Resume

September 2016

jon@jonridinger.com

Education

Kent State University; Kent, Ohio

• Bachelor of Arts, Music, minor Political Science (May 2008) 
• Master of Arts in Teaching, music emphasis (August 2009) 

Student Teaching
Southeast Middle School & Southeast Intermediate School; Ravenna, Ohio
September 2008-April 2009; Grades 5-8 

• Observed 100 hours at both the middle school and intermediate school in general music classes and choir; helped with concerts and limited classroom responsibilities. 
• Student taught the same classes from January-April 2009, which included four choirs and three general music classes. 
• Prepared choirs for various performances and led them in sight reading; led music classes in the study and appreciation of music, including the building of drums from different cultures in the 8th grade class. 

Current Employment

As of 2017, I am employed with two local school districts and one local charter high school as a substitute teacher. I also continue my seasonal employment with the Cleveland Browns in the Guest Services department, completing the 2015-16 season and continuing on the special events crew.

Substitute teaching:

Bio-Med Science Academy; Rootstown, Ohio
November 2013-present; Grades 9-12

• Fill in for various teachers in a STEM+M mastery-based academy attached to the Northeast Ohio Medical University
• Employment managed by Rachel Wixey & Associates since April 2014

Rootstown Local School District; Rootstown, Ohio
November 2013-present; Grades P-12

• Fill in for various teachers in a rural school district for all grade levels and subject areas

Streetsboro City School District; Streetsboro, Ohio
November 2013-present; Grades P-12

• Fill in for various teachers in a suburban school district for all grade levels and subject areas

Guest Services Representative:

Cleveland Browns; Cleveland, Ohio
June 2014-present

• Suite Attendant and general Guest Services representative at FirstEnergy Stadium for Cleveland Browns home games and other stadium events such as concerts and receptions
• Mainly check credentials for the Press Box, but also checked suites before and after games, helped guests at various events, answered questions, and explain  stadium policies as needed
• Member of Special Events crew beginning in 2015 to work smaller events held at the stadium outside of regular game-day activities

Private lessons:
Since late 2008, I have taught private voice and piano lessons to students ranging from age 5 to 18. My focus in piano lessons is on beginning piano and music theory with voice lessons focusing on improving projection, intonation, and breath support

Past Employment

I have been employed as a substitute teacher since late 2009. As a substitute I have worked for three local school districts and one career and vocational education school. During the 2009-10 school year I also worked with the Akron Public Schools through Weathervane Playhouse as part of an after-school enrichment program for elementary school students.

Substitute teaching:
Maplewood Career Center; Ravenna, Ohio
January 2010-May 2013; Grades 11-12

• Filled in for teachers in various classes for grades 11-12 in a joint vocational school

Tallmadge City School District; Tallmadge, Ohio
September 2012-May 2013; Grades P-12

• Filled in for teachers in all grade levels, Preschool-12th, and in a wide variety of subjects for a suburban public school district that consists of two elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school

Stow-Munroe Falls City School District; Stow, Ohio 
September 2012-June 2013; Grades P-12

• Filled in for teachers in all grade levels, Preschool-12th, and in a wide variety of subjects for a suburban public school district that consists of six elementary schools, one intermediate school, one middle school, and one high school

Kent City School District; Kent, Ohio
October 2009-June 2012; Grades P-12 

• Filled in for teachers in all grade levels, Preschool-12th, and in a wide variety of subjects for a public school district that consists of five elementary schools, one middle school, and one high school

After School:

Akron Public Schools & Weathervane Playhouse; Akron, Ohio
October 2009-November 2010 Grades 1-5

• Worked five hours a week as part of the Akron Public School’s Akron After-School Enrichment program at Hatton Elementary School from October 2009-April 2010
• Curriculum based on theater education and organized by Weathervane Playhouse of Akron
• Filled in as a substitute for the 2010 fall term at various Akron elementary schools

Ride Host:
Geauga Lake & Wildwater Kingdom; Aurora, Ohio
June-July 2005 & May-August 2006 

• Worked as a ride host at an amusement park in northeast Ohio, mainly on the crew for the suspended roller coaster known as Thunderhawk
• Filled in on a number of other rides as needed throughout the park
• Responsibilities included:
• Safe operation of the ride itself
• Crowd control
• Delivering announcements for safety and smooth operation of ride
• Cleaning the area around the ride
• Positive interactions with park guests including dealing with problems, safety issues, and general inquiries

 Volunteer Experience 

Schools: 

Madison Jr. High School; Rexburg, Idaho
January-March 2007; Grades 8-9

• Served as reading specialist for individual tutoring with ninth graders in regards to reading comprehension.
• Had daily, individualized lesson plans for two ninth-grade students 
• Group reading comprehension for a class of eighth graders which involved large and small groups and planning as a team of teachers
• Part of a Reading in the Content Area practicum class 

Sugar-Salem Jr. High School; Sugar City, Idaho
October 2006; Grades 6-8

• Ran sectional rehearsals for a group of middle school-aged girls and another for middle school-aged boys as part of a middle school choral festival 
• Responsibilities included determining which music to focus on and where and helping the students to understand the markings in the music and the correct pitches 

Church:
I have held a number of voluntary positions in my local church congregation based in Rootstown, Ohio, which includes approximately 300 members from various communities in southern Portage County, including the cities of Kent and Ravenna.

Mission Leader; July 2015-January 2017

• Coordinator for missionary outreach and education activities for a congregation of approximately 300 members covering southern Portage County, along with four full-time missionaries, ages 18-22.
• Duties included regular correlation meetings, planning, executing meaningful activities both in and out of the church setting, and regular communication with full-time missionaries, congregation members (via several mediums including spoken and social media), and church leadership at local and regional levels.

Sunday School instructor; June 2012-July 2015, January 2017-present; Ages 18-50

• For three years I taught a Sunday School class for men, generally ages 18-50
• Also was a substitute teacher for an adult Sunday School class for all ages 18 and up

Choir director; August 2007-December 2012; Ages 12 and up

• I have served as the choir director for my church, which varies in size and skill level
• Choir performed at various times during the year

Institute of Religion teacher; September 2008-May 2009; Adults

• Served as teacher for weekly scripture study class on the campus of Kent State University
• Class involved discussion and historical context of scriptures 
• Members included any college-aged student who wished to attend 

Missionary; December 2001-November 2003; All ages 

• Served as a missionary in various cities in Arizona and New Mexico
• Responsibilities included teaching basic structure and beliefs to people of various ages and backgrounds
• Also included leadership positions and weekly volunteer service work in several communities in both states 

Individual and substitute children's teacher; June 2000-December 2001; Ages 3-12

• Served as a substitute teacher for the children’s organization at church, which involved putting lessons together for a given class on little or no notice 
• Served as a teacher for a child who learned better on his own instead of with groups. 

Chorister; January-December 2001; Ages 3-12

• Taught music to all children ranging from age three to twelve, mostly by rote 

Teacher/Advisor; August-December 2001; Ages 14-15

• Taught a Sunday School class of fourteen and fifteen year old boys and served as an advisor in the organization known as Young Men 

Community:
Kent Patch; Kent, Ohio
May 2011-2012

• Local blogger for the Kent Patch, a local news outlet 
• Blog posts were generally on various sports-related topics in the Kent area including high school, college, and professional, but also on local history

Kent State University Fan Advisory Board

Aug. 2014-May 2015

• Participated in the Fan Advisory Board at KSU as a community member and alumnus. The board included athletic department personnel, alumni, donors, students, and community members and discussed attendance and fan experience issues at KSU sporting events, especially football and basketball games, and ways to improve both. Meetings were held quarterly during the season.

Skills

• Microsoft Office
• Excel
• Publisher
• Word
• Adobe Photoshop
• Photography
• Examples can be found on my Flickr page
• Social media
• Blogger
• Facebook
• Flickr
• Instagram
• Twitter
• Comfortable learning additional software programs as needed
• Computer troubleshooting
• Wikipedia editor
• I have edited hundreds of articles and am very familiar with Wikipedia's policies of neutrality, notability, and content.  The Kent, Ohio article, listed as a Featured Article in 2010, was almost exclusively written by me and most of the photos and other graphics done by me as well.  The Theodore Roosevelt High School article, listed as a Good Article since 2010, is another article almost exclusively written by me with most graphics also created by me.

Performance Experience

This is Kirtland!

Kirtland Ohio Stake; Kirtland, Ohio
2005-2013

• Original musical production about early settlers of Kirtland, Ohio
• Member of the cast from 2005-2007 and 2008-2013
• Member of script committee, 2010 and 2011
• Director for 2013 production
• Responsibilities included holding auditions, scheduling and holding rehearsals at three different buildings, managing set construction, lighting, and publicity, and regular communication with a cast of 60.

Joseph and the Amazing Technicolor Dreamcoat 
Weathervane Playhouse; Akron, Ohio
September-November 2009 

• Member of cast as Pharaoh in 2009 production

Star-Spangled Banner:
I have performed the Star-Spangled Banner for various sporting and other events since 1997. More information can be found at my National Anthem page.

• Cleveland Indians, 2011 (twice), 2012 (five times), 2013, 2014, 2015 (three times), 2016 (three times, including opening playoff game), scheduled for three dates in 2017
• Akron RubberDucks (AA minor league baseball team), 2010, 2011, 2013, 2014, 2015, 2016
• Columbus Clippers (AAA minor league baseball team), 2013 and 2014
• Toledo Mud Hens (AAA minor league baseball team), 2013 and 2014
• Lake Erie Monsters (minor league ice hockey), 2013, 2015
• Kent State University (Kent, Ohio)
• Men's basketball, 2008-present (multiple times most seasons)
• Women's basketball, 2001, 2008-2010, 2013-present
• Football, 2014
• Club ice hockey, 2007
• Volleyball, 2014-present
• Women's Gymnastics, 2014-present
• Wrestling, 2013-present
• Mid-American Conference Women's Gymnastics Championship, 2008
• Mid-American Conference Wrestling Championship, 2014
• Crown Hill Cemetery (Twinsburg, Ohio) Memorial Day ceremony, 2014, 2015, 2016 (included several other patriotic songs)
• American Collegiate Hockey Association National Championship semifinal and final, 2015
• Lake Erie College (Painesville, Ohio) 
• men's and women's basketball, 2007-08 (most games all season)
• Theodore Roosevelt High School (Kent, Ohio)
• Boys basketball, 1997-2000, 2007
• Girls basketball, 1998-2000
• Boys soccer, 1999
• Girls soccer, 1998-1999
• Boys ice hockey, 1999-2000

O Canada:

• NCAA Division II Wrestling National Championships, February 2014
• Manitoba Moose at Lake Erie Monsters (minor league ice hockey), November 2015
• Toronto Blue Jays at Cleveland Indians, August 2016
• Toronto Blue Jays at Cleveland Indians, scheduled for July 22, 2017

Messiah:
Twice I have performed as the tenor soloist for regional choir performances of Messiah, in December 2010 & 2012

Associations

• Kent Historical Society 
• Principal planner for September 2012 program celebrating 90th anniversary of the dedication of the original Theodore Roosevelt High School, now used as Davey Elementary School
• Created displays at the museum for the local schools and the high school

Licenses and Certification

• Licensed in Music Education P-12 in Ohio through June 2019
• Ohio BCI background check, October 2013
• FBI background check, October 2013

Last updated May 15, 2017