Dr. Sheryl Monkelien recently retired from Mansfield University of Pennsylvania. For 21 years she directed the Music Education program, musical theatre productions and the Mansfieldians – Vocal Jazz. She received her Bachelor of Music Education degree from Iowa State University, a Master of Music and Ph.D. from the University of Nebraska. She also studied jazz for two years at the Phil Mattson School of Music in Spokane, Washington.

Dr. Monkelien is an experienced jazz singer, conductor and clinician. Her vocal jazz ensembles have performed at numerous festivals, state and regional conferences; including the Tenth Annual Vocal Jazz Festival at Carnegie Hall with guest conductor Phil Mattson (2006); the World Choir Games in Graz, Austria (2008) where they were named World Champions in the Jazz Vocal A Capella category; the Eastern Division ACDA Conference in Philadelphia, PA (2010); the ACDA National Conference in Dallas, Texas (2013) the New York City Jazz Festival at the Apollo Theatre (2015 and 2018), and the Eastern Division ACDA Conference in Rochester, NY (2020).

Dr. Monkelien has been invited to conduct district and all-county vocal jazz ensembles in Pennsylvania, New York, Connecticut, Indiana, and Maryland. She conducted the 2007 and 2018 Pennsylvania All-State Vocal Jazz Ensemble, the 2010 ACDA Eastern Division Jazz Honor Choir and will be conducting the 2024 Indiana All-State Vocal Jazz Ensemble. Dr. Monkelien has presented sessions at PMEA, ADCA and IAJE conferences and has worked with choral conductors in Pennsylvania, New York, Indiana, Connecticut, New Jersey and Virginia on vocal jazz methods and materials. During the summers of 2016 and 2017, she presented workshops on vocal jazz improvisation at high schools in Edinburgh, Scotland, presented workshops on vocal jazz ensemble rehearsal techniques to choral conductors in Glasgow, Scotland, and participated in the Richard Michael Jazz Course in Perth, Scotland.