One of the core pillars of Kent’s Music Program, Dr. Bouldin has been helping students explore their musical passions for twelve years.  After fifteen years’ experience teaching in Georgia’s public school system, and an additional five years spent teaching in Alabama’s community colleges, Dr. Bouldin finally settled down here at Kent School, where he has been teaching all kinds of music classes since 2011.  

In his twelve years spent teaching at Kent, Dr. Bouldin has taught an incredibly diverse range of music courses, including Music Technology, Music Theory, Perspectives in Jazz (a course dedicated to a survey the study of jazz’s classics), and courses dedicated to both Blues and Rock and Roll.  

In addition to his music classes, Dr. Bouldin formerly directed music technology in the Performing Arts Department.  He currently conducts in the orchestra’s pit during the spring, and also drives the stable bus back and forth for the equestrian program.

Teaching is a difficult job, and each teacher goes through their fair share of individual challenges with the profession.  When asked what the most difficult part of teaching is for him, Dr. Bouldin expressed that taking care of every individual student becomes a bit overwhelming.  “As a teacher, you want to provide for your students and meet all of their needs. You have to juggle your schedule quite well,” he shared.  Self-reflection is an important characteristic to possess, and Dr. Bouldin’s years of experience here and elsewhere have taught him a lot of lessons, including one he thought was important to share about the music he teaches: “Music loses some of its artistic value when taken too seriously,” he said.  “Taking a step back has a lot of value.”  

Although his catalog of courses over the years has covered a wide range of musical subject matter, and still does, Dr. Bouldin uses similar methodology and maintains the same goals when designing curriculum for each course.  Whether it’s Music Theory or Exploration of Rock and Roll, Dr. Bouldin says he aims to “create a fulfilling musical environment” for his students, which absolutely must contain “quality musical instruction.”  One question students often wonder about their teachers is what their favorite classes are, and where their passion truly lies.  Although Dr. Bouldin professed an inability to choose an absolute favorite, he did share his secret to success in maintaining engagement — his own as well as his students’: “Feigning excitement [for the students’ sake] creates a new, genuine excitement every day.”

Dr. Bouldin cited the Music Program’s teachers and faculty as his most valuable connections within Kent.  “The whole music faculty is like a family,” he shared. “We share something unique; it’s a bond.”