IKUKO ACOSTA, Ph.D., A.T.R.-B.C. LCAT
Ikuko Acosta has been involved in the field of Art Therapy for the past thirty-five years as an art therapist, art therapy educator, and finally, as the Director of the Art Therapy Program at NYU until her retirement in 2022. Her clinical expertise is with the adult psychiatric population, functioned as a staff art therapist of a diagnostic team in an admissions unit in a county psychiatric hospital in NJ for 17 years. Her main research interest is to develop an aesthetically based pictorial analysis within a framework of psychodynamic approach as well as incorporating new media for therapeutic use. As an art therapy educator, she has trained several hundred students, many of whom are practicing art therapists and art therapy educators both in the US and internationally. Her most recent research interest focuses on the cross-cultural application of the field of art therapy as well as incorporating the internship abroad experience into the course curriculum. In the past 6 years, many students have participated in such experiences in Tanzania, Peru, South Africa, Brazil, India, and Bolivia. Her interest in the global expansion of the field of art therapy took her to places such as Iceland, Italy, Turkey, Japan, Korea, India, Thailand, Singapore, Taiwan, and Argentina. In the past, she has served on the membership committee and educational standard committee of the American Art Therapy Association. She also served as an editorial member of the American Art Therapy Journal.
JANETTE AGBETOR, MA, LCAT, ATR-BC
Janette Agbetor holds a Master’s degree in Art Therapy from New York University and a Bachelor’s of Fine Arts from Maryland Institute College of Art. She has over 10 years of clinical experience providing individual and group art therapy for children, adolescents, adults, and geriatric populations. Ms. Agbetor is currently the Creative Arts Therapy Supervisor at One Brooklyn Health, Brookdale Hospital Medical Center campus. The majority of her clinical experience has been in acute inpatient psychiatry, where she became adept at developing creative arts programming and establishing and modifying treatment goals with diverse client populations with mental health issues, including psychosis, behavioral and emotional disorders, substance abuse, and trauma. Her fine arts training cultivated a love of material manipulation, which lent to her utilizing the power of art and the art-making process with her patients to express oneself, problem-solve, organize thoughts, develop insight and reflection, and tap into one’s unconscious. She is passionate about the field of art therapy and supervising clinicians, New York State Creative Arts Therapist limited permit holders, and graduate students working towards their masters in Art Therapy.
BETHANY ALTSCHWAGER, DAT, ATR-BC, LCAT, ATCS
Bethany Altschwager is an art therapist and art therapy educator. Her primary areas of interest are trauma, digital media, and fiber arts. She has over ten years of clinical experience in community-based and healthcare settings with people from diverse backgrounds and across the lifespan. She has presented at the American Art Therapy Association national conference, the Expressive Therapies Summit, and the Water and Stone conference as well grand rounds at BronxCare Health System. She has also taught at Mount Mary University and Caldwell University.
MARYGRACE BERBERIAN, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT, LCSW - Program Director
Marygrace Berberian is a licensed art therapist and clinical social worker. She has established school-based art therapy initiatives throughout New York City for at-risk children and families for over 20 years. In her current position, Ms. Berberian is the Director of NYU Art Therapy in the Schools program implementing programs for diverse communities. She led a research initiative examining the impact of art therapy on the self-esteem, affect regulation, and impulse control of public school students. 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. Ms. Berberian’s work has been published in texts including, Therapists creating a cultural tapestry: Using the creative therapies across cultures (2015), New York City Teachers on 9/11 (2006), and Understanding mass violence: A social work perspective (2003) as well as journals including Psychoanalytic Social Work and Art Therapy: Journal of the American Art Therapy Association. She has trained clinicians of other disciplines advocating for the use of the creative arts therapies as a highly effective treatment modality. She formerly developed and directed the creative arts therapy programs at several community-based agencies, working with children and adolescents at risk, formerly homeless and mentally ill adults, and survivors of cancer. Ms. Berberian is also trained as a Sandplay Therapy Practitioner and maintains a private practice in Park Slope, Brooklyn.
MIA DE BETHUNE, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT, ISP/SEP
Mia de Bethune is an artist and art therapy educator who worked many years in the field of foster care and residential treatment with children and adolescents. She is a graduate of the Child/Adolescent Analytic Program at the Westchester Center for the Study of Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy and maintains a private practice in Westchester County. She sees a broad spectrum of clients across the lifespan and was affiliated with Hospice and Palliative Care of Westchester for many years. Her current focus is on bringing somatic methods together with art therapy practice. She is certified in Somatic Experiencing and Integral Somatic Psychology and serves as a training assistant for both. She is also trained in Inner Relationship Focusing and has twenty-plus years as a Reiki energy healer at the master level in several lineages. She supervises numerous recent graduates in somatic methods and is currently a Ph.D. candidate at Lesley University with a research interest in somatic art therapy. She is a member of the Upstream Gallery in Hastings-on-Hudson, NY, where she often shows her own paintings, which combine weaving and collage elements. She spends time commuting between NY and RI, where she and her husband have an old farmhouse and a big garden.
TOM ETTINGER, Ph.D.
Tom Ettinger is a NY-licensed clinical and forensic psychologist. He teaches Psychology of the Artist and works with Dr. Acosta on Parkinson’s Disease and Art Therapy in collaboration with the NYU Medical Center. Earlier projects with Dr. Acosta include introducing art therapy to Jamaica (2010), curating 9/11 Arts: A Decade Later (2011), and organizing the symposium War, Trauma, and Public Art (2012). Prior to this, he was the founding coordinator of the Forensic Psychology specialization within NYU’s MA Psychology Program, GSAS (2006-2009). His forensic practice ranges from Government work (police psychologist, Port Authority PD of NY/NJ) to the Burning Man Festival (expert witness on Government Censorship, Festival Arts, and Child Welfare). Before NYU, Dr. Ettinger held a dual appointment as a postdoctoral research affiliate at Yale University and a fellow at GeorgiaTech’s Center for New Media (2003-2005). Here, he worked on assimilating Eastern healing imagery into a hybrid Virtual Reality / Biofeedback technology for meditation training and pain management. In 1998 he became the founding editor of APA's Bulletin of Psychology of the Arts (Division 10). His publications include "Picasso, cubism, and the eye of the beholder: Psychoanalysis and cognitive psychology" (New Directions in Art History, American Imago issue) and "Introduction: Paradigm shifts in 20th‑century art and critical theory" (as guest editor of Psychoanalysis and Contemporary Thought). His own arts practice includes assembled still-life photography and blues/jazz bass guitar.
FRANCES FAWUNDU, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT
Frances Fawundu is a licensed Creative Arts Therapist who works with adults in inpatient psychiatry and chemical dependency. She serves as the Director of the Creative Arts Therapy Department at New York City Health and Hospitals Woodhull Medical and Mental Health Center. Frances has also served as past President of the New York Art Therapy Association, and she was a recipient of the Pam Clark Distinguished Service Award. She has a private Art Therapy supervision practice in Brooklyn, New York.
CHRISTINA GROSSO, MA, LCAT, ATR-BC
Christina Grosso has worked as a clinician, supervisor, trainer, and leader specializing in the treatment of complex trauma in children and adolescents with mental illness and intellectual & developmental disorders. Christina has extensive experience in the practice, implementation, and training of Trauma Informed Care and evidence-based practices. Christina served at the Jewish Board for over 20 years, where she led the agency’s trauma training and organizational development initiatives focusing on Veteran and family reintegration, milieu services, and affirming care for all. She developed and implemented agency best practice guidelines protecting LGBTQ clients and staff, as well as created an LGBT Climate Survey measuring employees’ attitudes about working with LGBT clients. Christina’s work has focused on implementation science and system change. She has consulted with child psychiatric centers and residential treatment facilities nationwide to disseminate Trauma Informed Care. She has authored papers in the field of trauma, self-care, and TF-CBT, including “Children with Developmental Disabilities” in Cohen, Mannarino, and Deblinger’s book, Trauma Focused CBT for Children and Adolescents. She is the co-creator of the curriculum and NCTSN product, My Identity My SELF: Addressing the Needs of LGBTQ in Treatment (MIMS). Christina is a certified supervisor in Trauma Focused CBT (TF-CBT) and a certified trainer in Psychological First Aid. She serves on the NCTSN Terrorism & Disaster, Peer Support, and Trauma, Intellectual & Developmental Disabilities workgroups. Currently, Christina is the founder of Mind+Body=ONE, PLLC, an integrated mental health practice in Westchester, NY. The mission of Mind+Body=ONE is to de-stigmatize mental health through a holistic, person-centered approach to wellness that integrates psychotherapy, psychophysiology, and creativity. Mind+Body=ONE offers individual therapy, biofeedback, and optimal performance training for athletes and executives. Consultation and training services for corporate wellness are available and based on the principles of mindful and authentic leadership. Christina is on faculty at New York University in the Steinhardt School Graduate Art Therapy Department. She is a practicing artist, and her work focuses on abstract expressionism and process-based response art. Christina is a doctoral candidate at Saybrook University in Mind-Body Medicine with a focus on integrative mental health, psychophysiology, and mindful leadership in healthcare. Her dissertation focuses on the correlation of creativity and resilience in mental healthcare providers managing uncertainty.
JENNIFER HARRISON, Psy.D., ATR-BC, ABPP
Jennifer Myers Harrison is a Board Certified Licensed Psychologist and a Board Certified Registered Art Therapist. She holds standing as a Diplomat for the American Academy of Experts in Traumatic Stress. She holds a Doctor of Psychology in clinical psychology from Adler University, studied clinical psychology at Columbia University, and holds a Master of Arts in Art Therapy from New York University. Dr. Harrison specializes in the area of Trauma. Dr. Harrison currently has a private practice in Burlingame, is Training Director and Clinical Supervisor at Fremont Hospital, conducts forensic evaluations for Alameda County, and provides consultation for the National Alliance of Mental Illness (NAMI). Over the last 20 years, Dr. Harrison has worked in a variety of settings, including hospitals, community mental health clinics, and school-based settings with children, families, and individuals with complex presenting problems.
TAMI HERZOG-RODRIGUEZ, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT
Tami Herzog-Rodriguez 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.
ROHITA KILACHAND, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT
Rohita Kilachand is a board-certified art therapist and educator. She has been actively involved in New York University’s (NYU) Graduate Art Therapy Program as a faculty member, associate research scientist and internship coordinator. She is the clinical supervisor for community outreach programs and clinical lead for study abroad programs Her areas of focus involve art therapy initiatives with at-risk children and youth, refugees, homeless populations, and individuals living with neurodegenerative disorders such as Parkinson’s Disease and Multiple Sclerosis. Another area of her work focuses on cross-cultural art therapy in international settings. She serves as a consultant at the World Bank Group for developing mental health and education-based interventions for displaced populations.
SEUNG YEON LEE, Ed.D., ATR-BC, LCAT
Seung Yeon Lee is a Clinical Assistant Professor in the Graduate Art Therapy Program at New York University. She holds an Ed.D. from Teachers College, Columbia University, an M.A. in Art Therapy from New York University, and a B.S. in Child and Family Studies from Yonsei University, South Korea. Her research focuses on exploring the role of flow theory in art therapy, especially the therapeutic value of flow in art therapy with young immigrants as they cope with their everyday acculturation challenges. Her work with global art therapy communities in South Korea, Nicaragua, and Israel created opportunities for cross-cultural art therapy services and further development of intercultural competencies curriculum for graduate art therapy students. Her research is regularly published in journals such as American Art Therapy Association, Arts in Psychotherapy, Canadian Art Therapy Association, and Art Education. Prior to joining NYU, Seung Yeon was an Associate Professor at the Clinical Art Therapy and Counseling Program at Long Island University (LIU) where she served as the Program Director and the Chair of the Department of Art. Prior to her tenure at LIU, she worked as a Board-Certified Creative Arts Therapist at the Adult & Adolescent Acute Care Psychiatric Unit at NYU Langone Medical Center. She has also been actively involved in the art therapy community, serving as a council member of the Accreditation Council of Art Therapy Education (ACATE) of the Commission on Accreditation of Allied Health Education Programs (CAAHEP).
EILEEN MCGANN, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT
Eileen McGann has a broad range of clinical experience concentrated in therapeutic milieu and studio approach with people who have experienced complex and chronic trauma: adolescents, refugee children, adult survivors, and women veterans. Ms. McGann developed and is the Director of the Arts and Creative Therapies program at Mercy First in Syosset, New York. Ms. McGann organized the first art therapy exhibition to be held at the United Nations with the support of the UN TOGETHER campaign. This exhibition Hope Holds No Borders: Children’s Art of Compassion and Inclusion, has been well received and shown subsequently at Molloy College Art Gallery, Holocaust Memorial and Tolerance Center, and the Long Island Children’s Museum. Eileen McGann’s writings about art therapy have been published in the United States and abroad as well as translated into other languages. Her lectures and consultations include the United States, France, Estonia, Ireland, Turkey, and in Slovakia, where the U.S. Embassy sponsored her role. As a member of the NGO Partnership for Global Justice, Ms. McGann presented at a United Nations Orientation and wrote for their newsletter. She has participated as a faculty leader at the Salzburg Global Citizen Alliance in Austria. In addition to exhibitions, which include Long Island Museum; Islip Art Museum; Mills Pond Gallery; Evers Gallery; Gallery North; Molloy College Art Gallery (solo); New York University; and the School of Visual Arts NYC and Korea Galleries, Eileen McGann’s artwork has been featured as book and journal covers. A former member of the Editorial Board of Art Therapy, Journal of the American Art Therapy Association, and American Journal of Art Therapy, Ms. McGann also holds a long-time connection as a faculty member in the Honors program at Molloy College as well as the Graduate Art Therapy Programs at School of Visual Arts and New York University.
LAURA MEYERS, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT
Laura Meyers is a licensed creative arts therapist and artist. Starting in 2013, Ms. Meyers worked as a Primary Therapist and Art Therapist at the JM Goldsmith Center for Adolescent Treatment, where trauma-focused therapy was practiced through individual, family, and group therapy. Ms. Meyers also spent several years developing an Art Therapy pilot program at Samaritan Village, where she worked with veterans struggling with substance use issues. Her experiences have led her to her current position at St. Vincent’s Hospital, where she continues to work with people struggling with addiction and trauma. Her personal artwork, which includes street art and pop surrealism, has been shown and published since 2008.
RENÉE OBSTFELD, ATR-BC, LCAT, NCpsyA
Renée Obstfeld is an art therapist and psychoanalyst in private practice. She has worked extensively with people struggling with self-harm, addictions, homelessness, and co-occurring issues. Her work as an art therapy consultant with the Art Therapy Project has included facilitating groups with Female Veterans and at Bellevue Hospital’s World Trade Center Environmental Health Clinic and Program for Survivors of Torture. Dr. Obstfeld has presented internationally on the application of psychoanalytic principles to art therapy and the role of art therapy in treating addiction and trauma.
SARAH RUBIN, ATR-BC, LCAT
Sarah Y. Rubin is a board-certified creative arts therapist and child life specialist who supports children and families coping with physical illness and psychosocial trauma. She attended the University School of Nashville and then went on to obtain her B.A. at Tulane University. Thereafter, Sarah achieved a Masters in Art Therapy at New York University Steinhardt School of Culture, Education and Human Development, and later helped to develop the child life and creative art therapy program at The Hertzberg Palliative Care Institute at Mount Sinai Medical Center in New York City. Sarah has extensive experience in bereavement support and palliative care. Sarah has experience working with patients and families in inpatient units and outpatient settings. She has served pediatric hematology/oncology clinics, pediatric intensive care units, and palliative care units in New York City, where she supported adult patients and their children. Sarah has also served children facing familial loss, trauma, and abuse in Dangriga, Belize, and Udaipur, India. Sarah has presented nationally and internationally on creative arts therapy interventions in medical environments and facilitates art-based self-care groups for those in the helping professions. Sarah employs a strengths-based approach, a philosophy that considers an individual's strengths, resourcefulness, and resilience and draws upon humanistic frameworks. She collaborates closely with other health professionals to best support the social-emotional and developmental needs of children.
STEPHANIE WISE, MA, ATR-BC, LCAT
Stephanie Wise is Associate Professor of Practice and Director of Art Therapy at Marywood University in Scranton, PA. She is a registered and Board-Certified art therapist and Licensed Creative Arts Therapist in New York. Stephanie received her BFA from The Cooper Union and her master’s degree from the Graduate Art Therapy Program at New York University, where she also earned her certificate from the International Trauma Studies Program / International University for Mental Health and Human Rights, NYU & Copenhagen University. She has worked, published, and presented nationally, as well as in the Middle East, Far East, and Europe, on topics about trauma such as 9/11, Hurricane Katrina, the Tsunami, substance abuse, child abuse, and Veterans suffering from PTSD. With Emily Nash, she co-authored the book Healing Trauma in Group Setting: The Art of Co-Leader Attunement, published by Routledge in 2019. Stephanie specializes in the psychological impact of trauma and the enhancement of resilience.