Abstract In this presentation, I apply critical social theory in considering how music education can address the world's most pressing problems: poverty and climate change. If they are to be addressed in any meaningful way, I suggest, it will require attention and commitment from all domains of human experience. A key obstacle is that most practices and institutions in affluent nations, including music education, are oriented toward the prevailing logic of neoliberal capitalism, which lies at the root of poverty and climate change. I will review ways in which formal music teaching and learning in the United States align with neoliberal ideologies, and I will promote some ways of thinking and being more conducive to equality and sustainability. Egalitarian and ecological rationalities can be difficult to accept, however, often requiring that we turn taken-for-granted assumptions upside down. To this end, I challenge foundational assumptions of American music education that have associated poverty with sociocultural deficiency and wealth with sociocultural superiority. Conversely, I recommend a more "down-to-earth" approach that recognizes the musical richness, social cohesion, and ecological sustainability in sociocultural groups and practices associated with poverty. By reorienting beliefs and practices accordingly, I argue, school music education could become more of a force for good in the world.About the PresenterVincent Bates is professor of Arts Education at Weber State University (WSU), where he teaches arts integration for elementary teachers in the undergraduate program and history and philosophy of education at the graduate level. He began teaching at WSU in 2012 after six years in the music department at Northwest Missouri State University and 12 years as a K-12 music and art teacher in Eureka, Utah. At Weber, Bates chairs the WSU Storytelling Festival and directs the Weber/Snow Collaborative Music Licensure Program. He also serves as production editor and former editor of Action, Criticism, and Theory for Music Education, a peer-reviewed, international, online, open-access professional journal. His research and writing have centered on critical social theories in music education (place/land, socioeconomic class, ecology/ sustainability). Bates earned degrees from the University of Arizona (Ph.D.) and Brigham Young University (M.M., B.M.).The Jean Sinor Lectures The Jean Sinor Memorial Lecture Series, which invites renowned guest scholars to the IU Bloomington campus for several days each year to speak and interact with music education students, is named in memory of Jacobs School of Music Professor Jean Sinor. The lecture series was made possible by a gift from Jean's husband, Denis Sinor, who was distinguished professor emeritus of Central Asian Studies in the Department of Central Eurasian Studies at Indiana University and a tenured lecturer at Cambridge University between 1948 and 1962. He was one of the world's leading scholars for the history of Central Asia.Jean SinorEugenia (Jean) Sinor, the daughter of Bernice and Joseph Trinajstic, was born on September 22, 1946, in St. Louis, Mo. She attended Webster College, where she was a merit scholar and completed a Bachelor of Music with majors in piano and music education in 1968. Sinor attended the Liszt Academy in Budapest and earned a certificate in solfege, pedagogy, and conducting in 1969. Later, she worked as a general music teacher in Greensboro, N.C., and Bloomington, Ind., schools and was a co-founder of the Indiana University Children's Choir. She completed the Master of Music Education degree at the IU Jacobs School of Music in 1975 and was appointed lecturer in music education in 1976. In 1984, she completed a Ph.D. in Music Education and was appointed assistant professor and chair of music education. In 1991, she was named director of undergraduate studies in the Jacobs School of Music. She was promoted to professor of music in 1998. Sinor was dedicated to the teaching principles of Hungarian composer Zoltán Kodály (1862-1967). She received a National Endowment for the Humanities Kodály Fellowship and became internationally known for her work as a clinician and author of teaching materials. She was known by colleagues and students as a versatile and gifted teacher. Sinor served as a visiting lecturer at 20 institutions and taught over 70 workshops, nationally and internationally. She authored several scholarly articles and four textbooks, including the Silver Burdett publications, Kodály Curriculum Guides, and World of Music. Her contributions to the Music Education Department at Indiana University covered the full range of the music curriculum, from elementary music methods through doctoral seminars. She advised over 30 theses and dissertations. As chair of Music Education, she oversaw significant development in the department's curriculum and mission. Sinor served two terms as president of the International Kodály Society. Her keen leadership, intellect, critical thinking, and communication abilities were sought out and valued by many. Her humanity, incisive humor, and generosity were appreciated by all who worked with her. As director of undergraduate studies, Sinor advised over 1,000 undergraduates each year and served as a mentor to many graduate students. She passed away on March 9, 1999, while on a research trip to Budapest, Hungary. She has been sorely missed by her colleagues in Indiana and worldwide. In a heartfelt effort to honor Jean Sinor's incomparable contributions to the field of music education, we dedicate this lecture series to her memory.Denis Sinor The benefactor of the Jean Sinor Memorial Lecture Series was Denis Sinor, distinguished professor emeritus of the Department of Central Eurasian Studies at Indiana University, Bloomington. Sinor was born in Hungary in 1916 and was educated in Hungary, Switzerland, and France. After World War II, in which he served as a member of the French Resistance and later in the Free French Forces, he joined the faculty at Cambridge University. In 1962, he came to IU, creating the Department of Uralic and Altaic Studies (now the Department of Central Eurasian Studies) on the Bloomington campus. Sinor worked tirelessly to promote an appreciation of Inner Asia in the world beyond its geographic and political neighbors, China and Russia. In 2008, he was awarded the President's Medal for Excellence, one of the highest honors conferred by IU, by President Michael McRobbie. At IU, Sinor established two key and renowned resources: the Asian Studies Research Institute, known today as the Denis Sinor Research Institute for Inner Asian Studies, and the Inner Asian and Uralic National Resource Center. The institute's collection of materials is unparalleled, and the Resource Center is a one-of-a-kind entity in the U.S., providing support to scholars studying languages such as Estonian, Finnish, Hungarian, Mongolian, Persian/Tajik, Tibetan, Turkish, and Uzbek. To these gifts, Sinor added a major gift to the Music Education Department of the Jacobs School of Music in memory of his late wife, Jean. Through a matching component of his gift, Jean's admirers and students worldwide contributed to the endowment for the Jean Sinor Memorial Lecture Series. Denis Sinor passed away on January 12, 2011.