Riley Bender is a fourth-year flute performance and music education major at Indiana University Jacobs School of Music, where she studies with Professor Kathryn Lukas. As a flutist, Riley has held the principal flute position of the IU Symphony Orchestra and IU Wind Ensemble. She is a recipient of many regional awards and attended Eastern Music Festival in the summer of 2022. In addition, she is actively involved in the National Association for Music Educators (NAfME) and National Band Association (NBA). Riley is an advocate for music education and conducting. This spring, she premiered a piece by her colleague, Alex Tedrow, as a conductor for Young Winds, a Jacobs Academy program for middle school students. Ms. Bender is also on staff at a local high school as a woodwind instructor and a visual coordinator during marching band season. She enjoys teaching many private students in the Bloomington and Indianapolis, Indiana, area. Riley is looking forward to her future full of teaching and performing wonderful music.