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Dr. Anita Gadberry
Regional Liaison for North America
Contact: northamerica@wfmt.info[/caption]
Of the seven regions of the American Music Therapy Association, six held their regional conference during April 4-7, 2013. Regional conferences provide attendees with educational and networking opportunities closer to their locale than most national conferences. Regional conference attendees report appreciating the chance to reconnect with music therapy colleagues in a more intimate setting and learning from music therapists whom one knows and respects. Similarly, meeting other music therapists who practice nearby can be very helpful to reduce isolation and increase support.
This year, the Midwestern Region and Southwestern Region held a joint conference in San Antonio, Texas: Building Bridges: Fostering Unity in Our Music Therapy Community. Lorissa McGuire, 1st Vice President for the Midwestern region, worked with the Vice President of the Southwestern region to plan the joint regional conference. According to McGuire, planning the conference “involved accepting and selecting presentations, organizing the conference schedule, designing the conference program, and making sure the conference ran smoothly.”
During the conference, music therapists Janice Harris and Bill Matney enjoyed the Keynote Address by Bryan Hunter. Hunter presented thoughts on the future of music therapy, based on a historical perspective. This address will soon be a podcast available from AMTA Pro athttp://amtapro.musictherapy.org/ Harris also appreciated “learning about evidenced based practice and how to incorporate research into my private practice.”
In addition, recognition of music therapists within the regions occurred at the joint conference. Bill Matney reported, “Both the Southwest and Midwest regions are experiencing retirements of well-known music therapy educators. We can take time to recognize the accomplishments and contributions of Dr. George Duerksen, Dr. Alicia Clair (Midwestern region), and Professor Joe Pinson (Southwestern region)….and I am assuming that they aren’t quite finished with those contributions just yet! We can also acknowledge the space this will leave for new contributions by the next generation of educators.”
The joint conference between the Midwestern and Southwestern regions was just one of the many local learning opportunities available for music therapists in the spring of 2013. Be sure to check www.musictherapy.org for the dates of next year’s regional conferences in the United States!
Anita Gadberry
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