MANSFIELD, PA— Mansfield University President Fran Hendricks awarded the MU Presidential Coin for Excellence to Peggy Dettwiler, professor of Music and director of Choral Activities at MU, on April 11.
The presentation was made after Dettwiler directed the Mansfield Festival Chorus performance of A German Requiem by Johannes Brahms at Steadman Theatre on Saturday.
Under Dettwiler’s direction, the MU Concert Choir won the World Championship in the Gospel and Spiritual Category at the World Choir Games in Graz, Austria in 2008, then took three Gold Medals at the World Choir Games in Cincinnati, OH in 2012 and in 2014, brought home three more Gold Medals from the World Choir Games in Riga, Latvia
In 2011, the Concert Choir won first place and two second-place prizes at the International Eisteddfod in Llangollen, Wales, and was awarded the 2011 American Prize in Choral Performance for the College/University Division.
Dettwiler received the 2010 Elaine Brown Award for Choral Excellence from the Pennsylvania Chapter of the American Choral Directors Association (ACDA). She is past president of the Pennsylvania Chapter of ACDA and is the Pennsylvania representative for the National Collegiate Choral Organization Board of Directors.
The coin was developed by Hendricks and designed by MU Publications Director Andy Worthington. It is awarded selectively to persons who have contributed greatly to the university, using the Mansfield Creed; Character, Scholarship, Culture and Service as a guideline.
The coin bears several symbols representing historical highlights and other aspects of the university that make it distinctive.
For more information on the Mansfield University Presidential Coin for Excellence and to see the gallery of honorees, go to president.mansfield.edu/coin-for-excellence
To learn more about the Music Department at Mansfield, go to music.mansfield.edu