RefleXions Music Series, a project funded by the University of Arkansas Chancellor's Grant for the Humanities and Performing Arts Initiative, will host its first "Social Impact Through the Arts Conversation Series" event from 6-7:30 p.m. Thursday, Dec. 3 via Zoom.

The inaugural event will feature a panel conversation with: 

• "Sing for Hope" co-founders and internationally acclaimed sopranos Monica Yunus and Camille Zamora, who also joined the U of A this fall for a virtual residency and helped launch a new KUAF RefleXions podcast,
• Anne O'Leary-Kelly, associate dean at the Sam M. Walton College of Business and Chairwoman of the Walton Arts Center Board of Directors, and
• Jesse Elliott, director of creative ecosystems at the Creative Arkansas Community Hub & Exchange (CACHE). 

Rogelio Garcia-Contreras, director of the Social Innovation Initiative at the Office of Entrepreneurship and Innovation in the Sam M. Walton College of Business and panel moderator, said the new "Social Impact Through the Arts Conversation Series" aims to foster a conversation around the importance of the arts in general, and of music in particular, as a tool to advocate for social and creative justice, as a space for social and community healing, as a pipeline for leadership and artist agency, and as a unique space for social innovation and entrepreneurship. 

Lia Uribe, director of RefleXions Music Series, said participants can RSVP for the event online.

"Participants will have an opportunity to share with us their thoughts about the panel, and to post a question or suggest a topic for our panelists to answer or to address during the event," she said.

"We hope our community members know their voice and work in the arts, education and social innovation field is as inspirational as it is important for our region. We will be honored if they can join us and be part of the conversation," Uribe added.  

About the RefleXions Music Series: RefleXions was conceived as a celebration of music, musicians, advocates and audiences, and as a series of events that foster creative justice and diversity through opportunities to reflect, learn, grow, change and teach. The RefleXions team is a collective of U of A individuals from different backgrounds who bring unique perspectives and commitment to the highest standards of scholarship, research and aesthetic diversity. The team includes Erika Almenara of the Department of World Languages, Literatures, and Cultures; Rogelio Garcia-Contreras of the Sam M. Walton College of Business; Antoinette Grajeda and Leigh Wood of KUAF 91.3; Ronda Mains, Catalina Ortega, Eric Troiano and Lia Uribe of the Department of Music; and students Connor Gott, Olga Khokhryakova, Liz Luzcando and Bailey Ross. Learn more about the RefleXions Music Series and its upcoming events at Reflexionsmusic.org.