Sarah Smongeski to retire after 31 years of leading Pakachoag Music School

When Sarah Smongeski became executive director of Pakachoag Music School of Greater Worcester in 1992, "I wasn't sure whether I could be successful. But at the same time I wanted to do it, so I was happy to do it and I certainly learned a lot," she recalled.

"I think a lot of it is about interpersonal skills. I knew the first thing was to meet with each teacher," Smongeski said.

The school's official name at the time was Pakachoag Community Music School and it was located at the complex at Pakachoag Church in Auburn.

Smongeski has now been executive director of Pakachoag Music School of Greater Worcester for 31 years, during which time she has grown the school's budget more than tenfold, with faculty expanding from 12 to 32 part-time teaching artists and early childhood specialists. She has overseen six strategic planning cycles and three campaigns. Perhaps most significantly, from 2016 to 2018 Smongeski oversaw the school’s move from its long-time home in Auburn to All Saints Church, 10 Irving St., right in the heart of downtown Worcester.

That was a big change in the life of the school.

On May 31 there will be another one, as Smongeski puts in her final day at Pakachoag Music School before officially retiring as executive director

"I think its a good time for the organization. I felt the time was right for me and the school," Smongeski said.

Speaking up

The school, which celebrated 40 years at a gala event at Tuckerman Hall last September, has students of all backgrounds and ages from more than 40 different communities in and around Worcester. Programs include early childhood Music Together, Suzuki Violin & Cello, private lessons, introductory keyboard and music literacy classes, theater with music, song writing, and small ensembles.

Smongeski is also a flute player and has taught flute at Pakachoag Music School from the beginning.

Although she's retiring as executive director, Smongeski, who lives in Shrewsbury, isn't entirely leaving the scene or giving up giving flute lessons, although she intends to be as quiet about things as possible.

As the Pakachoag Music School board of directors conducts a search for her successor, "I'll do some part time work behind the scenes," she said. "I anticipate quietly teaching and staying out of the way so things can move forward."

A successor is anticipated to be named later in 2023, according to the board of directors.

While she may be shy by nature, It was speaking up that helped pave the way to Smongeski's career in community music school administration.

Originally from Crawley, in West Sussex, England, she moved with her family to the Boston South Shore just before the age of 10 — although she has retained her English accent.

Smongeski said she remembers her parents saying before they moved, "Oh Boston, that's supposed to be a nice place. They have a really great symphony orchestra."

Smongeski graduated from Eastern Nazarene College in Quincy with a degree in music education and performance (flute).

She studied music education so that should could be a teacher. "You've got to have a job," she said. But she remained a dedicated flute player and has played with various ensembles throughout her life.

Shortly after graduating from Eastern Nazarene, she was hired to teach flute at "a start-up" community center" in Quincy.

"I started to have ideas," Smongeski said. She recalled that she would say, "I think we should do this ..."

Eventually she was asked to be a coordinator. "I liked it." She had found a passion for community music education.

She was also a consultant to the Massachusetts Department of Education and earned a certificate in administration and management from Harvard University's Extension.

When she and her husband, Joe, moved to Whitinsville, she applied to Pakachoag Community Music School to be a flute teacher. The executive director, looking at Smongeski's experience, advised her that there could be an administrative position coming open that she might be interested in.

There was. The executive director left. Smongeski was interested, applied, and was hired.

'We have never been disappointed'

"I had the privilege of being on the board when Sarah was hired 30 years ago.  We have never been disappointed!" said Pakachoag Music Scholl board member Barbara Groves.

"She has provided strategic leadership and stability during challenging times.  Sarah values strong professional musicianship and has held the school to high standards.  She is the reason the school has attracted outstanding faculty and talented students. She has both visionary and financial skills that have steered Pakachoag through the move to Worcester and to financial stability.  She will be tough to replace!" Groves said.

"I have great admiration of Sarah!  She is the reason the school is still in existence after 40 years," said Kallin Johnson, board president.

"It is through her direction that we moved from Auburn to All Saints Church in Worcester with the mission to reach more inner city students.  Her vision has fostered the recent creation of the Music Matters program which centers on after-school hours music education for several city schools. At Pakachoag, Sarah has maintained the highest standard of arts education easily comparable with anything in Boston or other larger cities."

Johnson was the school's founding executive director in 1982. He left in 1986, but returned in 2006 as a member of the board of directors.

The school had been founded as Pakachoag Community Music School by Pakachoag Church in 1982 as part of a vision to offer something tangible to the community at a time when public schools were cutting their arts and music programs. In 1989 the school was incorporated as an independent nonprofit organization and changed its name to the Pakachoag Music School of Greater Worcester in 2009. But it remained housed at the church, which itself had moved on Pakachoag Street from an old building to a new church facility with room for the school. Pakachoag Church has a rich music tradition, including also housing a Dobson Pipe Organ Opus 69.

A looming issue, however, was that the school didn't have a lease, and Smongeski said it was unclear what the future of the building in Auburn was going to be.

Meanwhile, Pakachoag Music School and All Saints Church had a relationship going back over 10 years with a choir program and also a community outreach Afternoon Tunes program. All Saints also had space — with 5,000 square feet of dedicated space for the music school on the second and third floors of its expansive facility — and offered a lease.

After much discussion, the decision was made to move to All Saints.

"I think the board was wise," Smongeski said. "The board said it's really time now to take hold of our future."

The board has credited Smongeski with successfully overseeing the move and managing a $200,000 campaign to build out new studios and classrooms within All Saints.

"We put a lot of effort into talking with people, looking at budgets ... Moving an organization, there's a lot of hidden logistics. Going from suburb to city is a change. The move was significant in every way," Smongeski said.

More recently, Pakachoag Music School conducted a 40th anniversary campaign and met its $240,000 goal., she said. Some of that money has been used to buy a Steinway B grand piano of public performance quality (the school has about nine other pianos used for teaching and other purposes at its facility at All Saints). In addition to inspiring student growth with a good instrument, the school also sees the piano as a focal point for faculty and guest special events that pre-COVID were programmed two to three times a year.  The Steinway B grand piano will be arriving in June, Smongeski said,

Making connections

Being in downtown Worcester, Pakachoag Music School can "connect with Worcester's cultural community," she said.

"And we've been able to do more for local children that otherwise wouldn't have the opportunity, so for me that's another significant step forward," she said of making access and expanded organizational diversity an on-going priority.

Financial aid will also be a factor in that happening, and Pakachaog Music School has been working on increasing the amount of assistance available.

Enrollment in Auburn had been gradual but grew from year to year and stood at about 450 students. .

The move, and then the pandemic, saw a dip in numbers, which are now recovering.

New programs include a group keyboard class and a theater with music program in partnership with Emanuel Lutheran Church.

The new  Music Matters program, which just finished its second academic year, extends access to over 100 children and youth through free programming offered collaboratively with community partners. Annual special events provide concerts and recitals for families and others in the local community.

Music Matters partners include Elm Park Community School, the Boys and Girls Club, and the Black Excellence Academy, an after-school program at Worcester State University.

"Our hope is that as we get to know these organizations and schools more, we'll continue to connect with the parents and encourage them to enroll in programs here," Smongeski said.

She has previously noted that "What we are teaching is a path for excellence and student success — and more importantly, lifelong fulfillment through the arts."

The ongoing administrative job of making that happen will soon be someone else's.

"We're all agreed I will stay in the background," Smongeski said, half-jokingly.

But you still might hear flute music coming from one of the school's classrooms.

This article originally appeared on Telegram & Gazette: Sarah Smongeski retiring after 31 years leading Pakachoag Music School