Colleen McCracken is a graduate student pursuing a Master of Music in Performance degree at the University of North Carolina at Greensboro under Dr. Erika Boysen. She has performed in masterclasses instructed by Bonita Boyd, Jill Felber, Walfrid Kujala, Demarre McGill, Amy Porter, and Göran Marcusson. Colleen has performed in ensembles that include the St. Louis Symphony Youth Orchestra, and the Denver Young Artists Orchestra. She has attended several summer institutes including Credo Flute, WildAcres Flute Retreat, Rocky Ridge College Intensive, the Texas Summer Flute Symposium, and the Sewanee Summer Music Festival. In 2022, Colleen won 1st Prize in the Flute Society of St. Louis Collegiate Young Artist Competition. Recently, she earned an Honorable Mention and Runner Up in the Lamont Concerto Competition, and won first prize in the 2023 Central Ohio Flute Association Collegiate Competition. Colleen spent the fall of 2022 studying in Lyon, France, where she had the pleasure of learning the French language and enjoying the music of the area. She is an active private lesson teacher and flutist in the ShakaduGAT! Wind Quintet. Colleen graduated from the University of Denver - Lamont School of Music with a Bachelor of Music in Performance, with distinction in the major, in 2024. Her former teachers include Dr. Shelly Monier, Michel Lavignolle, and Julie Thornton.