OKC, OK — Nearly 800 high school students from across Oklahoma auditioned for the 50th annual Oklahoma Summer Arts Institute at Quartz Mountain (OSAI), the state’s premier arts education program. Following a competitive selection process, only 230 students were chosen to attend the prestigious institute, which will take place June 13 - 28, 2026, at Quartz Mountain State Park & Lodge Among those selected is orchestra student Charlotte Calvert, trumpet, of Kingston.
Approaching its 50th anniversary summer, OSAI has built an impressive legacy of alumni who have gone on to national and international acclaim, including actor, writer, and filmmaker Tim Blake Nelson and Emmy Award - winning actress Megan Mullally.
Participants specialize in one of eight disciplines across the literary, visual, and performing arts, while also experiencing cross-disciplinary collaboration in the inspiring natural setting of Quartz Mountain. During the twoweek residential program, students receive intensive, collegiate-level instruction and mentorshipfromdistinguished teaching artists from around the world.
Among the extraordinary 2026 faculty teaching artists is conductorLizaGrossman,Creative DirectorandConductorof the Kaboom Studio Orchestra in Cleveland, Ohio. Grossman alsoserves as tour conductor for Styx and has collaborated with artists including Melissa Etheridge, Ben Folds, and Graham Nash.
Joining Grossman is choral conductor Dr. Jeffrey Allen Murdock, who received the 2021 GRAMMY award for Music Educator of the Year.
“This camp has been a blessing to me and has shown me so many things about myselfthat have readied me to take the next steps in my journey,” said Dr. Murdock afterconducting the Institute Chorus in 2022.“It is a blessing that this kind of creative space exists for the young musicians of Oklahoma.”