I’ve been studying and working in the Performance Arts for much of my life. After graduating with my dual degrees in Classical Voice Performance and Musical Theatre, I have been working steadily and consistently in multiple genres, states, and positions. Theatre and Music found me at a point in my life where I needed direction and community and for a long time served as a place of solace. However, leading up to the pandemic, the burnout after years of consistently working fifty to sixty hours a week had finally caught up to me. When the pandemic hit, I had the first moments of rest in over a decade. I had the space to dissect the ways that this industry echoed the abusive patterns I experienced in my youth and had used the arts to run away from. In the process of becoming what I thought other people wanted, I lost sight of myself and what I wanted. For the first time in a long time, I had full control of my personal style and gender presentation. I saw my friends and family on a regular, albeit virtual basis. I had time to develop hobbies and make art for the sake of making art, with no intention of profiting from what I created. I discovered that I was happier than I had been in a long time. As the world started opening again, and the industry started back up, I found myself struggling to readjust to the life that I led before 2020. In spaces that used to feel like home, I was now anxious and unsettled. I had found a gender presentation for myself that felt like home and discovered that there wasn’t yet space for me to present in that way in the theatre industry. Immediately, I found myself relapsing into toxic work patterns and abusive work relationships, losing any sense of self I had developed in the time away. It became clear that my priorities in life were no longer career-centered, but rather centered on community and mental health. I reflected on the aspects that I still loved about the arts and realized that my love came from engaging with the community and educating youth. I had seen the therapeutic effects of theatre firsthand. The source material that we worked on together provided the means to facilitate hard conversations and freely share the ways we did or did not relate to the characters and why. They built life skills that aided them in identifying and communicating their inner worlds. I had learned these skills from my own therapist, and I used theatre to pass these skills on to my students. From this reflection, I knew that I wanted to pursue a degree in counseling, while also putting my existing professional experience to good use. Pursuing a degree in Drama Therapy at Antioch seemed like the most logical step—it was a way for me to utilize my expertise and build upon it, while also maintaining and growing the community and connections I had made locally.

Theatre and Music found me at a point in my life where I needed direction and purpose and for a long time served as a place of solace. As a queer youth, the theatre was my introduction to queer history and community. I could explore my sexuality and gender expression within the safety and confines of a script. The act of donning a character gave a degree of separation that made exploring these new aspects of myself safe. It was this new-found freedom and sense of belonging that led me to dedicate my life to the performing arts and make it my full-time profession, without questioning the toxic patterns and high levels of burnout within the industry. When the pandemic hit, I had the first moments of rest in over a decade. I had the space to dissect the ways that this industry echoed the abusive patterns I experienced in my youth and had used the arts to run away from. In the process of becoming what I thought other people wanted, I lost sight of myself and what I wanted. For the first time in a long time, I had full control of my personal style and gender presentation, no longer confined to the headshot I used to market myself. I saw my friends and family on a regular, albeit virtual basis. I had time to develop hobbies and make art for the sake of making art, with no intention of profiting from what I created. I discovered that I was happier than I had been in a long time. As the world started opening again, and the industry started back up, I found myself struggling to readjust to the life that I led before 2020. In spaces that used to feel like home, I was now anxious and unsettled. I had found a gender presentation for myself that felt like home and discovered that there wasn’t yet space for me to present in that way in the theatre industry. Immediately, I found myself relapsing into toxic work patterns and abusive work relationships, losing any sense of self I had developed in the time away. It became clear that my priorities in life were no longer career-centered, but rather centered on community and mental health. I reflected on the aspects that I still loved about the arts and realized that my love came from engaging with the community and educating youth. I had seen the therapeutic effects of theatre firsthand. The source material that we worked on together provided the means to facilitate hard conversations and freely share the ways we did or did not relate to the characters and why. They built life skills that aided them in identifying and communicating their inner worlds. I had learned these skills from my own therapist, and I used theatre to pass these skills on to my students. From this reflection, I knew that I wanted to pursue a degree in counseling, while also putting my existing professional experience to good use. Pursuing a degree in Drama Therapy at Antioch seemed like the most logical step—it was a way for me to utilize my expertise and build upon it, while also maintaining and growing the community and connections I had made locally. With this degree, I will obtain the skills needed to utilize my most loved art form as a means of therapy and healing, especially for my Queer and Gender non-conforming students and clients.

I’ve been studying and working in the Performance Arts for much of my life. Theatre and Music found me at a point in my life where I needed direction and community and served as a place of solace. However, leading up to the pandemic, the burnout after years of consistently working fifty to sixty hours a week had finally caught up to me. I reflected on the aspects that I still loved about the arts and realized that my love came from engaging with the community and educating youth. I had seen the therapeutic effects of theatre firsthand. The source material that we worked on together provided the means to facilitate hard conversations and freely share the ways we did or did not relate to the characters and why. They built life skills that aided them in identifying and communicating their inner worlds. I had learned these skills from my own therapist, and I used theatre to pass these skills on to my students. This reflection led me to explore the ways I can serve my community in the future, and during that exploration, I discovered Drama Therapy. Drama Therapy is a form of Art Therapy that uses theatre as a scaffolding to unleash and unpack our collective and personal traumas. Having worked in the Performing Arts industry for over 15 years, I had used my art to heal my own wounds, and I was drawn to this therapeutic model that utilized my past experience to promote communal healing.

Participating in Mutual Aid and caring for your fellow person is what makes modern-day living worthwhile. Traveling between the States and to the native countries of my family, I've had the honor to meet people of every creed and in every stage of life, and because of this, I have small pockets of community all over the world. Engaging with community care is integral to how I act on a daily basis, and I take great pride in providing services to the communities I belong to and beyond. Most recently I worked with a local Mutual Aid Organization called WashMasks which works with migrant farmworker communities in Eastern Washington to provide them with health services and PPU during the pandemic, as well as personal enrichment and further education. I am a Performer and Teaching Artist by trade, and during the pandemic worked with WashMasks to build programming for youth to celebrate their communities and their culture, and cultivate an environment of creativity and art. This last summer I planned and led a mentorship program in which youth from three different farming communities in Washington were paid a stipend to meet with me and learn how to organize and facilitate their own community events, culminating in the youths programming their own series of workshops. We learned about fundraising and community organizations, anti-racist frameworks, grant writing, and structuring an event proposal. I am very proud of my mentees, and through our work together, I was able to secure funding for this program to continue next year and expand to more communities in Washington next Summer. This experience in particular led me to explore the ways I can serve my community in the future, and during that exploration, I discovered Drama Therapy. Drama Therapy is a form of Art Therapy that uses theatre as a scaffolding to unleash and unpack our collective and personal traumas. Having worked in the Performing Arts industry for over 15 years, I had used my art to heal my own wounds, and I was drawn to this therapeutic model that utilized my past experience to promote communal. healing There are many career paths that I can see myself pursuing as a Drama Therapist, as drama therapy carries similar elements to traditional DBT and CBT therapy as well as elements of Somatic Therapy and can help people from a wide range of backgrounds, abilities, and needs. I’m very interested in the combination of Drama Therapy with a certificate in Play Therapy specifically as an alternative to ABA Therapy for people with autism spectrum disorder, as drama therapy facilitates social and interpersonal play, allowing patients to rehearse desired behaviors, practice interpersonal relationships, confront fears and explore the roles they play in their own lives. Obtaining the skills outlined in my Drama Therapy program will give me the tools to further expand my ability to create community and provide care for Migrant populations in Eastern Washington and beyond. I plan to use my licensure as a Couples and Family Therapist to unpack generational trauma and create a pathway to dialogue about the immigrant experience. As a second-generation immigrant on both my mother’s and father’s side, I feel particularly called to provide this service, as the demand for this type of culturally informed care is far beyond the current supply of willing and capable providers. This is what I owe my community, and I hope that you may be able to help me achieve my goals.

Participating in Mutual Aid and caring for your fellow person is what makes modern-day living worthwhile. In my life, I've had the honor to meet people of every creed and in every stage of life, and because of this, I have small pockets of community all over the world. Engaging with community care is integral to how I act on a daily basis, and I take great pride in providing services to the communities I belong to and beyond. In the past I have offered my skills in carpentry and welding, arts education, sewing, cooking, tutoring and child care with several organizations across the South West and West Coast. Most recently I worked with a local Mutual Aid Organization called WashMasks which works with migrant farmworker communities in Eastern Washington to provide them with health services and PPU during the pandemic, as well as personal enrichment and further education. I am a Performer and Teaching Artist by trade, and during the pandemic worked with WashMasks to build programming for youth to celebrate their communities and their culture, and cultivate an environment of creativity and art. This last summer I planned and led a mentorship program in which youth from three different farming communities in Washington were paid a stipend to meet with me and learn how to organize and facilitate their own community events, culminating in the youths programming their own series of workshops. We learned about fundraising and community organizations, anti-racist frameworks, grant writing, and structuring an event proposal. I am very proud of my mentees, and through our work together, I was able to secure funding for this program to continue next year and expand to more communities in Washington next Summer. This experience in particular led me to explore the ways I can serve my community in the future, and during that exploration, I discovered Drama Therapy. Drama Therapy is a form of Art Therapy that uses theatre as a scaffolding to unleash and unpack our collective and personal traumas. Having worked in the Performing Arts industry for over 15 years, I had used my art to heal my own wounds, and I was drawn to this therapeutic model that utilized my past experience to promote communal. healing There are many career paths that I can see myself pursuing as a Drama Therapist, as drama therapy carries similar elements to traditional DBT and CBT therapy as well as elements of Somatic Therapy and can help people from a wide range of backgrounds, abilities, and needs. I’m very interested in the combination of Drama Therapy with a certificate in Play Therapy specifically as an alternative to ABA Therapy for people with autism spectrum disorder, as drama therapy facilitates social and interpersonal play, allowing patients to rehearse desired behaviors, practice interpersonal relationships, confront fears and explore the roles they play in their own lives. Obtaining the skills outlined in my Drama Therapy program will give me the tools to further expand my ability to create community and provide care for Migrant populations in Eastern Washington and beyond. I plan to use my licensure as a Couples and Family Therapist to unpack generational trauma and create a pathway to dialogue about the immigrant experience. As a second-generation immigrant on both my mother’s and father’s side, I feel particularly called to provide this service, as the demand for this type of culturally informed care is far beyond the current supply of willing and capable providers. This is what I owe my community, and I hope that you may be able to help me achieve my goals.

Participating in Mutual Aid and caring for your fellow person is what makes modern-day living worthwhile. In my life, I've had the honor to meet people of every creed and in every stage of life, and because of this, I have small pockets of community all over the world. Engaging with community care is integral to how I act on a daily basis, and I take great pride in providing services to the communities I belong to and beyond. In the past I have offered my skills in carpentry and welding, arts education, sewing, cooking, tutoring and child care with several organizations across the South West and West Coast. Most recently I worked with a local Mutual Aid Organization called WashMasks which works with migrant farmworker communities in Eastern Washington to provide them with health services and PPU during the pandemic, as well as personal enrichment and further education. I am a Performer and Teaching Artist by trade, and during the pandemic worked with WashMasks to build programming for youth to celebrate their communities and their culture, and cultivate an environment of creativity and art. This last summer I planned and led a mentorship program in which youth from three different farming communities in Washington were paid a stipend to meet with me and learn how to organize and facilitate their own community events, culminating in the youths programming their own series of workshops. We learned about fundraising and community organizations, anti-racist frameworks, grant writing, and structuring an event proposal. I am very proud of my mentees, and through our work together, I was able to secure funding for this program to continue next year and expand to more communities in Washington next Summer. This experience in particular led me to explore the ways I can serve my community in the future, and during that exploration, I discovered Drama Therapy. Drama Therapy is a form of Art Therapy that uses theatre as a scaffolding to unleash and unpack our collective and personal traumas. Having worked in the Performing Arts industry for over 15 years, I had used my art to heal my own wounds, and I was drawn to this therapeutic model that utilized my past experience to promote communal. healing There are many career paths that I can see myself pursuing as a Drama Therapist, as drama therapy carries similar elements to traditional DBT and CBT therapy as well as elements of Somatic Therapy and can help people from a wide range of backgrounds, abilities, and needs. I’m very interested in the combination of Drama Therapy with a certificate in Play Therapy specifically as an alternative to ABA Therapy for people with autism spectrum disorder, as drama therapy facilitates social and interpersonal play, allowing patients to rehearse desired behaviors, practice interpersonal relationships, confront fears and explore the roles they play in their own lives. Obtaining the skills outlined in my Drama Therapy program will give me the tools to further expand my ability to create community and provide care for Migrant populations in Eastern Washington and beyond. I plan to use my licensure as a Couples and Family Therapist to unpack generational trauma and create a pathway to dialogue about the immigrant experience. As a second-generation immigrant on both my mother’s and father’s side, I feel particularly called to provide this service, as the demand for this type of culturally informed care is far beyond the current supply of willing and capable providers. This is what I owe my community, and I hope that you may be able to help me achieve my goals.

I’ve been studying and working in the Performance Arts for much of my life. After graduating with my dual degrees in Classical Voice Performance and Musical Theatre, I have been working steadily and consistently in multiple genres, states, and positions. Theatre and Music found me at a point in my life where I needed direction and community and for a long time served as a place of solace. However, leading up to the pandemic, the burnout after years of consistently working fifty to sixty hours a week had finally caught up to me. When the pandemic hit, I had the first moments of rest in over a decade. I had the space to dissect the ways that this industry echoed the abusive patterns I experienced in my youth and had used the arts to run away from. In the process of becoming what I thought other people wanted, I lost sight of myself and what I wanted. For the first time in a long time, I saw my friends and family on a regular, albeit virtual basis. I had time to develop hobbies and make art for the sake of making art, with no intention of profiting from what I created. I discovered that I was happier than I had been in a long time. As the world started opening again, and the industry started back up, I found myself struggling to readjust to the life that I led before 2020. In spaces that used to feel like home, I was now anxious and unsettled. I had found a gender presentation for myself that felt like home and discovered that there wasn’t yet space for me to present in that way in the theatre industry. Immediately, I found myself relapsing into toxic work patterns and abusive work relationships, losing any sense of self I had developed in the time away. It became clear that my priorities in life were no longer career-centered, but rather centered on community and mental health. I reflected on the aspects that I still loved about the arts and realized that my love came from engaging with the community and educating youth. I had seen the therapeutic effects of theatre firsthand. The source material that we worked on together provided the means to facilitate hard conversations and freely share the ways we did or did not relate to the characters and why. They built life skills that aided them in identifying and communicating their inner worlds. I had learned these skills from my own therapist, and I used theatre to pass these skills on to my students. From this reflection, I knew that I wanted to pursue a degree in counseling, while also putting my existing professional experience to good use. Pursuing a degree in Drama Therapy at Antioch seemed like the most logical step—it was a way for me to utilize my expertise and build upon it, while also maintaining and growing the community and connections I had made locally.

I’ve been studying and working in the Performance Arts for much of my life. After graduating with my dual degrees in Classical Voice Performance and Musical Theatre, I have been working steadily and consistently in multiple genres, states, and positions. Theatre and Music found me at a point in my life where I needed direction and community and for a long time served as a place of solace. However, leading up to the pandemic, the burnout after years of consistently working fifty to sixty hours a week had finally caught up to me. When the pandemic hit, I had the first moments of rest in over a decade. I had the space to dissect the ways that this industry echoed the abusive patterns I experienced in my youth and had used the arts to run away from. In the process of becoming what I thought other people wanted, I lost sight of myself and what I wanted. For the first time in a long time, the I had full control of my personal style and gender presentation. I saw my friends and family on a regular, albeit virtual basis. I had time to develop hobbies, and make art for the sake of making art, with no intention of profiting from what I created. I discovered that I was happier than I had been in a long time. As the world started opening again, and the industry started back up, I found myself struggling to readjust to the life that I lead before 2020. In spaces that used to feel like home, I was now anxious and unsettled. I had found a gender presentation for myself that felt like home and discovered that there wasn’t yet space for me to present in that way in the theatre industry. Immediately, I found myself relapsing into toxic work patterns and abusive work relationships, losing any sense of self I had developed in the time away. It became clear that my priorities in life were no longer career-centered, but rather centered on community and mental health. I reflected on the aspects that I still loved about the arts and realized that my love came from engaging with community and in educating youth. I had seen the therapeutic effects of theatre firsthand. The source material that we worked on together provided the means to facilitate hard conversations and freely share the ways we did or did not relate to the characters and why. They built life-skills that aided them in identifying and communicating their inner worlds. I had learned these skills from my own therapist, and I used theatre to pass these skills onto my students. From this reflection, I knew that I wanted to pursue a degree in counseling, while also putting my existing professional experience to good use. Pursuing a degree in Drama Therapy at Antioch seemed like the most logical step—it was a way for me to utilize my expertise and build upon it, while also maintaining and growing the community and connections I had made locally.

I’ve been studying and working in the Performance Arts for much of my life. After graduating with my dual degrees in Classical Voice Performance and Musical Theatre, I have been working steadily and consistently in multiple genres, states, and positions. Theatre and Music found me at a point in my life where I needed direction and community and for a long time served as a place of solace. However, leading up to the pandemic, the burnout after years of consistently working fifty to sixty hours a week had finally caught up to me. When the pandemic hit, I had the first moments of rest in over a decade. I had the space to dissect the ways that this industry echoed the abusive patterns I experienced in my youth and had used the arts to run away from. In the process of becoming what I thought other people wanted, I lost sight of myself and what I wanted. For the first time in a long time, I had full control of my personal style and gender presentation. I saw my friends and family on a regular, albeit virtual basis. I had time to develop hobbies and make art for the sake of making art, with no intention of profiting from what I created. I discovered that I was happier than I had been in a long time. As the world started opening again, and the industry started back up, I found myself struggling to readjust to the life that I led before 2020. In spaces that used to feel like home, I was now anxious and unsettled. I had found a gender presentation for myself that felt like home and discovered that there wasn’t yet space for me to present in that way in the theatre industry. Immediately, I found myself relapsing into toxic work patterns and abusive work relationships, losing any sense of self I had developed in the time away. It became clear that my priorities in life were no longer career-centered, but rather centered on community and mental health. I reflected on the aspects that I still loved about the arts and realized that my love came from engaging with the community and educating youth. I had seen the therapeutic effects of theatre firsthand. The source material that we worked on together provided the means to facilitate hard conversations and freely share the ways we did or did not relate to the characters and why. They built life skills that aided them in identifying and communicating their inner worlds. I had learned these skills from my own therapist, and I used theatre to pass these skills on to my students. From this reflection, I knew that I wanted to pursue a degree in counseling, while also putting my existing professional experience to good use. Pursuing a degree in Drama Therapy at Antioch seemed like the most logical step—it was a way for me to utilize my expertise and build upon it, while also maintaining and growing the community and connections I had made locally.