviewing three candidates, Dr. Garcia was chosen and will officially begin his role beginning July 12, 2021. 

According to Dr. Painter’s announcement, Garcia currently serves at the University of Nebraska at Omaha as the Special Assistant to the Senior Vice Chancellor and Founding Director of the School of Music. Before his roles at the University of Nebraska Omaha, he was a professor of piano and Assistant Director of Texas State University’s School of Music. Dr. Garcia is a highly praised world-class Ecuadorian-American pianist who has performed in countries such as Singapore, Italy, Switzerland, France, and many other countries, as well as in 30 states in the U.S. He received his master’s and doctoral degrees from the Peabody Institute of the John Hopkins University and his bachelor’s degree from the National Conservatory of Music in Ecuador. 

In the email from Dr. Painter announcing Dr. Garcia as dean of the School of Music, he includes a comment from Garcia that reads: “I am honored and deeply touched by the trust that the Stetson community has placed in me to lead the School of Music into the exceptional future that lies ahead of us. Through unity and collaboration, we will together make our School of Music an even more beautiful place to learn, teach, and make music of the highest caliber.”