For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

Caroline Harper New is the author of A History of Half-Birds (Milkweed Editions, 2024) winner of the Ballard Spahr Prize for Poetry. Her creative work is rooted in the precarious landscape of the Gulf Coast, where she reckons with love’s potential for violence in the human, animal, and natural worlds.

New holds an M.F.A. in Poetry and is currently a Ph.D. student in Anthropology at the University of Michigan. Her research examines collective narrative-making, ecological imagination, place attachment, and poetics. Her intermedia work have includes sculptures, paintings, short film, translations, and eco-collaborations with musicians and filmmakers.

She has enjoyed teaching through the University of Michigan, Dzanc Press, Gilliam Writers Group, and others.

The Arts Initiative, in partnership with Wolverine Wellness, is launching a series of free art-making workshops for the Take Care AY 2024-25 focus. These workshops are an opportunity to create art, brush up on dance techniques, and other artistic forms. No prior experience is required. Led by local and regional artists, the workshops are open to the entire U-M and local community. All supplies necessary will be provided at the workshop.

For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

Kara Roseborough is a multi-disciplinary artist specializing in dance, creative writing, and theatre. She holds an MFA in Dance and a Certificate in World Performance Studies from the University of Michigan, a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Utah, and teaching certifications in Grades I-V of the Cecchetti Ballet method. Currently, she serves as a Creative Careers Fellow and Lecturer at the University of Michigan while also working as a freelance dancer and choreographer.

In addition to serving as the Artistic Director for the Evanston Dance Ensemble 2 (ede2), Kara has performed with dance companies and theatres including Charleston City Ballet, The Ruth Page Civic Ballet of Chicago, South Chicago Dance Theatre, New Dances, Pittsburgh Public Theatre and Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre. Her choreography has been presented across the United States and internationally, including with the Dutch National Ballet.

While at the University of Michigan, Kara has deepened her research on the history and narrative representations of Black and African Diasporic people and stories within ballet, connecting the historically White artform to its North African roots as a means of restorative justice. Her work includes the theatricalization of Black folklore. During her graduate studies, she developed the original course “The History of the Black Ballerina” and co-founded the University of Michigan chapter of Ballet & Books, which provides free ballet education and literacy support to predominantly Black and Latiné students in low-income communities.

The Arts Initiative, in partnership with Wolverine Wellness, is launching a series of free art-making workshops for the Take Care AY 2024-25 focus. These workshops are an opportunity to create art, brush up on dance techniques, and other artistic forms. No prior experience is required. Led by local and regional artists, the workshops are open to the entire U-M and local community. All supplies will be provided at the workshop.

For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

sara m. faraj (she/her) is an Arab American who is part of the diaspora Indigenous to modern-day southern Lebanon; she is a participatory action researcher, environmentalist, and independent photojournalist in southeast Michigan. Her work aims to support social infrastructure in the built environment through preserving culture in place, cultivating accessible food systems, and facilitating emancipatory processes that aim to recenter community visions and voices in planning. faraj is also passionate about understanding how to support and bolster grassroots planning processes to promote growth for creators and culture makers, Black-, Brown-, and Indigenous-owned small businesses, and community leaders who strengthen the foundation and scaffolding of communities.

faraj is an alumna of the Master of Urban and Regional Planning program at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor and the Urban Studies and Planning Honor program at Wayne State University, where she received a Minor in Urban Sustainability.

Former and current research endeavors include public health law solutions for environmental injustice in southeast Michigan, sustainable food procurement policy for institutions, global eviction and housing policy to address homelessness, Indigenous food systems and management, sustainable land use, community development strategies to combat gentrification, and more. Through further research and strategy formulation, sara hopes to support the cultivation of more equitable and sustainable systems so cities/communities can better withstand imminent climate change and social shifts.

The Arts Initiative, in partnership with Wolverine Wellness, is launching a series of free art-making workshops for the Take Care AY 2024-25 focus. These workshops are an opportunity to create art, brush up on dance techniques, and other artistic forms. No prior experience is required. Led by local and regional artists, the workshops are open to the entire U-M and local community. All supplies necessary will be provided at the workshop.

For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

Dallas McGhee-Henry is a writer, photographer, painter, and filmmaker interested in the intersection between art and social change. Currently doing art as passion work, Dallas practices art as a mode of release while also being thrilled with always giving himself challenges. Always excited to improve himself and his art form, Dallas takes in his plethora of inspiration and doesn’t limit himself all in the pursuit for fun and change. He believes that art can be a part of everyone’s life, and everyone can be an artist. Being an advocate of art liberation, Dallas works to one day be a part of something bigger than himself, an art movement allowing artists to collaborate and successfully create work to uplift voices and create more opportunities for the artist community at large!

The Arts Initiative, in partnership with Wolverine Wellness, is launching a series of free art-making workshops for the Take Care AY 2024-25 focus. These workshops are an opportunity to create art, brush up on dance techniques, and other artistic forms. No prior experience is required. Led by local and regional artists, the workshops are open to the entire U-M and local community. All supplies necessary will be provided at the workshop.

For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

Kara Roseborough is a multi-disciplinary artist specializing in dance, creative writing, and theatre. She holds an MFA in Dance and a Certificate in World Performance Studies from the University of Michigan, a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Utah, and teaching certifications in Grades I-V of the Cecchetti Ballet method. Currently, she serves as a Creative Careers Fellow and Lecturer at the University of Michigan while also working as a freelance dancer and choreographer.

In addition to serving as the Artistic Director for the Evanston Dance Ensemble 2 (ede2), Kara has performed with dance companies and theatres including Charleston City Ballet, The Ruth Page Civic Ballet of Chicago, South Chicago Dance Theatre, New Dances, Pittsburgh Public Theatre and Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre. Her choreography has been presented across the United States and internationally, including with the Dutch National Ballet.

While at the University of Michigan, Kara has deepened her research on the history and narrative representations of Black and African Diasporic people and stories within ballet, connecting the historically White artform to its North African roots as a means of restorative justice. Her work includes the theatricalization of Black folklore. During her graduate studies, she developed the original course “The History of the Black Ballerina” and co-founded the University of Michigan chapter of Ballet & Books, which provides free ballet education and literacy support to predominantly Black and Latiné students in low-income communities.

The Arts Initiative, in partnership with Wolverine Wellness, is launching a series of free art-making workshops for the Take Care AY 2024-25 focus. These workshops are an opportunity to create art, brush up on dance techniques, and other artistic forms. No prior experience is required. Led by local and regional artists, the workshops are open to the entire U-M and local community. All supplies will be provided at the workshop.

For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

Kara Roseborough is a multi-disciplinary artist specializing in dance, creative writing, and theatre. She holds an MFA in Dance and a Certificate in World Performance Studies from the University of Michigan, a Bachelor of Arts in English from the University of Utah, and teaching certifications in Grades I-V of the Cecchetti Ballet method. Currently, she serves as a Creative Careers Fellow and Lecturer at the University of Michigan while also working as a freelance dancer and choreographer.

In addition to serving as the Artistic Director for the Evanston Dance Ensemble 2 (ede2), Kara has performed with dance companies and theatres including Charleston City Ballet, The Ruth Page Civic Ballet of Chicago, South Chicago Dance Theatre, New Dances, Pittsburgh Public Theatre and Fleetwood-Jourdain Theatre. Her choreography has been presented across the United States and internationally, including with the Dutch National Ballet.

While at the University of Michigan, Kara has deepened her research on the history and narrative representations of Black and African Diasporic people and stories within ballet, connecting the historically White artform to its North African roots as a means of restorative justice. Her work includes the theatricalization of Black folklore. During her graduate studies, she developed the original course “The History of the Black Ballerina” and co-founded the University of Michigan chapter of Ballet & Books, which provides free ballet education and literacy support to predominantly Black and Latiné students in low-income communities.

The Arts Initiative, in partnership with Wolverine Wellness, is launching a series of free art-making workshops for the Take Care AY 2024-25 focus. These workshops are an opportunity to create art, brush up on dance techniques, and other artistic forms. No prior experience is required. Led by local and regional artists, the workshops are open to the entire U-M and local community. All supplies will be provided at the workshop.

We will provide a limited supply of scrap fabrics for this workshop, but to minimize waste and to create something upcycled you will actually want to wear, please BYO-Clothes. Thread, needles, and embroidery hoops will all be provided.

Limited to: 15 participants

For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

Leah Crosby (they/them) is a multimedia artist, collaborator, and genre-bender. They are a daydream creator interested in the empathetic potential of fantasy, the use of play and pleasure, the activation of public spaces, and designing participatory events. With cheeky humor and a flair for the devastating, they use the combined forces of dance, narrative storytelling, musical composition, sculpture, puppetry, and experience design to make work that is hilariously sad.

They graduated summa cum laude from Ohio University’s Honors Tutorial College with a BFA in Dance Performance and Choreography. They are a Licensed Massage Therapist, a Third Degree Reiki Practitioner (master-level), a Certified Yoga Teacher, and they have the blessing of the Royal Thai Ministry of Education to perform Thai Massage. They enjoy petting other people's cats, playing with other people's children, and weeding other people's gardens.

The Arts Initiative, in partnership with Wolverine Wellness, is launching a series of free art-making workshops for the Take Care AY 2024-25 focus. These workshops are an opportunity to create art, brush up on dance techniques, and other artistic forms. No prior experience is required. Led by local and regional artists, the workshops are open to the entire U-M and local community. All supplies necessary will be provided at the workshop.

For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

sara m. faraj (she/her) is an Arab American who is part of the diaspora Indigenous to modern-day southern Lebanon; she is a participatory action researcher, environmentalist, and independent photojournalist in southeast Michigan. Her work aims to support social infrastructure in the built environment through preserving culture in place, cultivating accessible food systems, and facilitating emancipatory processes that aim to recenter community visions and voices in planning. faraj is also passionate about understanding how to support and bolster grassroots planning processes to promote growth for creators and culture makers, Black-, Brown-, and Indigenous-owned small businesses, and community leaders who strengthen the foundation and scaffolding of communities.

faraj is an alumna of the Master of Urban and Regional Planning program at the University of Michigan Ann Arbor and the Urban Studies and Planning Honor program at Wayne State University, where she received a Minor in Urban Sustainability.

Former and current research endeavors include public health law solutions for environmental injustice in southeast Michigan, sustainable food procurement policy for institutions, global eviction and housing policy to address homelessness, Indigenous food systems and management, sustainable land use, community development strategies to combat gentrification, and more. Through further research and strategy formulation, sara hopes to support the cultivation of more equitable and sustainable systems so cities/communities can better withstand imminent climate change and social shifts.

The Arts Initiative, in partnership with Wolverine Wellness, is launching a series of free art-making workshops for the Take Care AY 2024-25 focus. These workshops are an opportunity to create art, brush up on dance techniques, and other artistic forms. No prior experience is required. Led by local and regional artists, the workshops are open to the entire U-M and local community. All supplies necessary will be provided at the workshop.

If you have specific mobility needs, please email in advance and we will prioritize choosing an accessible route. Participants with hearing loss are welcome to join as well.

For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

Leah Crosby (they/them) is a multimedia artist, collaborator, and genre-bender. They are a daydream creator interested in the empathetic potential of fantasy, the use of play and pleasure, the activation of public spaces, and designing participatory events. With cheeky humor and a flair for the devastating, they use the combined forces of dance, narrative storytelling, musical composition, sculpture, puppetry, and experience design to make work that is hilariously sad.

They graduated summa cum laude from Ohio University’s Honors Tutorial College with a BFA in Dance Performance and Choreography. They are a Licensed Massage Therapist, a Third Degree Reiki Practitioner (master-level), a Certified Yoga Teacher, and they have the blessing of the Royal Thai Ministry of Education to perform Thai Massage. They enjoy petting other people's cats, playing with other people's children, and weeding other people's gardens.

The Arts Initiative, in partnership with Wolverine Wellness, is launching a series of free art-making workshops for the Take Care AY 2024-25 focus. These workshops are an opportunity to create art, brush up on dance techniques, and other artistic forms. No prior experience is required. Led by local and regional artists, the workshops are open to the entire U-M and local community. All supplies necessary will be provided at the workshop.

For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

Sajeev Visweswaran is a visual artist based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. While he works in many media and styles, drawing always comes at the center of his work. He has maintained a focus on minimalist lines and measures etchings throughout his repertoire. Sajeev's works draw on the tension between the mundane activities of every day life and his political sensibilities, between his young life in village India and the world of fine art. He is fascinated by the intersection of the personal and the political, presence and absence, the domestic and the public. Sajeev received his training from the College of Arts, New Delhi where he received his BFA, before completing his MVA at M.S. University, Baroda. His first solo show was held at 1,Shanthi Road, Bangalore in 2014, and his works have been selected for several exhibitions and group shows across India, as well as in Korea and France. He has attended residencies at 1, Shanthi Road, Bangalore in 2014 and the 'Residence Price' at the 13th Biennale Internationale de Gravure de Sarcelles, France in 2008. In addition to his work as a practicing artist, he teaches courses in drawing and printmaking at a variety of Indian and American institutions.

• Artist website

For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

The Arts Initiative, in partnership with Wolverine Wellness, is launching a series of free art-making workshops for the Take Care AY 2024-25 focus. These workshops are an opportunity to create art, brush up on dance techniques, and other artistic forms. No prior experience is required. Led by local and regional artists, the workshops are open to the entire U-M and local community. All supplies will be provided at the workshop.

For questions or to request accessibility accommodations, contact Félix Zamora-Gómez at felixzg@umich.edu.

Sajeev Visweswaran is a visual artist based in Ann Arbor, Michigan. While he works in many media and styles, drawing always comes at the center of his work. He has maintained a focus on minimalist lines and measures etchings throughout his repertoire. Sajeev's works draw on the tension between the mundane activities of every day life and his political sensibilities, between his young life in village India and the world of fine art. He is fascinated by the intersection of the personal and the political, presence and absence, the domestic and the public. Sajeev received his training from the College of Arts, New Delhi where he received his BFA, before completing his MVA at M.S. University, Baroda. His first solo show was held at 1,Shanthi Road, Bangalore in 2014, and his works have been selected for several exhibitions and group shows across India, as well as in Korea and France. He has attended residencies at 1, Shanthi Road, Bangalore in 2014 and the 'Residence Price' at the 13th Biennale Internationale de Gravure de Sarcelles, France in 2008. In addition to his work as a practicing artist, he teaches courses in drawing and printmaking at a variety of Indian and American institutions.

• Artist website

The Arts Initiative, in partnership with Wolverine Wellness, is launching a series of free art-making workshops for the Take Care AY 2024-25 focus. These workshops are an opportunity to create art, brush up on dance techniques, and other artistic forms. No prior experience is required. Led by local and regional artists, the workshops are open to the entire U-M and local community. All supplies will be provided at the workshop.

Join in to share in music’s power to heal, bring people together, and cope through challenging times. Take Care is the University of Michigan Arts Initiative’s AY 2024-25 focus, which explores how art can help us process the current moment: caring for oneself and others during challenging times; self and community-healing as a means of collective resilience, and how taking care and self-expression can help create a world we all want to live in. Songs chosen for this year’s second annual Community Sing will be inspired by this concept.

Free snacks provided by the Michigan Community Scholars Program.

Suggestions: Bring your own water bottle and wear pastels!

This program is presented by: U-M Arts Initiative, Wolverine Wellness, Michigan Community Scholars Program, Lloyd Scholars for Writing and the Arts, Our Own Thing Chorale, Out Loud Chorus, Detroit Women's Chorus, UMS Choral Union

RSVP: