Now that most of the holidays are done, it is time to hunker down at home and fend off the New England weather.   While doing that, consider using your talents to make a craft to sell the NER’s craft table.   The craft table fundraiser will make its debut appearance at this year’s NER Spring Conference in Newport. We are encouraging our members to make a craft to contribute to the craft table which will be open to the NER members at the conference. The proceeds from the fundraiser will go directly toward the Membership Support Program. When items are contributed to the craft table, please include your name and a suggested price per item. We also ask, in the event that some of your items do not sell, to please let us know if you would like them back or if you would like us to keep them for next year.   If you are attending the conference, you may bring your items to the registration table at the conference and there will be a collection box for them.   If you would like to contribute but are unable to attend the conference, please feel free to send them to Courtney Biddle and she will bring them to the conference for you. For more information, please contact Courtney Biddle @ vicepresidentelect@newenglandmusictherapy.org

Dear Colleague,

As members of the small but mighty New England Region of the American Music Therapy Association, we know that we are all stronger and better when we are united together! Membership in our regional and national professional organization has given each of us so many incredible benefits that it is too much to list it all here, but we want to share with you some of the reasons why we are members.

Here are some of the benefits of being a member of the New England Region

• Discounted conference and CMTE registration
• Scholarships for conferences provided to members
• Regional job listings on our website
• Referrals to connect you with interested clients
• Networking with local colleagues
• Staying up to date on issues to related music therapy
• Support for state task forces related to state licensure and regulation
• Receive e-mail updates via The Muse, the New England Region Electronic Newsletter which is sent to all members
• Leadership opportunities within NER-AMTA including committees, task forces and the Regional Board
• Being a part of your professional regional organization that works to support each other and the development of our field

In addition, you get these benefits as a member of the American Music Therapy Association

• Journal of Music Therapy (quarterly journal)
• Music Therapy Perspectives (bi-annual journal)
• AMTA literature (fact sheets, research bibliographies, standards of practice, and mailings of professional interest)

• AMTA’s job center which contains job listings and help in finding a job or improving your employment
• AMTA TechStop: tutorials and tips from the AMTA technology committee
• AMTA e-courses: Affordable, convenient, online continuing music therapy education at discounted prices

• Scholarships and Grants

• Discounts on AMTA products and national conference registration

• Capitol Hill presence – government relations activities including monitoring of legislation and regulations related to health and education
• State recognition initiatives and support
• Communication with federal and state agencies for recognition of music therapy

We love being members of AMTA, and we want each and every music therapist in our region to join us to make our field and our profession stronger.   After all that we have each invested in our training to become a music therapist, the modest annual dues to AMTA help to keep our profession strong and vibrant!

What is this really all about?

This Membership Support Initiative and the Pay It Forward Campaign is designed to welcome all music therapists who want to be part of the New England Region and the AMTA to become a full member! This year’s New England Region – AMTA Board has committed to using donations and budgeted funds to help you get in the game and be part of your professional organization! Maybe you were a member in the past, but for whatever reason, you haven’t renewed your membership lately. Maybe you haven’t been a member since you qualified for the student discount. Or maybe you’ve been buried with student loans and other life expenses and you just didn’t think you could afford to join this year.  If you want to be a member, then we want you to apply for this unique opportunity. The New England Region needs you!

Who qualifies?

• All Board Certified Music Therapists!  We want to help as many music therapists living in Maine, New Hampshire, Vermont, Massachusetts, Rhode Island and Connecticut as possible!

• New Members and Previous Members are welcome to apply
• Seasoned and New Professionals are encouraged to get involved in the region and both are welcome to apply
• With this funding we want to welcome seasoned professionals, new professional, new members and previous members to join and be a part of the AMTA and the New England Region!

How does it work?

This is a “Pay It Forward” Campaign. When you apply, we ask you to commit to a dollar amount that you can contribute towards your membership fee. We also ask you to commit to a non-financial contribution to the region. In this way, you will pay your membership assistance forward to support the profession and music therapy in our region. We give you some ideas of how you can pay it forward, and we also welcome your ideas about what else you think you can do to contribute to our amazing field!

How will the awards be distributed?

We want to use the funds we have available to help the largest number of people possible to become members. Awards will be determined based on the following considerations:

• Stated desire to be a part of the NER Region and of AMTA (40%)
• Commitment to pay the gift of membership forward   (40%)
• Amount of support requested (20%)

We anticipate awarding 40+ Membership Support awards, so we encourage everyone to apply!

What do I need to do?

• First decide and say to yourself, “Yes, I would love to be a member of NER-AMTA!”
• Complete this application in its entirety. We want all of your input. Do not overthink it! Just submit it!

As members of the New England Region and the American Music Therapy Association, we love being members and we know you will too!  Please join us and become a member through this Membership Support Initiative! If you have any questions, please contact ____.  We look forward to seeing why you want to be a member and how you will pay your membership forward!

The Membership Support Task Force

Meredith Pizzi, Judy Engel, Adrienne Flight,
Elizabeth Ferguson, & Sara Casati

Pay It Forward Application

The New England Region’s newest fundraiser is up and running! It is an online fundraiser with Barefoot Books. Barefoot Books is an independent publishing company that sells gorgeously illustrated multicultural books and games for children and teens. Barefoot Books has a collection of sing-a-long stories that are appealing to music therapists, as are many other titles. Marissa Scott, one of our own New England Region members, will be our Barefoot Books Ambassador.   

Click on the link http://bit.ly/BarefootBooksforNERAMTA to see the wonderful books they have to offer. Great for holiday gifts, your own collection, or your children’s collection. This is a great way to support the Membership Support Program for the New England Region!  
(Please note: the website lists the fundraiser as beginning on January 1, but you don’t need to wait until next year – this fundraiser is in effect now!)

Congratulations to Natalie McClune, Rahel Choi, and Lisa Rue on this years full conference Scholarship!

Improvisation Analysis Research Study

Dear fellow music therapist, you are invited to take part in a study that explores an improvisation analysis method. It has been in development for 14 years, and now the researcher would like you to explore its design in this pilot study.

Who: Dr. Rebecca Zarate, music therapy coordinator at Lesley University, USA is passionate about use of improvisation in practice. She is committed to developing theory, method, and techniques of analysis of improvisation which is at the heart of her research. To learn more about her work, please visit:
http://www.lesley.edu/faculty/rebecca-zarate

What: This is a qualitative, phenomenological study that will analyze recorded music from one session with a consenting client using the method from a lens of the multi – sensory environment of boundaries and transitions. You will be asked to select one consenting client, and record the music from one session. You will be asked to listen to the recording and summarize a paragraph of your observations, and use the first phase of the method to analyze the music. You will mail back the data and take part in a brief post – session interview with the researcher.

Where: Permissions permitting, in your place of practice.

When: February 2015 – February 2016. Recruitment will begin February 2015 and end April 1st 2015.

What Next: If you are interested, contact Elizabeth Norris: enorris@lesley.edu (research project assistant) for more details.