Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Committee
of the Great Lakes Region of the American Music Therapy Association
Committee Values
Accessible educational resources
To seek a shared understanding of diversity, equity, accessibility, and social justice through providing dynamic and static educational resources to the people of GLR. We will strive to make these resources accessible, reducing/removing financial and ability-based barriers as much as possible.
Welcoming difference of identity/ Recognizing and acknowledging differences
To acknowledge, respect, and honor the dignity of others* by maintaining an environment that respects diverse traditions, heritages, and experiences.
*including race, ethnicity, age, gender, sexuality, disability, religion, nationality, socioeconomic status, fertility, additional experiences of marginalization and/or privilege, and the intersections thereof.
Identifying and addressing barriers
To identify barriers to the education, engagement, and joy of the people of GLR and address these barriers.
Recommendations for growth
To make recommendations and provide action plans to the leadership and people of GLR to embody the values of humility, equity, and an ethic of caring.
Embracing conflict
To embrace challenges and conflict as opportunities to grow and learn other perspectives.
Righting historical wrongs
To guide and challenge the leadership and people of GLR to question current and historical practices centered in dominant identities under the guise of being “normal” or “how things have always been done.”
Resources for Music Therapists
This is a working resource document that is frequently updated.
Click here for the DEI Committee Meeting Agendas & Notes
- August 14, 2024
- June 25, 2024
- April 8, 2024
- February 12, 2024
- January 8, 2024
- December 11, 2023
- November 13, 2023
- October 9, 2023
- September 11, 2023
- August 14, 2023
- March 13, 2023
- February 13, 2023
- December 15, 2022
- October 20, 2022
- September 14, 2022
- August 24, 2022
- July 22, 2022
- June 6, 2022
- May 11, 2022
- April 13, 2022
- March 23, 2022
- February 23, 2022
- February 13, 2022
GLR DEI Real Talk Series- Casual Conversations About DEI
Cripping the Culture of Music Therapy in Public School Educational Settings: Exploring the Role of Disability in Healing and Decolonizing Practice
Kaitlin “Kaiti” Shelton, MS, MT-BC, is a school-based music therapist working with disabled preschool and elementary students in Saint Paul, Minnesota. Her experiences particularly as a queer disabled woman along with scholarship in disability studies […]
Reflections on Making Education, Practicum, and Internship More Accessible and Equitable
Dr. Rebecca West (s/h/h) is an Assistant Professor at Texas Woman’s University. She has a wide range of clinical experience and has worked alongside other creative arts therapists and allied health professionals. Rebecca’s teaching philosophy […]
Cultural Reflexivity in Music Therapy
Freddy Perkins, MMT, MT-BC (he/him), is a queer Black music therapist and narrative practitioner. Freddy owns Attune Music & Wellness and works primarily with LGBTQIAS+ BIPOC. He is an advanced trainee in analytical music therapy […]
Calls & Collaborations
Join our collective…
GLR Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) committee call for new members
The GLR DEI committee is seeking new members to join our collective. We are seeking individuals from across the spectrum of music therapy experience (student/intern/new professional/experienced professional/etc.) to help change things for the better. We currently have representation of white, queer, Jewish, and/or neurodivergent identities – we are seeking members with voices from other identities present in our field.
We understand that this work is deeply rooted in our shared humanity, and is therefore personal and vulnerable. Things can sometimes get messy, and we are still educating leadership on how we can be best utilized. That being said, we are committed to engaging in meaningful conflict, hearing and bringing forth voices that may be otherwise excluded, and in general taking responsibility.
Our recent work includes: editing language on governance documents and bylaws, a ten-week summer book club related to addressing white supremacy and learning about transformative justice, inviting speakers to regional conferences, and a community town hall. Our committee also serves as support for the GLR Executive Board and State Boards.
If you are interested in this work, please send us something that addresses the below questions. This can be a letter, video, audio recording, work of art, or anything else that lets us know more about you and what you can bring to this committee. Here are some questions you can address:
- Why do you want to join the GLR DEI committee?
- What identities do you hold?
- What is your previous commitment, involvement, or interest in DEI work and initiatives?
- What perspectives do you feel you can bring to the group?
- What future projects or work would you like to do with the committee?
- Anything else you’d like us to know about you!
We are not requiring you to submit a formal letter; we would just like to learn about you and why you are passionate about moving towards justice and equity in whatever format works for you.
Please submit responses through this Google Form and contact the committee through email if you have questions.
Invitation…
Latin American Music Therapy Network (LAMTN) wants to connect and provide a source of support for Latin-identifying music therapy students. The LAMTN was formed in 2012 as a way to unify Latin American and Hispanic music therapists living in the United States and abroad.
This year we want to focus on outreach and connection with music therapy students as a means of support and mentorship. We have monthly virtual meetings which day and time will soon be announced on our social media pages. These meetings are open to the general community. Community members speak English, Spanish, and Portuguese and translation is usually available if needed. We invite you to check out our website and we post regular updates on our Instagram as well.
Meet the Diversity, Equity, & Inclusion Committee
Meet Anthony Borzi
Anthony Borzi, MA, MT-BC is a board-certified music therapist. Anthony completed his Bachelor’s of Music at Ohio University in Athens, OH and Master’s of Arts in Music Therapy at Montclair State University in Montclair, NJ. Anthony currently serves as the Student Coordinator for the Association of Ohio Music Therapists.
Anthony currently works as a music therapist at Cincinnati Children’s Hospital Medical Center, serving patients and families in the Neonatal Intensive Care Unit and Transitional Care Center. He has experience working with hospitalized children across the medical center, as well as working inpatient with children and adolescents facing mental health challenges. His main interests lie in infant neurodevelopment, child and adolescent mental health, family systems, and how they intersect in the pediatric medical setting.
Anthony’s interests in DEI have stemmed from his own experiences navigating the world as a gay man. He strives to embrace the discomfort, knowing that there is always something to learn and grow from in this work.
Outside of music therapy, Anthony enjoys spending time in the kitchen, experiencing nature as much as possible, and taking pictures with his other people’s pets.
Meet Chelsea Mabes
Chelsea Mabes, MA, MT-BC is a board-certified music therapist from Sidney, Ohio. Chelsea completed her Bachelor of Music at Ohio University in Athens, Ohio; her Master of Arts in Music Therapy at St. Mary of the Woods College in Terre Haute, Indiana; and is currently a music therapy doctoral student at IUPUI in Indianapolis, Indiana. Chelsea has been a member of AMTA and GLR since 2010 and is currently serving as Chair on the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion (DEI) Committee of GLR as well as a Council Coordinator for Association Services on the AMTA Executive Board.
Chelsea is employed as a music therapist at Mainstay Music Therapy in Indianapolis, Indiana. She supports children, adolescents, and adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities, autism spectrum disorder, mental health disorders, trauma, and individuals in hospice care. She is an advocate for trauma-informed care in the music therapy profession, which was her master’s thesis topic. Chelsea is also passionate about education and she has supervised numerous practicum students and interns as a professional.
Chelsea defines her work as person-centered with an eclectic approach that is trauma informed. Chelsea believes in a reciprocal relationship between the person-supported, the therapist, and the music as a meaningful and collaborative experience. Safety, respect, dignity, and support are essential elements to Chelsea’s clinical work.
Chelsea enjoys golfing, Harry Potter, anything that is the color pink, and her cat, Wilmer.
Meet Angeline McRoberts
Angeline McRoberts, MT-BC (she/her) identifies as a second-generation Asian-American, middle class, agnostic, neurotypical, heterosexual, cisgendered woman from Texas. She received a BS in Music Therapy from Texas Woman’s University. Since 2019, she has been a full-time music therapist for Opportunities for Positive Growth, Inc. (OPG) in Fishers, Indiana. She currently supports adolescents and adults with ID/DD through the Indiana Medicaid Waiver and supervises music therapy interns. She also serves as the co-chair for OPG’s Diversity Alliance, a committee responsible for supplying diversity, equity, and inclusion resources and feedback to the company. She is set to be the GLR Treasurer in 2023 and is a new member of the GLR’s Diversity, Equity, Inclusion (DEI) Committee.
In her spare time, Angeline enjoys salsa dancing, snacking on cheese, and snuggling with her cat, COBRAXYS DYNAMA BOAT.
Meet Daniel Goldschmidt
Daniel is a white, Jewish, non-binary, middle class, disabled, neurodivergent person socialized as a man living in Minneapolis, MN. Daniel has been a music therapist since 2013, working with people across the lifespan. During their master’s degree at Colorado State University, Daniel engaged in coursework for a certificate in gender, power, and difference. This coursework grounded Daniel in feminist theory, and continued a journey of self-discovery of their participation in harmful structures of whiteness and patriarchy (among others). This led to writing and presenting on white supremacy in music therapy, which Daniel has presented at the AMTA national conference, the South Africa world congress, and on which they have provided trainings for the Minnesota, California, and Manitoba state/province organizations. Daniel has also provided lectures to classrooms on white supremacy in music therapy. Outside of academia they have led book clubs and groups for music therapists and non-music therapists seeking to dismantle internalized white supremacy. Currently, Daniel is the owner of Etude LLC, a music therapy practice focused on working with queer people in Minnesota.
Beyond work in the music therapy community, Daniel is a community member living two blocks from George Floyd Square. Being involved in this space has given them the opportunity to make connections between theory-based knowledge on white supremacy and the lived experiences of their neighbors. Daniel’s intention of joining the GLR DEI committee is to take their knowledge on theory and bring it into praxis within music therapy structures.
Meet Rachel Yurik
Rachel Yurik, MT-BC, is a Board Certified Music Therapist. Rachel currently works as a Music Therapist at Masonic Children’s Hospital in Minneapolis, Minnesota, serving patients and families on a variety of units from the NICU, the PICU/CVICU, the Blood and Marrow Transplant Unit, and the Medical/Surgical Units. She has interest in supporting development and family interactions in the hospital environment, promoting coping skills and connection through music, interdisciplinary work, trauma-informed care, and anti-oppressive practice within the medical setting.
Rachel is particularly passionate about DEI work focusing on accessibility, education, collaboration, and disability justice. Outside of music therapy, Rachel loves to crochet, hike, and play trivia.
Have a question for the DEI Committee?
Get in touch below.