Stephen James Messenger

Stephen James Messenger is a retired public school educator who has taught at the elementary, secondary, undergraduate, and graduate levels.

He earned a BA from Knox College, an M.Ed from Pan-American University, and an Ed.D. from the University of Houston.

Dr. Messenger’s interests include investigating Mexican folk art, British motorcycles, Dead studies, Jamband culture, and Community Music, telling and singing stories and songs, and learning and playing North American roots and Celtic music (he plays 6- & 12-string guitars,bass, mandolin, octave mandolin, banjo, saz, and bodhran). He writes escapist, darkly comedic novels, like "Z-fari", "Follet", "Deadly Affirmations", "The President and The Cockroach", "The Music of the Knives", "Ballads, a Tinker's Dozen", "Angels in Syrup", "Magic: Assassin of Youth", and "Bedagiskwedawajokzeloumsen ~ A Dragon’s Journey" and has edited and co-written a peer-reviewed textbook, "Community Music Today" (with Veblen, Silverman, and Eliot), along with numerous scholarly articles and chapters in academic journals.