KAYLA HOOTS
Central Washington University Class of 2013
Kayla grew up in Boise and started her music studies early on the piano at the age of five. After graduating from Mountain View High School, she went to Central Washington University on piano jazz scholarships from both IJEE and CWU. The IJEE scholarship helped her to afford her books and tuition each quarter, lessening the load of day-to-day expenses and student loans and allowing her the time to focus on her growth as a teacher and musician. In 2019, Kayla graduated with her Master of Science in Curriculum & Instruction from Western Governors University.
Kayla is currently teaching her tenth year at the Puyallup School District in Puyallup, WA. This year, she started a new role as the arts teacher at Walker High School, a non-traditional route school dedicated to the success of all students. Throughout the past nine years, Kayla has taught multiple choirs’ grades 5-12, general music grades K-6, beginning orchestra, speech & drama, yearbook, and visual arts. This year Kayla is teaching full time visual arts and is developing and implementing a music production course and an after school Jam Band project to begin next fall. During COVID, Kayla worked with Erin Guinup of the Tacoma Refugee Choir to create an event series for students entitled ‘Alone Together’. Check out their culminating project here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=qGT57qH321k. She believes in educating the whole child through art and music to spark intrinsic motivation in learners.
Kayla lives in Tacoma with her partner Scotty and puppy Marvin and enjoys the art of letterpress in her spare time on her 1904 Chander and Price platen press. She’s working on finding her joy on the piano again after moving outside of full-time choir direction.
FARAYI MALEK
New England Conservatory Of Music Class of 20
Farayi Malek is a jazz and contemporary vocalist, composer, and educator. She received her bachelor’s degree in Contemporary Improvisation from New England Conservatory of Music in 2017 where she studied with vocalist and composer, Dominique Eade. After graduation she continued on to receive a master’s degree in Contemporary Performance at the Berklee Global Jazz Institute in 2018, under the tutelage of world-renowned pianist and composer, Danilo Perez. Since 2018, Farayi has been a member of Danilo Perez’s Global Messengers.
In addition to her performance ventures, Farayi Malek is a passionate music educator. In January of 2020, she founded Allegro Virtual Preparatory Instruction, LLC. Beyond helping students develop the necessary technical, performance, and professional skills, Allegro Virtual Prep strives to inspire each student to be socially conscious, and to use their music to make a positive impact in their own communities.
In September 2021, Farayi joined the faculty at Berklee College of Music as Assistant Professor in the Ensemble Department, as well as Pop Ensemble teacher at Berklee’s City Music Boston High School Academy. In January 2022, she joined faculty at New England Conservatory as R&B Ensemble coach, and private studio instructor.
DAVID LE
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Boise State University Class of 2020
I was a recipient of the Idaho Jazz Education Endowment's scholarship during my undergraduate studies at Boise State. Because of their generosity, I was able to attend school and absorb everything I could in the Boise area. I started as a music education major, playing violin in the Boise State Symphony Orchestra, singing in both the jazz choir and the Meistersingers. I was able to perform with Opera Idaho's resident company, participating in multiple opera choruses. I regularly performed with my jazz quartet throughout Boise for Idaho Jazz Education Endowment events, weddings, and other gigs. After graduating with my BA in music in 2020, I took a gap year and began taking lessons from Elizabeth Moore, a former Seattle Opera coach. With her guidance, I auditioned for The Jacobs School of Music at Indiana University and was accepted into their masters program for voice in 2022. Most recently I was the first prize winner of the Indianapolis Matinee Musicale Collegiate Competition and baritone soloist in Mozart's Requiem with the Lima Symphony. I will be graduating from Indiana University this summer with my masters in music.
None of this would have been possible and I would not be the musician I am today without the backing of the Idaho Jazz Education Endowment. I definitely wouldn't be where I am if I did not receive the generosity of their scholarship as an undergraduate student. I would like to thank them for their patience, kindness, and generosity as I grew and learned and for investing in my future and in the future of other young musicians. What they do is amazing.
JOSH HEBERT
University Of Idaho Class of 2020
Thanks to IJEE and others, I graduated from the University of Idaho debt free with a degree in Percussion Performance and minors in Jazz Studies and Marketing Spring of 2020. After working as a pit orchestra drummer for the Bigfork Summer Playhouse during 2019 and 2020, I came back to Moscow to regroup with some of my music colleagues in a jazz trio and played weekly jazz jam sessions at a local coffee shop. There, we met and began playing with an upcoming country artist named Colby Acuff. Colby ended up signing a record deal with Sony Music Nashville and management with Make Wake Artists. Recently, I moved my family down to Nashville, TN to work as a full time recording and touring artist. We are playing around the US and Canada this year. Our business is growing slowly and steadily and I’m excited to see where this road takes us in the next few years.
Our debut record project with Sony is being released June 9, 2023. However, there are a couple singles already released now! I am providing a link to Spotify and a link to my website below.
Because of the help from IJEE, I was always able to focus on the music. Instead of working a night job during school, I was able to fill the calendar with as many gigs (paying and not) as I could drum up. This helped give me an edge on other students as far as networking and live experience goes.
CHRISTIE ECHOLS
A former recipient of the IJEE scholarship, Christy Echols studied jazz at Boise State University. She holds a Bachelor of Music in Performance from West Texas A&M University and a Master Of Music in Double Bass Performance from The Hartt School, University of Hartford. After her Masters, she received an Artists Diploma in Music Composition. Today, Christy is a college professor at Eastern Connecticut State University and is the Bass Professor at Westfield State University in Massachusetts. She also is the bass instructor at a private school called Loomis Chaffee. In addition to being an educator, she is a freelance bassist in New York City and the New England area and performs with the Hartford Symphony Orchestra. Christy recently stated in a letter to IJEE that, “I often think of the IJEE and how influential and helpful it was to me as a college student.”
SHALA LEWIS
A Local Force in Music Education. Boise native and BSU alumna, Shayla Lewis, also received support from IJEE. She is deeply involved in the Treasure Valley music scene—performing, teaching, and mentoring. She has worked with community groups such as Boise Music Week. She teaches orchestra in the Vallivue School District. Shayla’s contributions to local music education continue to uplift and inspire students and fellow educators alike.
TAYLOW REESE KING
Boise State University Class of 2023
After graduating with a Bachelor of Music Composition, Taylor has been actively working in the event production scene in Boise. He is currently working as an Audio Technician for Elevate Show Services and regularly helps schools and bands with their audio needs. His newest piece, Limitless, composed with James Trandem, is a jazz fusion chart for jazz band. Once a recording is out, he will release it on his website! In addition to music and audio technology, he spends his off time mentoring for a local robotics team he used to participate in. However, in spite of everything else he does, music is his passionand he would not be able to do what he can do now without the help of IJEE and the scholarships they awarded to him.