Crystal Bridges Museum of American Art in Bentonville on Thursday announced a new lecture series with former President Barack Obama as the first speaker.
The inaugural program for “Building Bridges” is set for Dec. 1 at 3:30 p.m. at the Heartland Whole Health Institute on the Crystal Bridges campus.
The series, hosted by museum board Chair Olivia Walton, aims to celebrate the “American spirit of meeting in the middle with curiosity, courage, and care,” the museum said in a news release. Speakers will include thought leaders, thinkers and artists with differing perspectives to model civic dialogue.
The conversation with Obama will center on civic leadership and the shared values that shape our democracy, according to the release.
Tickets are free but are limited to two tickets per account. Crystal Bridges members will have first access to tickets Friday at 10 a.m.
In addition to the “Building Bridges” public conversation, Obama will meet privately with 450 Arkansas students and teachers for a roundtable conversation in Crystal Bridges’ Great Hall. Three high school seniors from Bentonville, Little Rock and Springdale will join the former president to discuss their own civic engagement and hopes for America’s next 250 years.
Students attending the event represent 24 schools from across the state and have been selected by their schools. Attendees include students in grades six through eight.
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