Minami Cohen

• Choral Director, Mt. St. Eden High School Faculty, Holy Names University
• Past President, NCAKE

A native of Okinawa, Japan, Minami earned her B.A. in Music Ed. from the University of the Ryukyus, and M.M. in Music Ed. with Kodály Emphasis from Holy Names University (HNU). She worked at the HNU Kodály Summer Institute from 2015 to 2022 as coordinator, musicianship and Level II faculty.

Minami has taught at the elementary, middle and high school levels as a music educator focusing on Kodály-based approach to general and choral music programs. She is the choral program director at the Mt. Eden High School in Hayward, California. She served as President of the Northern California Association of Kodály Educators (NCAKE), and as a member of the Equity committee as well as leadership training task force for Organization of American Kodály Educators (OAKE).

Minami strives to promote quality music education and make it accessible to all students and educators alike. Minami’s passion and interests include sharing the music of her cultural heritage and the topic of Social Emotional Learning and Culturally Responsive Teaching in music classrooms. She is a recipient of the 2020 Young Alumni Award from HNU and has presented workshops and presentations around the U.S. and abroad including International Kodály Society Symposia and OAKE National Conferences.