Lewis Allison, Bachelor's

Allison Lewis received her undergraduate degree from the University of Kansas in 2013. She has a Bachelor of Music with an emphasis in operatic vocal performance. Her thesis topic focuses on disparities that exist for African American musicians within music education and expands into the professional arena of classical music. Her research project takes place at the Melting Pot Theater in Kansas City, Kansas and works with majority African American middle schoolers. Her research provides a program that introduces students to operatic literature either written and/or sung by African American musicians and allows them to practice, participate, and perform said literature. Allison is also a FLAS (Foreign Language Area Studies) recipient for the 2018 – 2019 school year, her chosen language being Wolof. She hopes to further explore how West African educational practices have survived in African American communities and how these values contribute to the construction of black musicality.