Upcoming Events

 

More about the presenters:

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DR. JACELYN BIONDO

Ph.D., MPH, MA, BC-DMT, LPC, RYT

 

Dr. Biondo is a researcher, educator, and scholar who prioritizes a collaborative rehumanization process of individuals who have been diagnosed with schizophrenia. She completed two Postdoctoral Research Fellowships and has taught master’s and doctoral level students nationally and internationally. She is currently an assistant professor at Thomas Jefferson University in the Doctor of Health Sciences program. Dr. Biondo has worked clinically as a dance therapist and psychotherapist for over a decade primarily in an inpatient psychiatric hospital. Informed by this clinical practice, her research focuses on developing and facilitating equitable, embodied practices to inform holistic treatment options for people who are often societally dehumanized.

 

Research Statement: Dr. Biondo approaches her research from a community-based collaboration, implements mixed methods approaches to examine dialectical pluralism, and prioritizes individuals with whom she facilitates her research. Her research interests are rooted in the concepts of embodiment, community, intimacy, and belonging particularly as they relate to communities that have been historically dehumanized, specifically, people experiencing schizophrenia.

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DR. KAROLINA BRYL

Ph.D., MS, R-DMT, DMP & DMP Supervisor,

CMA, RSMT/E, KMP Analyst and Trainer

 

Dr. Bryl is a Senior Research Scientist in the Integrative Medicine and Wellness Service at Memorial Sloan Kettering Cancer Center, registered dance/ movement therapist (US), and a certified dance/movement psychotherapist and supervisor in Poland. She holds an MS in Psychosomatic Regeneration from Academy of Physical Sciences (Poland) and a PhD in Creative Arts Therapies from Drexel University, with postgraduate fellowships in psychoanalysis, creative arts therapies, and integrative medicine. She serves on the ADTA’s Research and Practice Committee and Polish DMP Association’ Ethics Committee. She has over a decade of clinical and research experience advancing whole-person care and is a recipient of multiple research awards.

 

Research Statement: Dr. Bryl's research program focuses on: (1) the development, implementation, and rigorous evaluation of dance/movement therapy and other integrative medicine interventions to alleviate symptom burden and improve quality of life in individuals with cancer; (2) the advancement of telehealth delivery of integrative therapies; and (3) investigation of the role of nonverbal behavior and the body’s relevance to psychic processes.

 

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DR. EBONY T. NICHOLS

Ph.D., LPC, LCAT, BC-DMT

 

Dr. Nichols is a somatic mental

health and wellness practitioner, Licensed Professional Counselor, Board Certified Dance/Movement Psychotherapist, Licensed Creative Arts Therapist, licensed cosmetologist, and entrepreneur. Born and raised in Bedford Stuyvesant, Brooklyn, New York, Ebony has been the proprietor of Locks of Nu Natural Hair Spa since 2003. Utilizing their mission of "Healing the Community Follicle by Follicle," her primary focus was to create a therapeutic environment within the Black community; this was her genesis for connecting artistic/cultural expression, self-care, and psychology, while recognizing the connection between aesthetics and cultural identity. Ebony holds a Bachelor of Arts with a focus in psychology and a master's degree in Clinical Mental Health Counseling with a specialization in Dance/Movement Therapy. She earned her Ph.D. at Lesley University's Doctorate program in Counseling and Psychology: Transformative Leadership, Education, and Applied Research. Her research and work are rooted in cultural/race identity and trauma-informed healing care, centering Black Aesthetics of the African Diaspora through cultural movement narratives, non-verbal communication, and somatic-based healing practices.

 

Research Statement: Ebony’s research philosophy is grounded in a critical and ideological paradigm committed to embodied liberation and cultural transformation. Drawing on Black psychology, African Indigenous healing systems, and liberation psychology, Ebony’s research centers lived experiences within their social, cultural, and historical contexts. Using a critical ethnographic qualitative approach, Ebony’s research examines power relations by explicitly interrogating the ideological forces, institutional structures, and historical conditions through which collective meaning are produced. Methodologically, Ebony’s work employs dialogic spaces for collective storytelling and counter-narrative development. It attends to both non-verbal embodied forms of expression and spoken discourse, interpreted through culturally grounded frameworks such as the Africanist Aesthetic. This approach positions the research inquiry as an act of resistance and transformation, contributing to culturally affirming knowledge production and activist scholarship.