I have been sitting on this secret for a while and I'm so excited to share the news with you! This fall, I will be starting the MA/MFA program in Theatre Education and Applied Theatre at Emerson College in Boston. I will receive a Master's degree and a Master's of Fine Arts degree at the end of this 3 year program. I will be in the "Theatre and Community" track, which is a non-licensure focused path through the program. The MA will prepare me to teach acting, directing, puppetry, movement, and theatre history at a theater, or use performance as a tool for teaching- you know, like performing shows about dead scientists for a museum (sound familiar?). The MFA will prepare me to teach and do research in higher education. I applied to a few other places but this program really feels like it was specifically designed for my weird, little, niche corner of the world. I'm looking forward to being surrounded by other artists and educators who want to give back to their communities, and taking classes from theatre professionals working in the Boston area.
In addition, I will spend my summer working as a Group Leader for MGH ASPIRE's summer adventure camp. ASPIRE is an awesome organization that serves more than 200 children, teens, and young adults with social cognition challenges, including Asperger’s Syndrome, High-Cognitive Autism, Nonverbal Learning Disorder, and Autism Spectrum Disorders. I'll be working at their summer camp, a 6-week program for individuals ages 5-13 with high cognitive autism spectrum disorder or a related profile. Campers participate in a rich weekly schedule full of typical camp activities, such as boating, swimming, archery, and art and also receive direct instruction and in-the-moment social coaching to support skill building in the areas of self-awareness, stress management, and social competency. As a staff member, I will receive over 60 hours of training in various methods for supporting students with an autism-spectrum diagnosis or a similar cognitive profile. I'll also be outdoors for 8 hours a day, 5 days a week, for 6 weeks so... please send me lots of sunscreen, aloe, and bug spray :)
Wishing you health and happiness,
Sofia
Comments