Rachel Whitcomb is Associate Professor of Music Education at Duquesne University where she teaches Primary General Music Methods, Elementary General Music Methods, Inclusive Strategies for the Music Classroom, and Senior Seminar. Her teaching focuses on early childhood and elementary general music methods, creativity, vernacular musicianship, and music for students with special needs. She also supervises student teachers and directs graduate projects. Dr. Whitcomb regularly teaches preschool children at the Duquesne University Child Development Center. Dr. Whitcomb's professional interests have included improvisation in elementary general music, rubrics as evaluative tools in music instruction, and the role of music in preschools. She has conducted studies focusing on the nature and extent to which improvisation is occurring in elementary general music classrooms. Her work has been published in Journal of Research in Music Education, Music Educators Journal, Research and Issues in Music Education, Teaching Music, The Orff Echo, The Kodály Envoy, and General Music Today. She is a frequent presenter at international, national, regional, state, and local professional development conferences for music educators and early childhood teachers. Dr. Whitcomb currently serves on the Research Committee of the Pennsylvania Music Educators Association.