Faculty
IKUKO ACOSTA, Ph.D, A.T.R.-B.C. LCAT Program Director
Involved in the field of Art Therapy for the past thirty years as a student, clinician, supervisor, teacher, and finally as the director of the program. Her clinical expertise focused on adult population, functioning as a member of diagnostic team in an admission's unit in a county psychiatric hospital in NJ. She has also worked with adolescents, children and elderly population. Her main research interest is to develop an aesthetically based pictorial analysis within a framework of psychodynamic approach. As an art therapy educator, she has trained more than several hundreds students many of who are practicing art therapy successfully in the community. She has written a few articles that were published not only within the US but also internationally. Her most recent passion and ambition was to develop an Internship Abroad Program through which many students can participate in working with people of different socio-cultural background in their own cultural context. The first such attempt was in Tanzania (in 2007), and subsequent experiences have taken place in Peru, South Africa, and Brazil. Her interest in global application of art therapy is also reflected in her frequent participation in conferences and lectures in many countries, such as Iceland, Italy, Turkey, Japan, Korea, India, Thailand, and Singapore. In the past she has served as a membership committee, and educational standard committee in the American Art Therapy Associations. She also served as an editorial member of the American Art Therapy Journal. Curriculum Vitae
MARY GRACE BERBERIAN, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT, LMSW Instructor
Established Art Therapy Programs in community based organizations throughout New York City for at-risk children and families. In her current position, Ms. Berberian is the director of Art Therapy Initiatives for the New York City Public schools. She has published work on the use of art therapy for post 9-11 recovery and has presented at cross disciplinary conferences nationally and internationally. She formerly developed and directed the creative arts therapy program at Hartley House, working with children and adolescents at risk, and served as the art therapist for a residence of formerly homeless, mentally ill adults and women survivors of cancer. Curriculum Vitae
ELISSA BROMBERG, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT Instructor
Elissa Bromberg received her M.S. in Art Therapy at the College of New Rochelle and her B.F.A. from the School of Visual Arts, New York, NY. A specialist in art therapy in the medical setting, she has worked at the Lagone New York University Medical Center and its Lagone Clinical Cancer Center, Memorial Sloan-Kettering Cancer Center, The Creative Center, AHRC of New York City, and Benedictine Hospital in Kingston, NY. She has also presented at hospitals and professional organizations, including Memorial Sloan-Kettering, Lagone NYU Medical Center, Columbia Presbyterian Hospital, and the Society for the Arts in Healthcare; and published her research in Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association and the Journal of Psycho-Oncology. Curriculum Vitae
ANI BUK, MFA, MA, ATR-BC, LP, LCAT, FIPA Instructor
Ani Buk is New York State Licensed psychoanalyst and art therapist in private practice in Manhattan, where she works with children, adolescents, adults and couples. A Fellow of the International Psychoanalytical Association, she has over twenty years of diverse clinical experience, and is a graduate of The Psychoanalytic Training Institute of the New York Freudian Society, as well as The Institute for Child, Adolescent and Family Studies. A nationally recognized trauma specialist, her work and recommendations have been featured in newspapers and periodicals such as The New York Times, US News & World Report, The Chicago Tribune, and Scholastic News. Ms. Buk has been on the faculty of the Graduate Art Therapy Program of NYU since 1993, and was a faculty member of the Department of Psychiatry of Albert Einstein College of Medicine from 1996-2007. She has been a consultant for Doctors of the World, Safe Horizon, The Children's Advocacy Center of Manhattan, and other agencies in the New York area. She has presented at numerous local, state and national conferences, universities, hospitals, and other organizations, including the United Nations, on a wide range of topics related to art therapy, trauma, vicarious traumatization, refugee issues, parent guidance, and the psychology of the artist. Curriculum Vitae
MIA DE BETHUNE, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT Instructor
Mia De Bethune has focused primarily on work with adolescents in residential treatment and foster care in the NY metropolitan area. She has worked clinically at several agencies in Westchester County and is currently the arts enrichment coordinator for The Children’s Village RTC where she administers the arts funding for the Therapeutic Recreation Dept. Ms. de Bethune implemented an art therapy internship program at the Village beginning in 2006 and has trained numerous graduate students to do individual art psychotherapy with emotionally disturbed and traumatized youth. In addition she runs arts enrichment groups with various populations including juvenile offenders and the severely learning disabled. She also maintains a private practice in Westchester running groups for women who have experienced trauma and loss. She has presented her paper Giving the Gift of the Transitional Object at the national art therapy conference and recently had a film review published in the AATA Journal. She has presented for numerous groups in the NY area including the Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services, The Westchester Certified Group Psychotherapy Association, the Westchester Creative Arts Therapy Group, and the Andrus Children’s Home Psychology Training Program. She is a working artist who has shown extensively in the tri-state area most recently at the Prince Street Gallery in NYC, the Upstream Gallery in Westchester, and the b j spoke Gallery on Long Island. She is a member of the Blue Door Gallery Association in Yonkers, NY. Curriculum Vitae
REBECCA DISUNNO, PhD, ATR-BC, RNCS, LCAT Instructor
Rebecca DiSunno has been treating children, adolescents and families suffering emotional distress for over 20 years. As a credentialed art therapist and an advanced nurse practitioner she uses art and play as treatment modalities.
She has established several programs for the treatment of children with varying emotional disabilities. As a consultant for East End Hospice she developed the art therapy program at Camp Good Grief, a day camp for bereaved children. She currently teaches at the School of Visual Arts Master of Professional Studies Art Therapy Program, is on the faculty of the NYU Graduate Art Therapy Program and has taught and lectured internationally. Rebecca initiated a pilot program for graduate art therapy students to introduce art therapy globally. Intra-cultural experiences continue to provide inspiration for her personal artwork. Curriculum Vitae
DRENA FAGEN, LMSW, LCAT, CCLS, ATR-BC Instructor
Ms. Fagen is an art therapist and social worker in private practice. She has worked with adults, children, and adolescents in criminal justice, outpatient mental health, medical settings, foster care, and private settings. She is co-founder of Art Spa, PLLC, a therapeutic art studio in Brooklyn, NY and clinical coordinator of the creative arts therapy sexual abuse treatment program at the Northside Center for Child Development, Inc. She is also a supervising consultant with Counseling in Schools, Inc, a not-for-profit that provides much needed therapy services in underserved public schools throughout New York City. Ms. Fagen regularly conducts workshops on secondary and vicarious trauma and facilitates ongoing art therapy groups for helping professionals in her practice. Curriculum Vitae
LANI GERITY, DA, ATR-BC Instructor
Lani Gerity is an art therapist and a writer, with over a decade of experience in the use of the creative process in healing. She holds a doctorate from NYU in Art Therapy and is Registered and Board Certified through the American Art Therapy Association. She continues to write, lead workshops, supervise and practice Art Therapy in Canada while teaching and lecturing both in the US and in Canada. Curriculum Vitae
CHRISTINA A. GROSSO, LCAT, ATR-BC, BCETS Instructor
Christina Grosso is the Training Director at the Center for Trauma Program Innovation at the Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services, where she oversees and trains staff in trauma specific programming and clinical treatment for children and families with psychopathology and trauma. She is also a psychotherapist, art therapist and professional supervisor in private practice in New York City. Throughout her clinical practice, Ms. Grosso has developed an interest and specialization in the treatment of traumatized children and has pursued extensive training in traumatic stress studies including psychosocial, neurological and biological effects of trauma. Ms. Grosso has further specialized in crisis response for children and families following traumatic events, such as WTC disaster and incidents of abuse and domestic violence. In private practice, Ms. Grosso has served as a consultant to Mayor Bloomberg's Office, Project Liberty, The Museum of the City of New York and New York University’s Child Care Center, where she has provided therapy and pyschoeducation to children and families experiencing trauma. Ms. Grosso has lectured nationally on the impact of trauma and loss on children’s psychological functioning and the use of metaphor and symbols in artistic expression. Curriculum Vitae
TAMI HERZOG, M.A., ATR-BC, LCAT Instructor
Specializes in art therapy with children who have visual impairments and multiple disabilities. She established art therapy programs for preschool age children with disabilities in New York City and developed an art therapy program for children with glaucoma at the New York Eye and Ear Infirmary. Ms. Herzog is a doctoral candidate in the Department of Art and Art Professions. Curriculum Vitae
EILEEN P. MCGANN, ATR-BC, LCAT Instructor
Eileen McGann is a Senior Art Therapist with the Jewish Board of Family and Children’s Services where she has worked for over twenty-five years with children, adolescents and their families. Ms. McGann is a private consultant, licensed, credentialed art therapist, and practicing artist. She has been a member of the graduate art therapy faculty at New York University since 1997 and has taught at other colleges in the New York area. Ms. McGann has presented at numerous local and national conferences, universities, hospital and mental health settings about art therapy and work with adolescents. A member of the Editorial Review Board for Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, she also serves as a member of the Regional Symposium Committee on Adolescents. Journal publications include: American Journal of Art Therapy; Arts in Psychotherapy; Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association. Ms. McGann has authored book chapters in Art Therapy with Older Adults and Racism and Racial Identity. Her artwork is featured on the cover of Racism and Racial Identity. Exhibitions include: New York University; Molloy College Art Gallery – solo exhibition; Gallery North, Setauket, NY: Islip Art Museum, NY: and Evers Gallery, Long Beach, NY. Curriculum Vitae
RENEE OBSTFELD, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT Instructor and Admissions Coordinator
Working with addicted populations since 1986 in residential, day treatment and private settings; presently treating substance abusers with AIDS at the Robert Mapplethorpe Residential Treatment Facility; published and presented nationally on art therapy, gender, addiction, and relational issues. Curriculum Vitae
JOAN PHILLIPS, PhD, LPC, LMFT, ATR-BC Instructor
Practicing art therapist for 25 years; maintains a private practice in Norman, Oklahoma with credentials as an art therapist, marital and family therapist and a counselor; specializes in family art therapy, art therapy with sexual abuse issues and child and adolescent therapy. Joan is faculty at the University of Oklahoma and the University of Phoenix and is visiting faculty at NYU, FSU, and other universities. She has presented professional trainings locally, nationally and internationally and was the invited guest recently of the Taiwan Art Therapy Association. She has published both articles and three book chapters and enjoys collage and poetry. Joan has served on both the American Art Therapy Association and Art Therapy Credentials Board. Curriculum Vitae
STEPHANIE WISE, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT Internship Coordinator
Professional art therapist specializing in the field of Traumatic Stress. She is a core leadership member of the Art Reach Foundation Team, a Critical Responder with Crisis Care Network, a member of the Medical Reserve Corps of New York City Department of Health and Mental Hygiene and a faculty member of the NYU Art Therapy Graduate Program. She has a private practice in Manhattan. Curriculum Vitae
CLAUDIA ZANARDI, PH.D Instructor
Claudia Zanardi is a psychoanalyst in private practice and professor of clinical psychology at the University of Milan, Italy. Teachings are focused on psychoanalytic theory: British Object Relations, eating disorders, psychosomatic symptoms and gender identity, and reclaiming hysteria. Her writings, which have appeared in psychoanalytic journals and books, are on the subject of the contribution of feminism to psychoanalytic theory and practice. Curriculum Vitae