KINGSTON, R.I. – Feb. 12, 2026 – Music therapy students from University of Rhode Island students will fill the URI Fine Arts Center with music as they help raise awareness about mental health on Saturday, Feb. 21 as part of an event dedicated to mental health education and community engagement.
The Mental Health Awareness Expo and Concert, presented by the URI Music Therapy Club, will take place from 4:30 to 8 p.m. at the Fine Arts Center, 105 Upper College Road on the Kingston Campus. The student-run event, also a fundraiser for the Music Therapy Club, will inform and engage the community by providing practical information about mental health, showcasing current research on music and music therapy, conducting mock therapy sessions, and offering interactive music experiences.
Student event organizers are also partnering with local nonprofit Hands in Harmony for this event. The organization, led by URI Music Therapy Program Director Nicole O’Malley, provides music therapy services for individuals, groups and communities through evidence-based and client-centered care.
“The main mission of the Music Therapy Club is to promote therapy, advocacy education, and community engagement” said Andrea Sims, a senior at URI from New Britain, Connecticut, majoring in music therapy and also the Music Therapy Club’s president. “Not only do we want to help individuals improve their mental well-being, but also we want to continue to erase negative biases against mental illness.”
Music therapy is an allied health profession where trained board-certified clinicians use music to address non-music goals across social, emotion, cognition, and sensorimotor and language domains. O’Malley says music is uniquely powerful because it engages multiple brain networks at once. For those struggling with their mental health, music therapy helps regulate the nervous system, reduce anxiety, support emotional expression, strengthen coping skills and foster connections, O’Malley says.
“Whether the interventions involve writing songs, improvising, listening, or engaging in other structured music experiences, the goal is non-music and focuses on the mental health needs of the client and family,” O’Malley said.
Informational posters about mental health and ways to incorporate music therapy into people’s lives will be on display at the event. There will also be mock therapy sessions conducted by board certified, licensed music therapists and by URI senior music therapy students. URI President Marc Parlange will offer opening remarks during the event, as well.
To close the expo, about 11 URI students will take the stage to perform individual musical sets. Each performing student will offer a brief reflection on how their chosen piece connects to mental health.
“We want to give the public an understanding of what music therapy is and how it can help populations who specifically have a mental health disorder,” said Monty Grable, a sophomore at URI from Mansfield, Connecticut, majoring in music therapy and also the Music Therapy Club’s events coordinator. “This event will provide people with the ability to participate and understand what music therapy is, how it looks and how it can be structured. We’re looking forward to having these conversations with everyone attending the expo.”
O’Malley hopes the expo helps normalize the full range of human experiences—stress, joy, struggle and resilience—plus reminds people that reaching out for support is a sign of strength, not weakness or shame.
“By highlighting the many resources available on campus and in the community, and by demonstrating how music and music therapy can support mental health and wellness, we’re showing that mental health is a shared human experience—something we can talk about openly and without judgment,” O’Malley said. “Community is essential to that conversation; when people feel connected, they’re more likely to reach out, ask questions, and seek support. Education and connection are two of the most effective antidotes to stigma, and this expo creates space for both.”
Tickets for the expo and concert are $10 cash, and all proceeds support the Music Therapy Club. Those wishing to RSVP for the event can visit the URInvolvedspec event page.