Debbie Saifi has been a member of the Music Teachers National Association since 1984, and has been a Nationally Certified Teacher of Music in piano since 1986 and has achieved Permanent Professional status. Debbie has been a member of the East Valley Music Teachers Association since it began in 1987. She was a student of the late Nancy Spitzer, NCTM and Fran Kaspar, NCTM. Debbie studied with Walter Cosand at Arizona State University and earned enough music credits for the equivalent of a minor in music education; she received her degree in Justice Studies from ASU in 1991. She has also done graduate study in jazz piano. Debbie has been a piano instructor for over 30 years. Debbie was a recipient of the Janice McCumin Teacher Enrichment Grant through the Arizona Study Program in 2005.
In the Arizona Study Program, Debbie has served in various capacities over the years. She has served as the Arizona Study Program Member at Large in addition to the state materials chairperson for the Study Program from 1995-1998. She has been co-chair of the East Valley Study Program 1995-1997, and from 2010 to the present. She has been the East Valley Registrar several times over the years and is in charge of the scheduling which involves well over 1,000 students.
At the local level, Debbie has been dedicated for many years in several areas of service for the East Valley Music Teachers Association. She has been co-chair, chair, and registrar for many events including The Piano Ensemble, Music in the Mall, Student District Recitals, Music Carnival, Certification Mentor (encouraging teachers within the organization to work toward certification), Organ Stop Pizza Party, and the Nancy Spitzer Memorial Scholarship. She also served on the East Valley Board for several years.
87TH Annual State Conference
Arizona State Music Teachers Association