CHARLES GRODE

A member of the Chicago Symphony Orchestra Association’s staff since August 1998, Charles Grode serves as Vice President for the Institute for Learning, Access and Training at the Chicago Symphony Orchestra. Grode oversees the Association’s comprehensive sequence of school, family and community programming, including the Civic Orchestra of Chicago, the United State’s only preprofessional training orchestra affiliated with a major symphony orchestra. Prior to the creation of the Institute, Grode served as Vice President for Education, Community Relations and Diversity, a position to which he was appointed in 2004.

Grode has extensive experience in arts administration, music education and concert production, having worked previously at The Suzuki-Orff School for Young Musicians, a Chicago community music school, and Lyric Opera of Chicago.

He received his M.A. in Theatre History from Northwestern University, Evanston, IL and holds a B.A. in Theatre and Drama, magna cum laude, from Lawrence University, Appleton, WI.