Learning and Doing in Expressive Arts in Mental Health’s Sensory Integration Class

Russell Sage College students in Assistant Professor Tracy Gilbert’s ART 248 Expressive Arts and Sensory Integration class recently welcomed guests from Bring on the Spectrum — a nonprofit dedicated to enhancing the lives of neurodiverse individuals — for an interactive workshop on neurodiversity and inclusive practice. Expressive Arts in Mental Health graduate Morgan Dempsey ’25, a navigator and group facilitator at BOTS, joined her colleagues for the class visit.

The BOTS team encouraged Expressive Arts in Mental Health majors in ART 248, who are studying creative practices alongside sensory integration and regulation, to think intentionally about how they present information and structure activities when they are in professional, classroom, and community settings. The facilitators offered practical strategies for making activities welcoming and inclusive for a wide audience, such as offering instructions in multiple formats (written and verbal, for example) and providing choices in participation. 

Gilbert said that what students explored in the workshop would soon move from the classroom to real-world application. Later this spring, ART 248 students will observe two integrated classrooms at a local elementary school. After their visit, they’ll develop proposals for sensory-informed expressive arts activities, and they’ll return to lead those programs with elementary students, applying the skills they gained in the workshop.