Casey Collins is an assistant professor of music education at Appalachian State University. Prior to ASU, she was a clinical assistant professor at Purdue University Fort Wayne and spent nearly a decade teaching elementary general music in North Carolina. Collins was awarded Teacher of the Year and honored as an Excellence in Education district finalist. In 2018, Collins was awarded the Global Teacher of the Year from Participate Learning. She holds a Bachelor of Science in Music Education and a Bachelor of Arts in Music Performance from Elon University, a Master of Music in Music Education from East Carolina University, and a Ph.D. in Music Education from the University of Michigan. Her research centers on elementary music education in high-poverty schools, trauma-informed pedagogy, and positive psychology.