Lesley University: Let's wake up the world!
I am so excited! An expressive therapist. What a dream...to be realised. Thank you Lord!
Master of Arts in Expressive Therapies and Mental Health Counseling
Lesley's Expressive Therapies Program trains students to engage clients in the healing process through the therapeutic use of the arts. Expressive therapists integrate the modalities of dance, drama, literature, music, poetry and the visual arts with the practice of psychotherapy.
For more than thirty years, the Expressive Therapies Program has embraced a curriculum which maintains a distinctive focus on training students to use the different art modalities in their practice in a range of clinical, education and human service settings. The program has steadfastly maintained this clear focus in its measured curricular responses to changing student needs and to the vicissitudes of a regulatory environment.
CONTINUING THE SPIRIT--THE ARTS FOR EMPATHY, COMPASSION AND GROWTH
by Julia Byers, EdD, ATR-BC
Lesley University's mission statement strongly supports leadership for empowerment and social change in many diverse fields. The field of expressive therapy grew from individuals who experienced and understood the impact of the various arts modalities on their inner and outer lives. The core values and location of Lesley in the city of educational innovation initially drew me to Cambridge, Massachusetts. It also happened to be in the county of "Middlesex" where I was born in England. Somehow I felt destined to experience New England life. As former Director and Associate Professor in the Creative Arts Therapies Program of Concordia University, Montreal, Canada for 18 years, I wanted to broaden the community of expressive therapists inclusive of multiple perspectives on the various art forms.
My background in the arts began in 1971 when I became active in the Canadian Conference of the Arts. Initially, I was trained as an art educator and specialist for kindergarten through 12th grade. I soon became interested in the therapeutic nature of the arts for people of all ages. I went to Los Angeles to study psychopathology and family treatment. Soon after I returned to Canada, I was hired in the Faculty of Fine Arts at Concordia University. I brought to the program an emphasis on both psycho-dynamic and artistic studio approaches to arts therapy. My clinical art therapy work emphasized crisis intervention in clinics, hospitals, residential agencies, and schools.
For many years, I was active as a member of an international research team in Padua, Italy, that was funded by the Ministry of Culture in Venice. There I facilitated workshops on the treatment of adolescence with emotional and physical disabilities. Several years ago, I was fortunate to be part of a unique project funded by the Children's Bureau of the Ministry of Health of Canada that brought me to the West Bank and Gaza to provide intervention and training to mental health workers, children and families traumatized by the Israeli/Palestinian conflicts.
When I first came to Lesley in 1996, I was intrigued to learn about expressive therapies in Israel due to my experiences in the Middle East. In addition to Lesley's program in Israel, Vivien and Philip Speiser of Lesley had been active in conflict resolution between Arabs and Jews. I sensed a deep respect for people's need to be heard in their human suffering, regardless of their political affiliation.
Another powerful aspect of the Lesley community emphasized experiential learning for adults. I was eager to learn and teach in Lesley's alternative education delivery formats, which include intensive weekends and week-long classes, varied time schedules, and opportunities for residential retreats, such as the four-day Summer Colloquium for all core faculty and incoming students. Most of all, the draw to Lesley was the conviction that not only do the arts matter, but they must be celebrated in educational training programs. I wanted to share the struggles of creativity with others who feel that the core of their personality is their intuitive understanding that the arts can touch the soul. I also wanted to be in a position to empower students to work creatively with people from all socioeconomic levels, in multiple settings, including hospitals, clinics and schools, as well as alternative settings. I felt compelled to promote change in traditional forms of education and therapy to embrace the power of the arts.
My process of articulating yet another perspective on the dialogue of what arts therapies offer society is a continual growth process. What is most important to me is my commitment to encouraging arts therapists-in-training to discover their own inner artistic resources and define their own therapeutic style. While it is important to be familiar with the many theories in the expressive therapies and related psychological fields, to achieve an integration of expressive therapies and psychology one must experience them with all body, mind and spirit. The imagination holds the greatest reservoir for making human sense out of meaningful moments. Together with metaphoric action and choice, the arts therapies hold promise for integration and growth for this millennium.
There will always be many discoveries in the realm of the arts. I look forward to exploring many ideas related to this active, energetic aspect of life. For me, the arts are a bridge for humanity, offering experiences of empathy, compassion, and growth. What feels important is the commitment of all educators to reach beyond the polarization of ideas, towards an aesthetic balance. As expressive therapists,we can collaborate with many fields of praxis, sharing powerful experiential knowledge and action, while always remaining open to learning from others.
It is my hope that anyone reading this introduction to Lesley's Expressive Therapies Program will recognize the collective vision of many inspired and inspiring people. One of my favorite anonymous quotes states, "Nothing illuminates everything, everything illuminates something." In discovering Lesley University, I hope you will continue to sense the legacy of rich explorations in artistic and clinical inquiry. You have already made the first step by seeking to learn more about the field.
Expressive therapies offers a broad array of integrative treatment approaches. Grounded in all the arts, this multi-disciplined field helps people create meaning in their lives and achieve emotional, physical and psychological balance. The arts as life, and life as artful, becomes a meaningful container for a sense of wholeness.