2026 a2ru Conference: “How We Thrive: Arts, Health and Human Flourishing”
About the Conference & Theme
a2ru’s next annual conference will take place October 22-24, 2026, at the University of Memphis in Memphis, Tennessee. This will be an in-person conference.
The a2ru national conference is an opportunity for practitioners and researchers from across higher education to share innovations and perspectives in the arts. a2ru advances the full range of arts- and design-integrative research, curricula, programs, and creative practice to acknowledge, articulate, and expand the vital role of higher education in our global society. a2ru’s work, in partnership with an international network of leading higher education institutions, allies, and partners, envisions a world in which universities—students, faculty, and leaders—explore, embed, and integrate the arts in everyday practice and research.
Theme:
This year’s theme, “How We Thrive: Arts, Health and Human Flourishing,” explores the many ways that the arts can drive health and wellness for individuals and communities. The rapidly expanding, international field of arts in health has established foundational research and continues to innovate across disciplines and in a range of clinical and community settings.
Creative faculty are leading interdisciplinary teams focused on elevating health and wellbeing among individuals and within communities across social-ecological systems. The arts as a driver of health comes in many forms, along a spectrum from organic community experiences to clinical interventions. New insights into the way arts experiences can reshape our minds, impacting the ways we feel, think and act, require broad collaboration among scientists, artists, technologists, clinicians and the communities they serve.
As we innovate at the intersection of arts and health, we must also attend to the health of the arts. In this moment of disruption and uncertainty for the arts and higher education, how can we promote healthy arts and arts-integrative practices and programs? How do we continue to move our research and creative work forward? How do we keep ourselves, our students, and our communities well while doing good work?
Featured Sessions
We are pleased to announce that our opening keynote will be given by Susan Magsamen, founder and Executive Director of the International Arts + Mind Lab at Johns Hopkins University, co-director of the NeuroArts Blueprint Initiative, and author of Your Brain on Art. Her talk, “”Neuroarts: Building an Inclusive Field to Advance Human Flourishing,” will survey the latest initiatives and advances in this rapidly evolving area of arts in health.
The 2026 conference will also feature a special plenary session, “Federal Research Funding for the Arts in Health: the NIH and the NEA.” Representatives from the National Institutes of Health’s National Center for Complementary and Integrative Health (NCCIH), Office of Behavioral and Social Sciences Research (OBSSR), and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) discuss funding opportunities and examples of recent and ongoing research projects at the intersection of the arts and health. Moderated by Debra Burns, Dean of the College of Communication and Fine Arts at the University of Memphis.
The final featured session at the 2026 conference will be “Well-Being Concerts: From Carnegie Hall to Campus,” presented in partnership with the famed concert hall.
Carnegie Hall’s Well-Being Concerts combine world-class musical performances with elements of self-care and mindfulness, animated by evidence that music helps people heal and thrive. Each concert creates an immersive, nurturing space in which audiences and performers share in the soul-nourishing benefits of music, create shared experiences, and explore tools for well-being that last long after the performance. On campus these concerts can bring together disparate divisions, including arts presenters, schools of music, student health and mental health services, medical schools, researchers, and leadership, in using the arts to help students, faculty, and communities flourish.
The session, created especially for the a2ru conference, will include a brief introduction to the history, design and methodology behind Well-Being Concerts, a 40-minute Well-Being Concert experience, and a panel discussion among the performers, Carnegie Hall staff, and representatives from universities already bringing these Well-Being Concerts to their own campuses.
The concert will feature University of Memphis faculty Marcin Jozef Arendt (violin) and Alvie Givhan (piano) performing repertoire to be announced; Arendt and Givhan are also members of the Iris Collective, a Memphis-based organization connecting music and medicine as part of their broader mission to create “transformation through music and partnership across Greater Memphis.” The concert will be hosted by Ian Koebner, Strategic Advisor for Health and wellness programs at Carnegie Hall and the Chair and Endowed Associate Professor in Arts in Health at Rutgers University’s Mason Gross School of Arts.
Carnegie Hall welcomes universities and non-profits across the country and around the globe to create Well-Being Concerts for their own communities. Representatives from Carnegie Hall will be available during the Poster/Gallery Session and throughout the conference to discuss Well-Being Concert partnership opportunities for campuses.
Featured Speakers
Marico “Dr. Rico” Flake is a Memphis native, internationally recognized movement artist, Memphis Jookin’ pioneer, choreographer, educator, DJ, author, actor, poet, creative strategist, counselor in training, and 23 year veteran of the Memphis Police Department, including several years in homicide where he is currently assigned. Yes… that combination surprises people too.
For more than two decades, Dr. Rico has explored what movement reveals about the human experience. His work centers on Memphis Jookin’ not simply as dance, but as a full somatic experience rooted in rhythm, survival, emotional expression, improvisation, nervous system awareness, storytelling, and community connection.
Widely regarded as one of the most influential figures in the evolution of Memphis Jookin’, Dr. Rico helped elevate the form from local street culture to an internationally respected movement practice. He is a founder of the legendary G-Force crew, helped establish one of the first known Jookin academies, and co authored The Jook, one of the first books to formally document and codify the culture and technique of Memphis Jookin’.
His work has appeared on So You Think You Can Dance and Dancing with the Stars, and he received Grammy recognition for choreography connected to Janelle Monáe’s iconic “Tightrope” era. He has collaborated with Nike, performed and taught internationally, and continues to explore how movement can bridge culture, science, healing, and human connection.
Beyond dance, Dr. Rico is also known for his work in music, spoken word, theater, teaching artistry, and immersive performance experiences. As a DJ and cultural curator, he blends genres, generations, and communities through rhythm in ways that feel equally educational, soulful, and unexpectedly therapeutic. His work often moves fluidly between street culture, academia, performance art, neuroscience, counseling, and community engagement without fully belonging to any one category.
Known for blending Memphis culture with neuroscience, breathwork, body mechanics, freestyle philosophy, humor, and embodied learning, Dr. Rico often teaches in ways that leave audiences laughing one moment and unexpectedly reflecting on life the next. His classes and talks regularly move between bounce, trauma, rhythm, emotional regulation, groove, anthropology, improvisation, and the strange realization that humans may understand each other better through movement than through words.
Currently pursuing graduate studies in Clinical Mental Health Counseling, Dr. Rico’s evolving work explores the intersection of arts, mental health, education, and human flourishing. Whether speaking in universities, teaching dancers, investigating crime scenes, DJing weddings, directing performances, or explaining why “the bounce” might secretly be connected to existence itself, he remains deeply committed to using rhythm as a tool for awareness, healing, and connection.
At his core, Dr. Rico is simply a student of people, rhythm, and possibility… with unusually smooth footwork.
Sunil Iyengar is Director of Research & Analysis at the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Under his leadership, the NEA has produced dozens of reports, webinars, blog posts, and podcast episodes about research on the value and impact of the arts. He has also established research and data partnerships with the U.S. Census Bureau, the Bureau of Economic Analysis, the National Science Foundation, and the National Institutes of Health. Iyengar and his team designed and implemented three long-term research agendas, founded a national data repository for arts and culture and a statistical reporting center for the arts, and launched two research grant programs, including the NEA Research Labs initiative. He chaired a federal Interagency Task Force on the Arts and Human Development (2011-2023) and co-created the Sound Health Network (2020-2025). He and his team consistently lead strategic planning for the agency, and they provide research and evaluation support to Creative Forces: NEA Military Arts Healing Network. Iyengar formerly was a senior editor and reporter covering the biomedical research, medical device, and pharmaceutical industries. A graduate in English from the University of Michigan in Ann Arbor, he writes poems, book reviews, and literary essays.
She also serves as co-director of the NeuroArts Blueprint Initiative, a joint project between Johns Hopkins University and the Aspen Institute that aims to embed the arts and aesthetics into the fabric of medicine, public health, and learning. The Blueprint lays out an evidence-based strategic pathway for building the field of neuroarts, grounded in evidence and shaped by global need and access.
Susan is also a Fellow of the Royal Society of the Arts and a trusted advisor to leading organizations in neuroscience, psychology, education, and public health.
Susan is deeply committed to amplifying creative youth voices, fostering programs that empower young people to use the arts to express their identities, build resilience, and engage meaningfully with their communities.
She is the co-author of the New York Times bestseller Your Brain on Art: How the Arts Transform Us.
Registration Rates and Policies
Registration Rates
In recognition of continued financial challenges in the arts and higher education, a2ru is keeping registration rates the same for the third year in a row.
Registration will open by May 1, 2026.
- Early Bird Registration rates will be in effect through June 30, 2026.
- Regular Registration rates will be in effect from July 1 through September 30, 2026.
- Late Registration rates will be in effect beginning October 1, 2026.
Member rates apply to faculty, staff, and students affiliated with one of our institutional or departmental members, and well as to our individual members.
Individual registrations are for full-time faculty and staff.
Student registrations are for undergraduate, graduate, and post-doctoral students.
Independent/contingent registrations are for contingent/adjunct faculty, as well as independent scholars and artists unaffiliated with a higher education institution. Retired faculty and staff are also eligible for this category.
If you have questions about which registration rate applies to you, please contact us at a2ruconnect@umich.edu.
Group Rates
We are pleased to offer discounts for group registrations:
- Groups of 5 or more receive 10% off the current, applicable registration rate.
- Groups of 10 or more receive 15% off
- Groups of 20 or more receive 20% off
Groups must come from a single institution. a2ru can provide a checkout page for credit card payments or issue an invoice for group registrations. With questions or to arrange a group registration, please contact us at a2ruconnect@umich.edu.
Refund and Transfer Policy
a2ru has revised its refund policy for the 2026 conference.
We will offer a full refund on conference registrations, minus a $25 processing fee, until July 22, 2026.
We will offer a 50% refund on conference registrations, minus a $25 processing fee, until September 30, 2026.
No refunds will be available after September 30, 2026.
Registration transfers:
Should they be unable to attend the conference, conference registrants also have the option to transfer their registration to an alternate attendee. Finding an alternate attendee is the responsibility of the original registrant. We are unable to offer price adjustments for transferred registrations. Please contact us at a2ruconnect@umich.edu to initiate a registration transfer.
Hotel Information
a2ru has arranged for a special rate for conference attendees at the Doubletree by Hilton Hotel Memphis (5069 Sanderlin Avenue).
Located a quick 7-minute drive from the conference venues, the Doubletree offers free airport transportation as well as an on-site restaurant and bar. A number of restaurants, grocery stores, and other amenities are just a short walk from the hotel.
Standard 1 king or 2 double bed rooms are $129/night; king bed suite options are also available for $169/night.
Rooms must be booked via the link below by September 1, 2026 to recieve the special group rate; after September 1, a2ru attendees may call the hotel to book rooms at the gorup rate subject to availability.
Sponsorship Opportunities
Partner with a2ru and the University of Memphis to amplify your organization or unit’s commitment to the arts and wellbeing. Choose the sponsorship level, outlined below, that best aligns with your goals, with benefits ranging from digital visibility to premier named events. Sponsorships start at just $500.
Contact us at a2ruconnect@umich.edu to learn more or to secure your sponsorship!
Sponsors
