Julia Diane Ragains Slawin Music Fund

The purpose of the Julia Diane Ragains Slawin Music Fund is to provide support for students to participate and thrive in school music programs.

Diane Ragains-Slawin was a gifted soprano whose own singing talents translated into a remarkable ability to teach singing to others, which she did as a voice teacher at Northern Illinois University for about 40 years.

Diane Ragains-Slawin was born in Indiana and grew up in the Kokomo area, where her parents were music teachers. Her father started her on the violin when she was about 5 years old, where she became quite good and later majored in both violin and music education at Indiana University in Bloomington. Ragains-Slawin later earned a master’s degree in voice from what was then the Chicago Conservatory of Music, now part of Roosevelt University.

Ragains-Slawin is remembered for her incredible work ethic, love for her students, no fear, and her ability to teach more than just music.