KU student brings music to therapeutic classroom at Bert Nash Center

Music is more than an art form.

It’s therapy. And it can be an enjoyable way to learn.

Just ask students in the secondary therapeutic classroom at the Bert Nash Community Mental Health Center. The therapeutic classroom is a partnership between Bert Nash and USD 497.

“It’s fun,” said one of the students. “I like playing the drums, guitar and all the other instruments.” This semester’s results have been encouraging.

“We actually played our first song recently, without stopping, which was really cool,” said Shelby Chadd, a University of Kansas music therapy student, who brought music to the secondary therapeutic classroom one day a week this semester. “It’s really good to see how it makes them feel to be successful, to see how proud they are of themselves that they have accomplished this thing through using music.”

Chadd’s goal this semester was to use music therapy to improve the students’ emotional expression.

“So within that, we’ve worked on building a community, setting personal goals for themselves and others, and how to express those through verbal and nonverbal communication,” Chadd said.

Chadd, who is in her final year at KU, has worked under the supervision of Abbey Dvorak, assistant professor of music therapy at KU, who accompanied Chadd each week to the therapeutic classroom.

“Humans have this intense connection to music,” Dvorak said. “When we hear music, we respond to it, and we can use those responses in a therapeutic setting.”

As part of music therapy, the students worked on physical, psychological, cognitive, social, academic and behavioral skills.

“Music affects us physically, psychologically and socially,” Dvorak said. “Music is an amazing tool that we have at our disposal. We all respond to music. For example, when Shelby works on anxiety reduction with her students, the music can provide an environmental stimulus that can be relaxing.” 

Chadd brought different instruments for the students to play. The class is designed to be participatory. It was interesting to know the various kinds of musical instruments and how their shape and size tend to produce their distinct melodies. A musical therapist as we know is adept at creating melodies and music that helps people with their goals of stress relief, mood enhancement and self-expression, and thus, it is imperative that they are well versed in the unique sound, vibration and frequencies of the individual instruments. For example, in the case of an accordion, the therapist must know the difference between a concertina accordion and a regular accordion along with their usage in the therapy session. The same goes for other instruments. And it looks like Chadd is doing a good job!

“It’s very interactive,” Dvorak said. “The students are engaged. It’s not just Shelby performing. We’re using music to help the students meet their goals, one of which is emotional expression.”

Brad Taylor, who is the middle school teacher at the therapeutic classroom, appreciated Chadd’s work with the students.

“Shelby always brought high energy – ready to motivate and make music,” Taylor said. Over the course of the semester, the students warmed up to the idea of music therapy.

“I’ve seen a lot of rapport building,” Chadd said of her interaction with the students. “They wanted to take a picture with me, which I thought was awesome. I feel a lot more connected with them personally. I’ve seen a lot more openness from them, which is great. We’ve built a trust with each other, and the music has definitely helped with that.”

Coming to Bert Nash was also a learning experience for Dvorak, who moved from Virginia to Lawrence in August. She attended a Discover Bert Nash event, where she heard stories about how people’s lives have been changed because of the services they received at Bert Nash. After attending the Discover event, she decided to become a Bert Nash Ambassador, helping to spread the word about the work done at the Center.

“Support for people who have mental health needs is really important,” Dvorak said. And music therapy is one of those ways to provide support.