Jun
10
2008
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Student Affairs Advisory Board
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Written by Lauren Caso
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Tuesday, 10 June 2008 |
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Our New NER-AMTAS Student Officers are:
PRESIDENT: Jared Leaderman
Berklee VP: Stephany Johnson
Lesley VP: Luke Chandler
Anna Maria VP: TBD
SECRETARY: Jess Kaptcianos
TREASURER: Naoko Okamoto
Chair of Public Relations: Irene Antonellis
Parlimentarian: Denise Oliveras
Bylaws were passed and approved by the student board at conference. The constitution is still under revision, so they students were not able to vote on it at this past conference.
Note the change in title for "Chair of Public Relations" was approved. Parlimentarian position was added as well. The Vice President position, as part of their duties, will now help to plan and organize annual "Passages Conference" as well.
The students had a variety of fundraisers throughout the year; (including selling NER logo tee-shirts, MT bumper stickers, a concert at Westborough, AIDS walk).
Kevin and I chose two names at random for the student musical instrument scholarships awarded at Conference. Faculty Chairs from each of the 3 schools chose one graduating senior from each school.
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Jun
10
2008
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Employment and Public Relations
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Written by Amy Hemenway
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Tuesday, 10 June 2008 |
The Employment and Public Relations Committee convened twice during the most recent music therapy conference in Louisville, KY. This committee has been given several charges: To maintain accuracy of materials generated, to support regional networks, to identify and monitor trends of employment, and to identify career information for prospective music therapy students.
It was brought to our attention that several online career databases have little to no information on music therapy. We, as a committee, crafted a letter to be sent to webmasters who maintain some of these career databases, encouraging them to include music therapy as a career on their websites. We included the AMTA definition of music therapy and also asked them to link the AMTA website to their databases.
This committee also discussed ideas on how to launch a “National Music Therapy Awareness Day, Week, or Month.” We will contact other allied healthcare related associations (i.e. – Occupational Therapy, Physical Therapy, etc.) to find out how they became involved in this process. This will require support from AMTA and possibly the U.S. congress in order to move forward with establishing national recognition for the music therapy profession.
Developing ways to track trends and growth within the music therapy field was also a topic of discussion. Our committee designed a survey to distribute to AMTA members on growth and trends across the country. This survey awaits approval from AMTA before it can be disturbed among the membership.
There are no current updates on any business regarding the Employment and Public Relations Committee, as per my discussion with our national representative, during this 3rd week of January. If anyone has any questions, concerns or ideas to contribute, please contact me via e-mail:
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 24 June 2008 )
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Jun
10
2008
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President
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Written by Christine Routhier
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Tuesday, 10 June 2008 |
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C’est le printemps! What an exciting time of year this is! The tulips are in full bloom and the leaves are coming out in a multitude of shades of green – lime greens, yellow greens, bright greens, chartreuse, moss greens – it’s scrumptious! Not only is it beautiful, spring also marks new beginnings and transitions, particularly with students graduating and entering the professional world. With beginnings come endings, and for all these students this means leaving the comfort of their university program where they have been supported by their professors and peers. Some of them will be going back home to take what they have learned here and translate it into their language and culture. That’s a wonderful challenge. Others will be trying their luck in a new place and explore the possibilities, but many will be staying here and becoming a part of our New England community. This is very exciting to me as it means more music therapy positions being created, more internship sites, more people at regional conferences, and just more music therapy juices flowing in the region.
Spring also marks our NER conference. This year it was held in the Berkshire’s, April 3-5, 2008, at the Cranwell Spa and Golf Resort in Lenox, MA. What a beautiful site this was. For those of us who were there it’s probably the closest we’ll ever be to feeling like royalty! The conference was as exciting and rejuvenating as always, thanks to the hard work of Lynne Patnode, Heather Bloom, and the conference committee. The conference began Thursday morning, with four CMTE courses being offered. Dr. Dale Taylor presented on Biomedical Music Therapy; Susan Mazer presented a guitar workshop that everyone loved; Bob Bloom went all out in his drumming workshop; and Joseph Pinson offered his years of songwriting experience. The evening performance opened with Dr. Barbara Wheeler, AMTA President, highlighting the tenth anniversary of AMTA and presenting the AMTA Spirit of Unification award to Dr. Michele Forinash for her contributions over the past ten years and beyond, to AMTA and to the field of music therapy. This was followed by the unveiling of our new NER website, which was designed by our NER webmaster Mayumi Yamada Slazas, with the help of our new Technology and Communications Committee representative Ricardo Poza. The evening continued with music by the Keith and Mazer Trio, playing an eclectic variety of acoustic tunes. What great voices they had and what a wonderful way to start a conference. The next two days were filled with thought-provoking and inspiring presentations.
There were two events that stand out for me. The first was the NER Business meeting. I was so excited and honored to have the opportunity to present awards and because of AMTA’s 10th anniversary celebration, to look back at all that NER has accomplished. The first award presented was the Presidential Service Award that went to Jean Nemeth for her tireless NER representation on the Assembly of Delegates for many years. As a new member of the Assembly of Delegates in 1999, I remember listening to the assembly members begin taking apart the Report and Recommendations of the Commission on Education and Clinical Training, because they were uncomfortable and maybe afraid of the some of the changes that were suggested. There was a heavy, sinking feeling in the air. Then Jean came up to the microphone and suggested taking the controversial items out of the main text and putting them in a new section called “ For Future Consideration”. With this suggestion in mind, the air literally began to shift and within minutes the entire document was approved unanimously. I will never forget this moment, which for me is when I really met Jean!
NER has played an important role in the workings of the national association in so many ways. We have a number of important and active members living in this region, but more importantly, as a group we have remained at the forefront and innovative in our thinking, years before unification came into being. For this reason, the NER Executive Board also presented two special awards, entitled Celebrating Unity Awards, one to the NEC Executive Board of 1997, which included Kevin Krivanec, Marcia Lajoie, Julie Andring, Beverly Grogan, Virginia Balch, Jean Nemeth, and Linda Bosse for voting to put AAMT members on the slate for positions, months prior to the NAMT vote for unification. The other award was presented to the founders of the MMTA - Donna Chadwick, Michelle Glidden, and Karen Wack - for making unification a reality in Massachusetts seventeen years before it would happen in the rest of the country. These two acknowledgements were also made through song. As I was reading through comments I had solicited in preparing for a brief speech on unification (see Unification from a NER Prespective) Kimberly was using these same comments as a source of inspiration for a beautiful song she wrote for our NER. Thank you Kimberly.
Finally, you are probably wondering what the second event is that stands out for me! It was the debut of the NER Flute Choir. I believe there were a total of nine flautists on stage and I must say, we sounded pretty good! I am hoping that this will be a yearly event and that next year we will be twice in number, so please email me if you are interested in being a part of our group!
I wish you all a wonderful summer. Don’t forget to check out the new NER website. Also, registration for the AMTA national conference which will be held November 19-23 in St. Louis, Missouri, will be coming up soon. Thank you again to all of you for making this region what it is, a source of support, friendship, music, pride and inspiration to all of us. ~ Merci et a Bientot. Christine Routhier ~
Unification from a NER Perspective
(President’s comments made at the General Business meeting on April)
This year is a particularly special one for NER-AMTA in that it marks the 10th anniversary of unification and the birth of AMTA. You may wonder why this is so important to NER. In fact this is something that our region should be particularly proud of because we were a model for unification years before it happened. The Massachusetts Music Therapy Alliance (MMTA) was formed in 1980 with the intent of allying members of the American Association for Music Therapy (AAMT) with those of the National Association for Music Therapy (NAMT). In 1997, at the NEC (New England Chapter) conference at Berklee College of Music, the NEC Executive Board and the membership voted to put AAMT members on the slate for positions months prior to the official NAMT vote for unification. Now that’s cutting edge and something for us to be proud of. We have been ahead of our time for quite a while and in many different ways. This is one of the reasons we as a region have been nicknamed “ small but mighty”.
In thinking about AMTA’s 10th anniversary, I started looking back at what this meant to the New England Region and to its members. I sent out emails to a number of people asking for their feedback. I asked 3 questions:
1. How would you describe the process of unification from the perspective of MMTA, NEC-NAMT, and AAMT?
2. What do you feel was most challenging for your association?
3. What moment do you recall most vividly?
I would like to share with you some of the responses I received. I did not put people’s comments in quotes but as you read, keep in mind that these are your words, not mine. In describing the process people wrote: it was smooth; an extension of what was already happening; natural; there was a sense of destiny. Words like exciting, scary, apprehension, exhilarating, hopeful were used to express the feelings people had at the time. There was also a sense of uncertainty. The AAMT community feared loosing its identity, but its members also were aware of the reality that there would be strength in numbers. Many people also felt that it was about time; time to put differences aside; time to expand options and views on the field and work together for a more cohesive music therapy face to the public. From MMTA’s perspective it was felt that there were good, talented, sensible people in MA who had credentials from either NAMT or AAMT and who felt the national division was foolish and embarrassing to the profession. There was also the reality that NEC NAMT and AAMT folks had been working side by side for years in this region. There were people who as far back as the 1970’s were members of both associations. There was the sense that unification was long overdue and that the field was too small for such a split. People could keep their differences but the organization did not need to reflect this. Members described the process as joyful and enlightening at times, but fraught with tension and resistance, particularly with regards to integrating the research approaches (quantitative and qualitative) that were an integral part of the journals of each association.
This leads me to the next question where I asked the members what they felt was most challenging. People wrote things like: getting to know each other; honoring individuals and their backgrounds; putting aside and working with differences in practice, research, education and training for sake of the music therapy profession. From an AAMT perspective there was the sense that CMT’s (Certified Music Therapist – designation from AAMT) had a lot to offer in these areas, but how to give them weight or a voice, when their numbers were so out of proportion with RMT’s (Registered Music Therapist – designation from NAMT). It was feared that AAMT would be engulfed by NAMT, which would simply have a new name, and that all that AAMT members had worked to create would be lost. So when the word merger was used as synonymous to unification people got uncomfortable. The feeling was that in the spirit of unification ideas from all sides would be equally heard but that this would not be the case in a merger. For people already involved in the national organization the challenge was about melding different ways of thinking, and developing a new and improved way of going about it as a new organization. Overall it was felt that differences were healthy, welcomed and would push the field forward.
Below are listed a few of the moments people most vividly recalled:
In 1982 the MMTA organized the first music therapy day at the Boston State House with RMT’s and CMT’s, clients, and state representatives present. There was only one music therapy association present that day – not two.
Unification continued…
At the 1996 NAMT conference in Nashville, one of the events was the creating of a music therapy quilt. MMTA had made a quilt square that said CMT= RMT but it was never integrated into the quilt because it was deemed too controversial!
Around the same time, one member remembers being at an AAMT board meeting and hearing that NEC was looking for AAMT members to come on board pre-unification. It was time to act!
At the general business meeting during the Berklee conference in 1997, many people remembered when the general membership approved the executive board’s recommendation to put AAMT members on the slate. This was a very exciting time indeed!
Then after the conference, being at a NEC board meeting and suggesting a cabaret for the next conference and being told that the membership would not want to get up and play music for each other!
A year later, at our first NER conference, David Smith was present as our first AMTA president and we all wanted to show him how happy we were that the national organizations had finally come together as we had. We also held our first cabaret that weekend.
Another vivid moment for some was when the vision for the AAMT Music Therapy International Report became the on-line Voices.
Yet with all this happening, one member remembers being told that New England AAMT members didn’t like the region and wanted to join Mid-Atlantic! It is true that AAMT members were afraid of doing what MMTA had done twenty years earlier, because they were afraid and anxious of loosing what they had created and believed in. Yet in the end many people worked very hard to make sure that everyone was heard, even though it sometimes meant being pretty loud at times, but we all came together, maintaining our identity, learning from each other, growing, and creating an organization that we can all be proud of. We have become an association that embraces a wide range of approaches and philosophies and that is not compromised by dissention but is enriched by diversity. The seed for this national association was planted here in New England. I can’t imagine being a member of any other region right now and I could not be prouder than I am now to be president of this – small but mighty – New England Region.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 24 June 2008 )
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May
30
2008
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National Conference
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Written by Website Admin
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Friday, 30 May 2008 |
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The Millennium Hotel St. Louis
200 South 4th Street
St. Louis, Missouri 63102
Sessions Nov. 21 - Nov. 23, 2008 • Meetings Nov. 18 - Nov. 23, 2008 •
Institutes Nov. 19, 2008 • CMTE’s Nov. 20 & Nov. 23, 2008
Information about registration (including online registration!), conference summary, and hotel reservation are now available at: American Music Therapy Association.
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 03 June 2008 )
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May
15
2008
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Association Internship Approval
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Written by Eve Montague
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Thursday, 15 May 2008 |
Congratulations to Annette Whitehead-Pleaux, MT-BC on her successful application for a national roster site at Shriners Hospitals for Children-Boston. Shriner’s is now the 4th national roster site in New England. The region has increased sites by 100% in the past year.
A belated congratulations to Julie Andring, MT-BC , internship director at the recently approved national roster site, Southbury Training Center in CT.
If you are interested in develop a national roster internship site, please contact Eve Montague, MT-BC . Applications can now be completed electronically.
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Last Updated ( Saturday, 17 May 2008 )
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May
05
2008
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Government Relations
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Written by Stephanie Clark
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Monday, 05 May 2008 |
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4/15/08
In February, AMTA Government Relations sent out a call to action in support of the H.R. 1424: Paul Wellstone Mental Health and Addiction Equity Act of 2007; a bill introduced by Representatives Patrick Kennedy (D-RI) and Jim Ramstad (R-MN) on March 9th, 2007. As one organization among many in support of the Mental Health Parity Act of 2007, AMTA sought the assistance of its membership in contacting their respective state representatives to convey the need for parity. With enough support, efforts would help amend preexisting legislation to eliminate discrimination in regard to provisions (potentially relating to quality music therapy services) for accessible care for Americans with mental health disorders and addiction issues.
A credit to all those who participated in this call to action, it was on March 5th 2008 that H.R. 1424 was passed by the House of Representatives with a vote of 268-148. Now that the bill has passed the House, the Senate and House must agree on the terms of one bill. There is still plenty of work to be done to as the Administration is not in support of H.R. 1424 but rather, the weaker version of the bill proposed by the Senate. The official statement released by the Executive Office of the President can be found at whitehouse.gov.
http://www.whitehouse.gov/omb/legislative/sap/110-2/saphr1424-h.pdf
To track the progress of the Mental Health Parity Act of 2007, you can visit govtrack.us and search by bill number or keyword.
If you’re just catching up, you can read more about the legislation and the ensuing discussion thereof by simply keyword searching H.R. 1424 using your preferred search engine.
Questions? Comments? Interested in how you can help support the efforts of NER-AMTA Government Relations?
Email:
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Respectfully,
Stephanie L. Clark, MT-BC, CCLS
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 03 June 2008 )
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Apr
23
2008
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NER Conference
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Written by Website Admin
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Thursday, 24 April 2008 |
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Have you seen the photos from the 11th annual NER-AMTA Conference in the Members Only Area? New photos have recently been added for a total of 61 photos. You can rate the photos and write comments on them too! Have fun!!
Did you take any photos at the conference? Would you like to share any of them with AMTA members? Uploading photos to the website is simple and easy! If you have any trouble with uploading, please feel free to contact the webmaster. Did you know that whenever you see the "Need help?" icon on the website, feel free to click the icon to receive instant online remote support - it works like an Instant Message.
Are you an AMTA Member? If so, have you registered for our website to take full advantage of members only features? For online website registration, click here.
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Last Updated ( Thursday, 15 May 2008 )
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Apr
12
2008
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Passages
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Written by Jodie Deignan
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Saturday, 12 April 2008 |
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The date for Passages 2008 is still being confirmed, but now is a good time to start thinking about what you might like to present. If you have any questions or would like some help in developing a presentation, please drop me a line. Keep checking back for future updates! |
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 13 April 2008 )
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Feb
17
2008
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National Conference
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Written by Website Admin
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Sunday, 17 February 2008 |
St. Louis, Missouri
Sessions Nov. 21 - Nov. 23, 2008 • Meetings Nov. 18 - Nov. 23, 2008 •
Institutes Nov. 19, 2008 • CMTE’s Nov. 20 & Nov. 23, 2008
Check AMTA for updates as they become available.
Call for Papers
The American Music Therapy Association is now accepting proposals for presentations at the 10th Annual AMTA Conference.
FIRM DEADLINE FOR ALL PROPOSAL SUBMISSIONS – APRIL 11, 2008
We're going green!
Proposal submissions will be totally electronic for the 2008 Annual Conference of the American Music Therapy Association in St. Louis, Missouri. Save paper and mailing costs!
Submissions will be accepted in MS Word format only by using the submission form below. Please download/save this form to your computer's hard drive, then save it as a new file using the last name and first name of the contact person. If submitting more than one proposal under the same contact person’s name, please add a number at the end of the file name to distinguish multiple proposals. Example: If contact person is John Smith, filename should smithjohn1.doc; second proposal should be named smithjohn2.doc, etc.
Then enter required information in the Word document. Don’t forget to save your work!
Please send one (1) email that includes the completed proposal (all items, A through T) as an attachment to
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Information for the blind review will be taken from your submission form so please do not include any identifying data in items A through D.
Proposal Submission Form
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Last Updated ( Tuesday, 03 June 2008 )
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Feb
06
2008
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Standards of Clinical Practice
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Written by Annette Whitehead-Pleaux
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Wednesday, 06 February 2008 |
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This year at conference, the Standards of Clinical Practice Committee (SCPC) met with the Chair of the Professional Advocacy Committee (PAC) and the Chair of the Special Target Populations Committee (STPC). First, we answered the questions about the Standards of Clinical Practice in regards to the Self-Assessment Tool that the PAC has been developing based on the Standards. Members of the SCPC offered to test drive the Self-Assessment Tool when the PAC is ready for testing the tool. Next, we met with the Special Target Populations Committee Chair to learn how we could assist with the Networking Luncheon. Finally, we made minor grammatical changes to the Standards of Clinical Practice that did not change any substance.
The Standards of Clinical Practice is a living document. The Committee reviews it each year, making sure it reflects the current practice of music therapy by the members of AMTA. It is a document for each of us, to guide us as we explore our scope of practice. I know it is not quite as fun to read as the last Harry Potter novel, but sometime before November, if you have a few minutes, read through the Standards and see if it reflects your practice. If you see something that is outdated or something that is omitted, please contact me and I will bring your ideas/concerns to the SCPC at national conference. There we will discuss your ideas/concerns and modify the document as needed.
Respectfully Submitted by Annette Whitehead-Pleaux
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 13 April 2008 )
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Jan
27
2008
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NER Conference
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Written by Website Admin
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Sunday, 27 January 2008 |
Click here to check out Conference 08 Gear on sale now!
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 13 April 2008 )
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Jan
24
2008
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President
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Written by Christine Routhier
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Thursday, 24 January 2008 |
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Ah, quee la neige a neige. (Oh, how the snow has fallen.) As I sit today looking out my window, I am not sure what to think of this weather. I see white everywhere, with branches curling to the ground heavy with snow. It is quite beautiful and so peaceful, but also quite surreal after last week’s record breaking warm weather. T-shirts one day and snow pants the next! As in our daily work as music therapists, it seems that the weather reminds us to stay open to the unexpected, for that is where much of the beauty of our work lies.
National Conference 2007
It’s been a busy few months and for those of you who went to National – it was great to see you there. NER was well represented, both in conference attendees and within the pages of the conference program. I was pleased to see so many local names presenting institutes, CMTE’s and concurrent sessions. I commend you all and hope that our numbers will keep growing as we have much to offer.
Passages 2007
The Passages Conference was another great success thanks to Jodie Deignan, Erika Shira, and to all the students and young professionals who presented. For those of you who might never have attended, you are definitely missing one of the best free events in town! This year’s presentations included a variety of clinical experiences, research projects, and thesis presentations, as well as clinical music skills workshops on piano and guitar, and a presentation by a dance/movement therapy student. There was also a great plenary session by students from Berklee College of Music on their recent work in an orphanage in Kenya. New this year was the raffle of an iPod nano for those who stayed until the end of the conference and completed presentation evaluations. Brilliant! I must say, I felt very, very proud of the many students I have worked with over the years who were a part of this great and inspiring event.
Yale Symposium
This one-day event was held in October and was very enlightening. It brought together music therapists, psychologists and medical doctors to discuss pain management and music therapy. It was an inspiring dialogue that I hope will continue. Thank you to Jodi Levine, Bobbi Blake and Cyd Slotoroff for having a vision and working hard to make it a reality. The event also marked the unveiling of our NER display board thanks to Jennifer Sokira and Sarah Gagnon. This board represents our region and our field in a very professional and dynamic way. We are still seeking photos from local music therapists to keep the board up to date and flexible. It is currently housed at one of our member’s homes and could be made available to those of you presenting at various conferences.
Regional Conference Spring 2008
Mark your new 2008 calendars because the NER conference is around the corner. This year it will be held at the Cranwell Resort Spa and Golf Club in Lenox, MA, April 3-5. The conference preliminary program and registration will be out shortly. Register early for your reduced rates and don’t forget to reserve your guest room. Thank you to our Vice President, Lynn Patnode, and our Vice President-Elect, Heather Bloam Wagner for their dedication and hard work in making this year’s conference another great New England event. Looking forward to seeing you all there!
AMTA Membership Dues
Please renew your membership if you have not already done so. It is crucial that we maintain and even increase our numbers in the New England Region in order to have a strong voice on the Assembly of Delegates. We need YOU!
Merci et a bientot,
~ Christine Routhier
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 13 April 2008 )
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Jan
24
2008
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Continuing Education
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Written by The AMTA Continuing Education Committee
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Thursday, 24 January 2008 |
- The AMTA Continuing Education Committee successfully administered the presentation of 29 CMTE’s and 4 Institute course offerings at the AMTA national conference in Louisville, KY, November 2007. This process included instituting a new ‘volunteer proctor’ process (the CEC co-chairs will be conducting an informal survey of these individuals in the near future to solicit feedback about this new format.)
- The CEC is presently seeking AMTA Board of Directors guidance on correcting a
misunderstanding concerning the importance of the CMTE learning objectives
measurement tool. This tool (often in the format of a posttest) is a requirement of all
continuing education offerings approved by CBMT and is a necessary component to
ensure both presentation quality and proof that necessary learning takes place.
- CBMT-CEC former chair Michael Silverman again attended the AMTA CEC meeting in a continuing effort to maintain open communication between these two committees. Discussion centered on clarifying questions/concerns about the administration of the CMTE process both nationally and at the regional leel.
- CEC members have once again completed the necessary post-conference tallies of course evaluations for submission to AMTA and CBMT. Presenters have also been provided with feedback about their respective courses.
- Discussion was held concerning the update to the CEC page on the AMTA web site. The committee decided that the page should contain names/contact information of CEC committee members, a direct link to the CBMT web site, the CEC handbook page that delineates this committee’s goals/charges/tasks/ qualifications, and the most current CEC report.
- The CEC has submitted a letter for AMTA Board approval to officially inform those individuals who submitted Specialized Training Course proposals that AMTA has currently suspended offering these courses pending further study.
- The CEC has requested that a member of the AMTA Conference Local Committee be assigned to the CEC to assist with the onsite paperwork needs of the committee.
- CEC members continue the ongoing process of soliciting ideas for self-study modules from regional membership as well as submitting potential offerings for national conference presentation from within their respective regions.
- The CEC committee members send heartfelt thanks to outgoing Co-Chair, Janice Harris, for all her efforts on behalf of this committee and wish her well in her new endeavor of becoming an approved provider with CBMT.
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 13 April 2008 )
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Jan
24
2008
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Government Relations
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Written by Stephanie Clark
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Thursday, 24 January 2008 |
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It is my objective to identify Music Therapists within NER working to advocate for the profession with the ultimate goal of developing a regional Government Relations Task Force. Nicole Peraullt continues to network and address Government Relations issues in her home state of Rhode Island. In addition, Shannon Laine, a Music Therapist working primarily with children diagnosed under the spectrum of Autism, has been active in advocating in the state of New Hampshire for the benefits of music therapy with this specific population. Shannon has been provided with wonderful sponsorship through the Community Music School in Manchester, NH and will be featured in an interview to be aired on NPR on February 2nd. The interview will also be available online at nhpr.com. Currently, funding for Special Education Music Therapy services in New Hampshire is determined at the local level on a case-by-case basis. It is our hope that the interview, which highlights the success of an individual client, will help to raise awareness of Music Therapy in the state and ultimately aid in making connections with New Hampshire Government Officials and the Department of Education. Thank you to all the Music Therapists in the region striving to build Government Relations.
Interested in increasing awareness of/access to Music Therapy services in your community? Please contact me via email at
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You don’t have to go it alone! |
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 13 April 2008 )
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Jan
24
2008
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Continuing Education
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Written by Deborah Layman
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Thursday, 24 January 2008 |
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One component of the mission of the Certification Board for Music Therapists (CBMT) is to define the body of knowledge that represents competent practice in the profession of music therapy. This body of knowledge, found in the CBMT Scope of Practice, evolves as theories, methods, and techniques within the practice of music therapy evolve and grow.
In order to support MT-BCs’ efforts to maintain or enhance competent practice, CBMT administers and monitors Continuing Music Therapy Education (CMTE) for certificants through Approved Providers (APs). APs provide educational activities that serve to maintain, develop, or increase the knowledge, skills, and professional abilities necessary for MT-BCs to provide competent service. Since over 90% of nearly 5,000 certificants choose the continuing education
option to maintain their board certification, CMTE courses play a critical role within the profession.
Part of CBMT’s Strategic Plan involves collection of appropriate data that defines certificants’ needs and interests, including identification of continuing education needs and interests. In order to meet this goal, the Continuing Education Committee (CEC) of CBMT conducted a Needs Assessment survey on Survey Monkey in 2006. In addition, Approved Providers’ Needs Assessment surveys were compiled by the CEC during the summer of 2007. Fifty-six percent of APs responded with their summaries (which included results from 2002-2007) and the results were compiled in the fall of 2007.
The top three client populations highlighted were autism/PDD, geriatric including Alzheimer’s and dementia, and early childhood. The top three areas identified in the Needs Assessments Approved Provider summaries (relating to each domain area in the CBMT Scope of Practice) are as follows:
Music Theory and Skills
1. Improvisation
2. Percussion techniques/drumming
3. Guitar techniques
Assessment/Treatment Planning
1. Assessment procedures
2. Establishing goals and objectives
3. Data collection/measurement tools for assessment/writing assessment reports/sharing assessment results
Implementation/Termination
1. Therapy
2. Relaxation/stress management
3. Social skills/self esteem/group cohesion
Documentation/Evaluation
1. Documenting client’s progress
2. Evaluating client’s response to therapy
3. Data collection techniques and forms (including in school groups)
Professional Development
1. Supervision/consultation
2. Current issues/research/literature
3. Related technologies
In order to meet these identified needs of certificants, the CEC of CBMT is looking for Approved Providers to offer courses in these areas. If you are currently an Approved Provider, please consider offering a CMTE course in one of the above identified need areas.
The CEC is also seeking to increase the number of Approved Providers, which could provide certificants with a wider range of CMTE courses that meet their needs and interests. Becoming an AP allows you to contribute to the skill and knowledge development of MT-BCs. It also provides you with the opportunity to develop a business or increase your income. As an AP, you can connect music therapists to one another, fostering collegiality and knowledge exchange.
The Continuing Education Committee is available to answer questions or to provide any special assistance during the Approved Provider application process. The CEC offers a free mentorship program, which provides potential APs with a mentor member of the CEC. This mentor will provide support and feedback throughout the approval process. Please contact the CBMT office at 1-800-765-2268, ext. 23 for information, or download an Approved Manual and One-Year Probationary Application from our web site at www.cbmt.org. |
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 13 April 2008 )
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Jan
24
2008
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Affiliate Relations
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Written by Sarah Gagnon
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Thursday, 24 January 2008 |
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Greetings! I hope everyone has a happy and healthy 2008. My committee was busy this year! We redefined our role in the organization, discussed the use of the current AMTA website and have been urged to help you, the membership, to better use the information provided on the Affiliate Relations link on the AMTA website. We also discussed how to work with I&T and Advocacy to help create educational and informational materials about music therapy. Two new populations, Forensic and Hospice/Palliative Care, have been defined and officially added.
Another discussed goal for 2008 is to work closely with the Information and Technology committee to enhance the AMTA website as it is a primary target in the public’s perception of music therapy. There is a great deal of information on other associations, conferences and other professionals there and we hope you are using it to your benefit. |
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Last Updated ( Sunday, 13 April 2008 )
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