| Susan Kleinman, MA, BC-DMT, NCC, CEDS, a pioneer in the field of dance/movement therapy, was the first dance/movement therapist in Western Pennsylvania as well as in the state of Florida. She has worked extensively with varied special populations including mentally ill adults, adolescents, children, and the elderly. For the past 20 years, she has worked exclusively as dance/movement therapist for residential and outpatient services at The Renfrew Center of Florida. A charter member and past president of The American Dance Therapy Association, she is also a past Chair of The National Coalition for Creative Arts Therapies. As ADTA President, she orchestrated efforts that resulted in a U.S. Senate Hearing, Federal legislation and research grants. As Chair of the National Coalition of Arts Therapies Associations, she worked to increase recognition for all the creative arts therapies on both national and state levels. Currently, she serves as a trustee of the Marian Chace Foundation of the ADTA. The MCF foundation is dedicated to furthering scholarship and research opportunities within the profession of dance/movement therapy and for the education of the public through grants, publications, videos, films and lectures. She has written extensively on the subject of dance/movement therapy in the treatment of eating disorders, is co-editor of The Renfrew Center Foundation’s Healing through Relationship series and co-author of chapters on body/mind methods for treating eating disorders in the textbook Bridging the Research-Practice Gap in the Treatment of Eating Disorders and the first Encyclopedia of Body Image and Human Appearance. She is a recipient of the American Dance Therapy Association’s 2009 Outstanding Achievement Award and in 2011,received the 2011 Sierra Tucson South Florida award for Humility, honoring her for her dedication to serving as an advocate for others. She has earned international recognition for her expertise in using dance/movement therapy as a treatment method for women with eating disorders and trauma, and presents frequently at national and international conferences. |
