Kristiana McCombs is pictured here receiving award from Dr. William R. Green
Kristiana McCombs, a junior cello performance and music education double major from Rockford, Illinois, was named Lee University’s 2016-2017 Presser Undergraduate Scholar.
“Kristiana exemplifies the type of student that the Presser Foundation had in mind when they established the Presser Scholar Program,” said Dr. William Green, dean of Lee’s School of Music. “She is a student that is dedicated to the art of exceptional music making, that takes advantage of every opportunity to learn, and is fully engaged in helping others fuel their passion for music.”
Ms.
McCombs is a Centennial Scholar with a 4.0 GPA. She is a member of Lee’s Symphony Orchestra, Chamber Strings, and the Chamber Music program. She has also performed with the Chattanooga Symphony Orchestra.
While at Lee, she has been a Gateway Peer Leader, a participant in the Honors Recital and Student Showcase Recital, a featured soloist in Symphony Orchestra’s Concerto Competition Concert, and student assistant to the chair of Music Performance Studies.
“I am deeply grateful to be included in the circle of outstanding students at Lee University who have been named Presser Scholars,” said Ms. McCombs. “Being recognized by professors whom I highly admire and respect means a great deal to me as a student and musician. This award will be a tremendous help to me as I endeavor to eventually study music at the graduate level and become a professional musician.”
The Presser Foundation, established by music publisher Theodore Presser, is dedicated solely to the support of music and music education. With its Undergraduate Scholar Award, the Pennsylvania-based foundation recognizes students who demonstrate outstanding accomplishments in music performance at accredited colleges and universities across the country.
As the 2016-2017 Presser Scholar, Ms. McCombs will receive a cash stipend for her upcoming senior year.
Presser Undergraduate Scholar Awards are distributed to a number of accredited institutions throughout America. Past recipients of Lee University include Matthew Kelly (2015), Joey Archer (2014), Erica Tipton (2013), Matthew Wilkinson (2012), Lamprini Lindeman (2011), Christopher Oglesby (2010), Sabbath Ward (2009), Rachael Skidmore (2008), Michael Land (2007), Brooke Upton (2006), Troy Strand (2005), Rachel Ogle Laney (2004), Amy Shallenberger (2003), Brian Shaw (2002), RaeAnna Hooper (2001), and Jeffrey Jewsome (2000).