• Site map
• About us
• K-State photo services
• Stock photos
• Inclement weather policy

 

 

Join us on facebook

 

 

Media Relations
Kansas State University
9 Anderson Hall
Manhattan, KS 66506
785-532-6415
media@k-state.edu

Information provided by K-State Media Relations, K-State's news service, may be reproduced without permission. The marks and names of Kansas State University are protected trademarks and may not be used in any commercial or private endeavor without the approval of the university.

Source: Teri Holmberg, 785-532-5740 or 785-537-7161, teriholm@k-state.edu

Tuesday, Oct. 21, 2008

MUSIC THERAPY TO BE NEW OFFERING AT K-STATE

MANHATTAN -- Kansas State University students will have a new field to explore starting in the spring 2009 semester with the new course Survey of Music Therapy.

Offered by K-State's department of music, the course will provide information about the field of music therapy. It will be taught by Teri Holmberg, K-State instructor of music and a board-certified music therapist with 12 years of clinical experience. The course will include a real-world observation component where students will observe music therapy sessions with Holmberg and children in the Early Childhood Lab at K-State's Hoeflin Stone House Early Childhood Education Center.

The new course is an opportunity for music majors and other majors to learn about the theory and practice of music therapy, Holmberg said.

Music therapy is the prescribed use of music as a therapeutic tool to achieve a non-musical goal and is used in a wide variety of settings, including hospitals, psychiatric facilities, geriatric facilities, correctional facilities and in special education classrooms in public schools, Holmberg said.

"As music therapy continues to become a more commonly used service in the medical, psychiatric and educational fields, more and more people who work in these areas are likely to encounter and collaborate with music therapists," she said. "It is important for students who are planning careers in health or educational services to have information about resources like music therapy. In addition, it is equally important for music majors to be aware of all career options which are available to them."

According to Holmberg, goals for music therapy treatment can range from pain management for hospital patients to improving short-term memory for Alzheimer's patients.

"Music therapy also is a very effective tool for teaching communication and social skills to persons with autism," she said.

Holmberg is currently collaborating with professors in K-State's department of special education, counseling and student affairs and the School of Family Studies and Human Services for the research project Social Stories with Song and Social Engagement in Inclusive Preschool Classrooms. The project seeks to determine the effectiveness of using songs as cues to teach basic social skills to young children with and without disabilities.

Holmberg also maintains a private practice, providing music therapy services and adapted music instruction to children with developmental disabilities. She can be contacted at 785-537-7161 or teriholm@k-state.edu.

Holmberg earned a bachelor's in music from the University of North Texas and a master's in music therapy from Texas Woman's University.