Bethany Collier

Associate Dean Bethany Collier has primary responsibility for academic affairs related to first and second-year students in the College of Arts & Sciences. A faculty member in Bucknell’s Department of Music since 2008, she completed her Ph.D. in Musicology at Cornell University in 2007 after earning her M.A. there (2003) and her B.A. at College of the Holy Cross (2000). A dedicated teacher and ethnomusicologist, she has taught a wide range of courses at Bucknell including Introduction to Music, Cross-Cultural Perspectives in Music, World Music, Performing Indonesia, Music Projects, Gamelan Ensemble and several Foundation Seminars and Residential College courses. At Bucknell she has also served the university in a range of capacities, including as Coordinator of the College Core Curriculum, chair of the Department of Music and member of many committees and working groups, including Curriculum Committee, Committee on Planning & Budget, Committee on Campus & Student Life, Committee on Admissions & Financial Aid and the Strategic Plan Working Group.

Dean Collier is a specialist in the area of Indonesian music and culture and remains very active as both a researcher and a performer. As a musician, she has studied Balinese and Javanese music for over 25 years and has directed and played with many instrumental (gamelan) groups over the course of the last decades. In 2019, she founded New Atlantic Chamber Gamelan, a contemporary chamber gamelan dedicated to exploring new avenues for intercultural collaboration and performance. As a researcher, she investigates the relationship between performance and identity in modern Indonesia, with a particular interest in understanding traditional performance as a space where artists and audiences can negotiate and articulate multiple, complex identities. Her recent published work focuses on pedagogy, gender and embodiment in Balinese youth arja (dance-drama) ensembles.

As Associate Dean, Collier works directly with students to foster their growth and development. Her duties include coordinating first-year academic programs, counseling students about academic policies and practices, supporting the needs of students with disabilities, facilitating processes related to student progress through the university and collaborating with departments and campus offices to maintain the College’s curricular offerings. She also handles matters relating to academic responsibility in the College of Arts & Sciences.

Educational Background

• Ph.D. in Musicology, Cornell University
• M.A. in Musicology, Cornell University
• B.A. with Honors, College of the Holy Cross