Jan Hundley ’80
recognized for leadership of Arkansas Symphony Orchestra board
CONWAY,
Arkansas (December 7, 2023) —Hendrix College alumna and Board of Trustees member
Jan Hundley ’80 has been named one of Musical
America’s top 30 Professionals of the Year for her work as the five-year chair of
the board of the Arkansas Symphony Orchestra (ASO).
In
June, the ASO announced that its new music director was Geoffrey Robson, who
had been serving as interim artistic director. He signed a five-year contract
to lead the Little Rock-based orchestra, which is in its 58th season, and
succeeds Phillip Mann, who stepped down in 2018.
In August, the ASO broke ground on the Stella Boyle Smith Music
Center, a 20,000-square-foot facility in Little Rock’s East Village, adjacent
to the Clinton Presidential Library and Museum. The orchestra will continue to
give concerts at the 2,222-seat Robinson Center, but the new building promises
to be a significant community asset. Projected to open in September 2024, it
will include offices, rehearsal and practice spaces, a broadcast and recording
studio, and music classrooms.
Hundley led the recent five-year capital campaign that raised $11.7
million to cover the cost of the center. She also steered ASO, which has a $4
million budget, through the pandemic. “We didn’t lay anyone off, not full-time
musicians, not staff,” she says. “Our donors really stepped up, and then we
ultimately received government funding, but we didn’t know we were going to get
that at the time we were making those decisions.”
About
Hendrix College
Founded in
1876, Hendrix College is featured in Colleges That Change Lives: 40 Schools
That Will Change the Way You Think About Colleges and celebrated among the
country’s leading liberal arts colleges for academic quality, engaged learning
opportunities and career preparation, vibrant campus life, and value. The
Hendrix College Warriors compete in 21 NCAA Division III sports. Hendrix has
been affiliated with the United Methodist Church since 1884. Learn more at www.hendrix.edu.
“… Through
engagement that links the classroom with the world, and a commitment to
diversity, inclusion, justice, and sustainable living, the Hendrix community
inspires students to lead lives of accomplishment, integrity, service, and
joy.” —Hendrix College Statement of Purpose