Born right next door to Columbia at St. Luke’s Hospital, Katie Cooke (she/they) is an alumnus of Columbia College where she graduated in 2019 with a Bachelor’s in Music and a Special Concentration in Educational Studies through Barnard College. In her senior year, she received Music Departmental Honors for her thesis The Ministry of Love: An Exploration of Turkish Contemporary Christian Music advised by Aaron Fox. After graduation, Katie spent two years in Ankara, Turkey creating and participating in safe spaces of language learning, music performance, and religious discussion for college students. Upon returning to New York in 2021, Katie taught music to the youngest learners at the Packer Collegiate Institute in Brooklyn.
As a PhD student, Katie is looking forward to continuing her research in Turkish Contemporary Christian Music, beginning new research on Christian worship music cultures in New York, and teaching students to appreciate the world around them through music.
In addition to her academic pursuits, Katie directs musical worship for multiple ministries and churches in the greater New York area, composes worship music, and illustrates web comics.