Date/Time: September 16, 2025
8-9:30 pm ET/5-6:30 pm PT
Cost: Free for NPM members;
$20 for non-members
Join Dr. Jennifer Kerr Budziak, author of the award-winning “Sowing Seeds, Bearing Fruit: A Five-Year Process to Growing a Singing Congregation,” for this practical webinar, designed for helping our assemblies discover, or re-discover, their singing voices.
This webinar will offer:
A realistic, year-by-year roadmap that meets your assembly where they are now and builds success upon success
Measurable goals and milestones to track progress along the way
Troubleshooting guidance for when challenges arise
This isn’t about overnight transformations—it’s about embracing today’s parish realities and re-thinking our approach to cultivating assembly song, one sustainable step at a time.
About the Presenter
Jennifer Kerr Budziak is an active Chicago area conductor, author, poet, mezzo-soprano, and composer, and is a frequent clinician in the area of vocal technique and conducting at workshops nationwide. Dr. Budziak has served as conductor at many Chicago-area liturgical events and choral festivals, including the National Association of Pastoral Musicians’ national conference in 2009 and the Jubilee Archdiocesan Choir and Symphony Orchestra’s “Field of Faith” celebration at Soldier Field in June 2000.
She has authored or co-authored numerous books and articles on liturgy, ritual, and music, including Sight-Sing a New Song (2005), a textbook on sight-singing and music notation for beginners, and Sowing Seeds, Bearing Fruit: A Five Year Process for Growing a Singing Congregation, (July 2012), an Association of Catholic Publishers award finalist. Her compositions for adult and children’s choirs can be found in the catalogs of GIA Publications, World Library Publications, and Oregon Catholic Press. She has served as Editor of Publications for the National Association of Pastoral Musicians and is a frequent presenter at the organization’s regional and national conferences.
Dr. Budziak has served on the faculties of North Central College, Concordia University, St. Xavier University, and the Catholic Theological Union. Her areas of research interests include liminal/ritual studies and the social and identity-forming implications of community music-making. She currently serves as an assistant conductor for the Chicago Symphony Chorus.