Presidential inauguration also inaugurates YoHA

ANN ARBOR—An afternoon symposium on the arts and humanities will be one of the highlights of the University of Michigan’s celebration of the inauguration of Lee C. Bollinger as its 12th president. From 3 to 5 p.m. in Rackham Auditorium, composers, artists, dancers, video artists and scholars from a wide variety of disciplines will discuss their works and research in “Turning a New Leaf,” the beginning of YoHA, the Year of Humanities and Arts at U-M. The symposium is free and open to the public. No tickets are needed. The symposium will serve as the launching of “The Arts of Citizenship,” an innovative collaborative program involving the U-M and the city of Ann Arbor. The program includes a lectures series, a design project and a collaboration with teachers at Mack Elementary and Community High schools. Ann Arbor Mayor Ingrid Sheldon, honorary co-chair of the YoHA Community Advisory Board, will speak at the beginning of the symposium. The focus of the program’s design project, “The Broadway Bridges Project: Cultural Programs for a Changing City,” was suggested by Sheldon. Among the faculty members presenting are: —Kenrick Ian Grandison, who will discuss his study of land use and campus design at historically Black colleges, focusing on Tuskegee Institute.

–Yau Ching will present her new video work, a personal meditation on language and identity during the turnover of Hong Kong from the United Kingdom to China. –June Howard will discuss American literary markets and “publishing the family” at the turn of the century. —Michael Daugherty will present and discuss selections from his new opera, “Jackie O.” –Artist James Cogswell and dancer/choreographer Peter Sparling will present a video and discuss their collaborative dance and multimedia performance “Enigmas.” Other YoHA programs to be highlighted during the symposium include the YoHA Celebration Minigrant Program which makes grants available to existing student organizations and groups of students that form around new projects in the arts and humanities. Funds will support student-initiated publications, art works, panel discussions and performances that take shape outside the classroom. The YoHA Course Community, supported by funds from the Office of the President, makes minigrants available to faculty who incorporate arts and humanities content in their courses. YoHA is formally sponsored by the Office of the Vice President for Research and is as much an organizing tool as it is a series of events. Its goals include celebrating scholarship, performance and creativity in the humanities and arts; encouraging new partnerships among faculty and students working in these fields; and strengthening the community of learners in the arts and humanities.

inaugurationYoHAKenrick Ian GrandisonMichael DaughertyPeter SparlingOffice of the Vice President for ResearchU-M News and Information Services