Josephine Yalovitser was born in Norwalk, Connecticut on December 12th, 1996. Her parents emigrated from the former Soviet Union, and made their Jewish-Russian cultural patrimony an essential part of her upbringing.
Josephine received her B.A. in Psychology, Medical Anthropology, and Public Policy from Dartmouth College. Along with her academic challenges, Josephine pursues wide range of interests. She has been the President of ASPIRE- a Dartmouth group which advocates for autism research, increased public awareness, and improved services within the Upper Valley for children on the autism spectrum and their families. She has held various community engaged positions, such as a Mass Care Intern for the American Red Cross Greater New York and a Student Involvement Intern at Collis Center for Student Involvement, and she has traveled to Lima, Peru to volunteer as a health aid at Medlife Mobile Clinics. Ms. Yalovitser is also dedicated to research within her field. She has previously assisted the Cognitive Neuroscience Laboratory at Dartmouth College in studying the foundations of Prosopagnosia, has acted as a Environmental Policy Analyst for the New Hampshire State Representative Chris Christensen, and has supported research at the University of Vermont, Larner College of Medicine on integrating primary care and behavioral health. Ms. Yalovitser hopes to pursue a career in medicine and health policy analysis.
Ms. Yalovitser has been actively involved in community service from an early age. She has worked on numerous projects with the volunteer organizations, including JTeen Leadership, Habitat for Humanity, and Diverbo. She initiated local projects for “Operation Smile” and UNICEF, which have impacted her local community. For ten years, she has volunteering at her local nursing home, where she implemented a music therapy program with the purpose of enhancing memory recall amongst Alzheimer and Dementia patients through music and reflection. While at Dartmouth, Ms. Yalovitser was the New Member Educator of her sorority, Sigma Delt, and encouraged values of philanthropy, partnership, and objectivity in new chapter members through interactive activities and discussion sessions. Furthermore, her role as a trained Sexual Assault Peer Advisor, and member of the Rockapellas all-female acapella group, allowed her to promote messages of social justice through campus-wide programs, performances, workshops, and social media. Ms. Yalovitser has received numerous awards for her commitment to public service and health care, including the Certificate of Global Health, John Sloan Dickey Center for International Understanding, and the Daily Point of Light Award for Commitment to Community Service.
Ms. Yalovitser has been immersed in music and performing arts from a young age. She has been a pianist since the age of four, and began composing at the age of six. Throughout the years, her musical compositions were awarded in both national and international competitions. They include “The Passion of Music”, “Hey Mozart! Northeast”, PTA Reflections Program, and “Song of the Year”. Her composition “Dancing Leaves” was arranged, performed, and recorded on CD by the Oneonta Symphony Orchestra. Romanian jazz pianist Marian Petrescu premiered her piece “Ocean Mist” at a charity concert for the AADGT. Her piece “My Favorite Place” was performed at Carnegie Hall by Latvian singer Oksana Lepska. As the New York Concert Review (Vol.15 No.3) wrote,
“There is unlimited potential in this young composer [Josephine Yalovitser], as her lush, rich-textured music already has a maturity beyond her years and sounds as good as some of the film scores being written today.”
The American Association for Development of the Gifted and Talented (AADGT) invited Ms. Yalovitser to perform at Carnegie Hall, among other winners of The International Young Musician competition “Passion of Music”. Ms. Yalovitser has collaborated with outstanding musicians around the globe, such as Aimi Kobayashi and Seiji Okamoto from Japan, the Le Van Family musicians from France, Rostislav Sharaevsky from Russia, and Oksana Lepska from Latvia.
Ms. Yalovitser’s passion to share the joy of music with others is reflected in her participation in various fund-raisers, charities, and school and community events. She is keenly interested in imparting knowledge to young students, and has taught piano and guitar privately since she was thirteen years old. Currently, Josephine is a first year student at the University of Vermont Larner College of Medicine.
In her spare time, Josephine loves to paint, arrange music, practice yoga, and explore new running paths.
