Position:
Dean; Professor (Beginning July 1, 2025)Employed Since:
July 2025Educational History:
B.M., M.M., Ph.D., New York University
Professional Highlights:
Jennifer Smolos Steele, Ph.D., has held various academic positions in higher education arts programs for nearly 20 years. She trained and then worked at New York University, and is currently the dean of the School of Visual and Performing Arts at College of the Canyons in Santa Clarita, California, a post she’s held since 2019.
In her new role as dean of Shenandoah Conservatory, Steele will lead an organization that includes over 650 students and more than 100 expert faculty, many of whom are renowned nationally and internationally. Shenandoah Conservatory provides a wealth of undergraduate and graduate programs in music, theatre, dance, and performing arts leadership and management, and produces over 300 performance opportunities each year. Steele will provide strategic leadership and administrative oversight of Shenandoah Conservatory, fostering excellence in teaching, artistic training, performance, and scholarship. Steele, who arrives at Shenandoah University as it celebrates its 150th year in 2025, will shape the future of the conservatory’s performing arts education by leading significant fundraising initiatives, managing and strengthening financial operations, and driving innovation while honoring Shenandoah Conservatory’s rich history. She’ll also focus on career-readiness, ensuring graduates are well-prepared for professional success.
In her current role as dean of the School of Visual and Performing Arts at College of the Canyons, Steele oversees the overall operations – including strategic planning, budget and resource management, curriculum development, and academic program oversight – of the school and its eight departments: art, art gallery, dance, graphic and multimedia design, media entertainment arts, music, photography and theatre. Since 2021, she’s also served as artistic director of the Santa Clarita Performing Arts Center at College of the Canyons, and was tasked with leading the reopening of the 47,000-square-foot facility in the wake of the COVID-19 pandemic.
During her time as dean at College of the Canyons, Steele led the design and construction of a recording studio facility from an underutilized classroom space in support of the school’s commercial music program, worked with faculty to reimagine visual and performing arts programmatic offerings, and developed and implemented course offerings in art, media entertainment arts, music, and theatre for the very first time in the school’s Rising Scholars program for incarcerated students in Los Angeles.
Prior to her time at College of the Canyons, Steele was a member of the core faculty at The American Academy of Dramatic Arts (2006–2019) and was an adjunct instructor of voice at the Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development at New York University (2010–2019). Steele is also a performer who has appeared in numerous regional theatre productions, tours and off-Broadway productions, and has operated a successful private voice studio since 2003.
She holds a Bachelor of Music in vocal performance (music theatre) from NYU Steinhardt; studied for two years in the Master of Fine Arts in acting program at the Actors Studio Drama School at The New School in New York City; and earned a Master of Music in vocal performance, an advanced certificate in vocal pedagogy, and a Doctor of Philosophy in educational leadership from New York University.
Research:
As a scholar, Dr. Jennifer Smolos Steele’s research focuses on how various types of performing arts institutions and programs (e.g. four-year, two-year, university, college, graduate/undergraduate) work to train their students and graduates for the ever-evolving challenges of working in the world of professional practice.
Personal Quote:“I am incredibly honored to serve as the next dean of Shenandoah Conservatory. The institutional mission, rich history of growth, innovation, scope of programs offered, and active engagement with the world of professional practice are all profoundly exciting to me. I look forward to collaborating with Shenandoah’s exceptional faculty, staff, and students in the years to come.”