Students interested in the Therapeutic Dance Certificate (TDC) are dancers that understand the power of expressing the body through the art of dance. Engaging in this program provides the student with the opportunity to study advanced concepts in therapeutic dance from experienced practitioners in the facilitation of dance and movement. The student in the TDC program already identifies themself as a dancer, may have studied various forms of dance or is interested in the use of the expressive body as a healing modality. They must be at least 21 years of age to participate and be capable of attending college level courses. This certificate is a wonderful option for the dancer who does not want to become a dance/movement therapist but still wishes to engage in curriculum to advance their understanding of how to facilitate expressive dance movement for individuals, groups or communities.
COURSES INCLUDE:
- Experiential Anatomy/Kinesiology - 15 hours (virtual/in person) | one weekend Fri/Sat/Sun
- LMA 1: Observation - 15 hours (virtual/in person) | one weekend Sat/Sun *NBCC credit available
- DMT Intro & Invitation-10 weeks (virtual) Mondays 4-7pm CST*NBCC credit available
- Module 1: Relationship- 11 hours- in person (one weekend Sat/Sun)
- Overview of semester
- Presence
- Dance Class-experience and discuss
- Module 1V: Ethics & Continuum of Therapeutic/Therapy- (virtual)- 8 hours
- Module 2: Creating/Making-15 hours-in person (one weekend Sat/Sun)
- Personal Aesthetics in Facilitation
- Movement Choir Creation
- Performance as Therapy
- Module 3: Teaching Practice-8 hours-in person (one weekend Sat/Sun)
- Module 4: Culmination & Integration-10 hours -in person (one weekend Sat/Sun)
- Feedback & Discussion of student sessions
- Movement celebration
Final performance opportunity included in cost of program.
(see course descriptions, dates and times below with links to register for each class)
APPLY HERE for the Spring, 2025 cohort
Total cost: $3300
Courses are paid for individually. Click here to register.
Please email: embodiededucationinstitute@gmail.com to schedule a call with a faculty advisor.
NBCC credit may only be applied to the courses that indicate that availability.
Course Descriptions
Experiential Anatomy/Kinesiology
Instructor: Kristina Fluty, MFA, CLMA
In Person w/virtual options
Location: 1802 W. Berteau Suite 205, Chicago, IL
Dates: January 24-26; Friday 6-9, Sat/Sun 9-4
Cost: $425
Course Description: For movers, dancers, movement practitioners/artists, dance/movement therapists, teachers, and anyone who wants to deepen their embodiment and understanding of the amazing ways our bodies move. Engaging experiential and somatic modes of learning this course will cover basic human anatomy and kinesiology with an overview of bones, major muscle groups, and general workings of the musculoskeletal system. Students will begin to understand the complexities of the body through movement, reading, drawing, discussion, writing, video, and touch exercises. We will integrate what we learn from tuning into our individual sensed experience, observations of the world (and bodies) around us, and material information from the fields of anatomy and kinesiology. It is important to note that study of “the body,” our bodies, does not exist outside of the particular societies and cultures in which we live. Our work in this course acknowledges the impact and influence of culture on traditions of teaching anatomy, and the importance and relevance of our individual experiences of gender, ethnicity, race, sexual orientation, ability, on lived embodied experience and body knowledge.
1 credit hour / 15 classroom hours
NBCC credit may not be applied to this course
Laban Movement Analysis I: Observation
Instructor: Stacey Hurst, BC-DMT, LCPC, GL-CMA
In-Person or Virtual - One Weekend
Location: 1802 W Berteau, Suite 205, Chicago
Dates: Feb. 8 & 9, 2025, 2024 9-6pm CST
Cost: $425
Course Description: Laban Movement Analysis (LMA) and Bartenieff Fundamentals (BF) give the movement practitioner a common language to study movement and its developmental aspects, informing our relationship to self, other, and the environment. LMA I contexts LMA and BF in history and within the field of dance & dance/movement therapy. This course provides: a framework for how to structure and approach movement observation, an understanding of the cultural and therapeutic implications of Body Knowledge/Body Prejudice and a forum for the student to identify their own movement preferences and limitations. LMA I will also provide a general overview of the core principles of movement and of Rudolf Laban’s taxonomy of human movement. The course will be grounded through both didactic and movement experientials to support multiple learning preferences. LMA I will provide the foundation for all other LMA classes to follow.
1 credit hour / 15 classroom hours - Approved by the ADTA
DANCE/MOVEMENT THERAPY: AN INTRODUCTION AND AN INVITATION
Instructor: Kim Rothwell, BC-DMT, LCPC, GL-CMA
10 Week Format
Virtual: Feb. 17th-April 21st, 2025 4-7pm CST
Cost: $850
This course provides a survey of the field of dance/movement therapy (DMT), including an introduction to the early developers of the profession, the historical context within the United States that lead to the development of the profession and the ADTA, and contemporary applications of DMT in today’s global world. The approach to teaching is embodied, self-reflective, and relational, offering an invitation for students to learn in ways that embed both the theory and the practice of DMT into the present moment lived experience. Early DMT developers will be acknowledged, and explored in an experiential manner recognizing psychological and movement/dance backgrounds. The historical situatedness of the profession of dance/movement therapy will be examined, while acknowledging the broader global context in which the use of dance and movement has been used across generations and cultures. By exploring the contemporary applications of DMT in the fields of psychology, wellness, rehabilitation, education, and childhood development, this course highlights the unique healing processes of DMT, in relationship to other mind/body approaches and to the creative arts therapies. In the end, this course will equip students to develop a working definition of DMT for themselves within historical, cultural, and personal contexts.
2 credit hours / 30 classroom hours - Approved by the ADTA
NBCC CE's are available at $25 additional in checkout
For more information, email: embodiededucationinstitute@gmail.com
Module 1: Relationship
Overview of semester; Presence; Dance Class-experience and Discuss
Instructor: Kristina Fluty, MA, GL-CMA
In person
Location: 1802 W Berteau, Suite 205, Chicago
Dates: March 1-2, 2025; 10am-5pm
Cost: $340
Course Description: Students will begin to bring their growing skills in self-awareness, attunement, and movement analysis into relationship with others. After exploring theories of interpersonal neurobiology and embodied presence, they will experience a therapeutic dance class as a student.
Total classroom hours: 11
NBCC credit may not be applied to this course
Module 1V: Ethical consideration
Ethics and the continuum of Therapy/Therapeutic
Instructor: Susan Imus, LCPC, GL-CMA, BC-DMT
Virtual
Dates: March 15&16, 2025. 9am-1pm
Cost: $245
Course Description: Are you ethically using dance for therapeutic purposes and balancing the practice boundaries from dance/movement therapy? As the use of dance in diverse settings grows it is important to understand concepts of best practice within the Arts in Health field. Where is dance situated within the Arts in Health discipline and how is this different than dance/movement therapy? This distinction is essential in understanding the scope and ethical use of dance in diverse settings. This includes introduction to standards and ethics of practice, continuum of approaches and current research in the use of dance for well-being.
Total classroom hours: 8
NBCC credit may not be applied to this course
Module 2: Creating & Making
Personal Aesthetics in Facilitation; Movement Choir Creation, Performance as Therapy
Instructors: Kristina Fluty, MA, GL-CMA; Kris Larsen, LCPC, BC-DMT, GL-CMA; Stacey Hurst, LCPC, BC-DMT, GL-CMA
in person
Location: 1802 W. Berteau Suite 205, Chicago
Dates: April 5-6, 2025 in person; 9am-6:00pm
Cost: $460
Course Description: This weekend focuses on individual and collective creative process. Students will explore their own personal and artistic aesthetics and how those values might inform how they lead a group in movement. They will then create a Movement Choir in the tradition of Laban, and close the weekend with creating their own pieces through the lens of healing.
Module 3: Teaching Practice
Facilitation Methods
Instructors: Kristina Fluty, MA, GL-CMA
in person
Location: 1802 W. Berteau Suite 205, Chicago
Dates: May 9th 5-9pm and May 10th 10am-2:30pm (includes a break for lunch)
Cost: $245
Course Description: After diving deeply into methodology with Fluty and guests, students will be prepared to lead their own therapeutic dance sessions in their respective communities. They will teach two sessions that they record, and then exchange feedback with an assigned partner. They then send their recordings to Fluty with segments/epiphanies they want to share/discuss in June.
MODULE 4: CULMINATION & INTEGRATION
Feedback & discussion of student sessions and movement celebration
Instructors: Kristina Fluty, MA, GL-CMA; Kris Larsen, LCPC, BC-DMT, GL-CMA; Stacey Hurst, LCPC, BC-DMT, GL-CMA
in person
Location: 1802 W. Berteau Suite 205, Chicago
Dates: June 7-8, 2025; 10-4pm
Cost: $310
Course Description: The final weekend focuses on integration. Fluty will compile themes and questions to discuss from each of the students' recorded sessions so that all students benefit from everyone's experiences. Finally, we will move together in celebration and appreciation, taking turns facilitating in real time.