Chair of the Music Department and Associate Professor of Music Christina Wright-Ivanova has accepted a position as Chair of Performing Arts at the American University of Sharjah (AUS) in Sharjah, United Arab Emirates (UAE). Starting in January of 2026, Wright-Ivanova will be entering her new role for a one-and-a-half-year position at the private university, which is located fifteen minutes from Dubai, and taking a leave of absence with the potential to return to KSC at the conclusion of her contract.
“I’m so blessed and deeply honored to have met and worked with the students here over the past nine years, not only in piano but within the entirety of the music department. They are some of the most curious, open-minded and flexible students that I’ve had the privilege of working with over my career across five different academic institutions,” said Wright-Ivanova while reflecting on her time at KSC.
Wright-Ivanova’s leave of absence begins on Monday, Dec. 15.
The position at AUS has been offered on a permanent basis, but Wright-Ivanova has the opportunity to return to KSC at the conclusion of her initial one-and-a-half-year leave of absence, depending on which direction she feels drawn to take.
“I’m not sure how the universe will lead me in terms of staying in Dubai or coming back to Keene State, but I’ve been very blessed to have this new opportunity,” said Wright-Ivanova.
Wright-Ivanova joined KSC in 2017, following a two-year assistant professorship at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV). Having previously worked with graduate-level musicians at UNLV, Wright-Ivanova found that working with the undergraduate level at KSC offered more teaching opportunities, which she credits as pivotal to her development as a music educator.
“I was working with all master’s and doctoral students in Vegas, and when I came here, it was really great because I could cater to a new perspective within the undergraduate liberal arts. It helped me become a better teacher, and gave me the chance to work with a new age group and more students who were maybe more interested in a broader experience,” said Wright-Ivanova.
Wright-Ivanova said that she is excited to start a new chapter as an educator and artist and immerse herself in new musical and cultural spaces.
“We’ll see how the experience is, and I’m very excited to be leading the performing arts, including theater and music, perhaps some dance, and developing a new curriculum over there. [AUS] has students representing 90 different countries, and it’s a very diverse environment. I’m looking forward to that perspective, and also having the opportunity to learn beyond my experience in Western classical music, but also global and Arabic music, as well as Middle Eastern musical instruments,” said Wright-Ivanova.
“It will be really different and exciting for me, both as an educator and a music person,” added Wright-Ivanova.
Wright-Ivanova said that part of her decision can be traced back to statewide issues related to the arts.
“We have had a lot of changes over the past nine years, some good and some challenging, especially within the arts and the current situation with the arts and state funding. That played into my decision-making,” said Wright-Ivanova.
“I hope we see more changes, and more support for the arts at the state level, as well as for higher education funding in the state, which would allow us to do more programming here in the future,” added Wright-Ivanova.
KSC students are one of the most important things Wright-Ivanova will miss, with the departing professor expressing her pride in the student body.
“I feel very proud of some of the things that we’ve done as a department, such as the All Steinway campaign, which I’ve been very proud and honored to be a part of, but it’s also the relationships I’ve built over the years with KSC students have been incredibly special to me. I’ll be holding them all in my heart, wherever I am on this Earth,” said Wright-Ivanova.
KSC alum ‘25 and current Front of House Manager for the Redfern Arts Center Tori Young credits Wright-Ivanova as a mentor and wished her well on her new opportunity.
“[Wright-Ivanova] was my professor for four years and became a mentor to me, not only helping me navigate my professional career but also helping me when I was changing my major,” Young said. “She was always a listening ear and I would often bother her and talk to her whenever I could.”
“I also had her as a private instructor for piano instruction, and it was always so much fun and very motivating. Her artistry and ability to speak through the instrument is otherworldly. Being able to learn from someone of that caliber was intimidating, yet awe-inspiring,” added Young.
Professor of Music and longtime colleague of Wright-Ivanova, Heather Gilligan, will be accepting a temporary position as Interim Chair of Music, following Wright-Ivanova’s departure, during the spring semester of the 2025-2026 academic year.
“We are working on an interim structure going forward. I will be the chair in the spring, but as a department, we have to vote on the next chair,” said Gilligan.
Gilligan said that prioritizing departmental stabilization to avoid a leadership vacuum will be a top priority upon her arrival to the interim role.
“We have to make sure that everything continues smoothly after not only the departure of [former President Melinda Treadwell], but also [Wright-Ivanova] to avoid a possible leadership vacuum. [Wright-Ivanova] and I have been working very closely, and we are set up very nicely to have a smooth transition,” said Gilligan.
“We want all of our concerts and curricular endeavours and initiatives to continue as planned, and there is no reason they would not. There are a lot of challenges, with the departure of the president and state funding cuts, so there are a lot of challenges that will be addressed. There is a lot of advocacy that needs to be done, and I’ll be advocating for her role to be filled and to have the administrative support in place that we need,” added Gilligan.
Ryan Pacheco can be contacted at
rpacheco@kscequinox.com
