After receiving an honors diploma from Tippecanoe Valley High School in 1997 where she was salutatorian, Aura Strohschein continued collecting diplomas: bachelor’s degrees in departmental honors in French and in music from Ball State University and a master’s degree of Music Performance, suma cum laude, from the University of Toledo. She currently is working on a Doctorate of Musical Arts in Piano Performance and Pedagogy at the University of Iowa. In addition, she participated in the International Student Exchange Program at the Université de Charles de Gaulle in Lille, France, and received the médaille de vermeil in piano and deuxième prix in chamber music from the Conservatoire National de Région de Lille.

Strohschein has made presentations and done research in various fields of music throughout the United States and appeared in special programs in England, France, Mallorca, Germany, Austria and a number of American cities.

She began teaching piano and flute in a studio in her Akron home and has since taught in Iowa, Ohio, Louisiana and Indiana in addition to working as a teaching assistant at Lycée Fénélon in Lille, France.

Despite her collection of diplomas and degrees, she says she is especially famous for making lemon crème pie out of life’s lemons.

“Well, possibly as a pianist, linguist, teacher, traveler and for making people smile,” she added while flashing one of her own radiant smiles. “I’ve had to learn not to allow the past or others’ opinions determine my destiny. That has meant overcoming doubt and fear, learning to be who I am and not who others want me to be.”