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The arts have long been a powerful tool for healing, helping individuals and communities navigate mental, physical, and collective well-being. This track explores the transformative role of the arts in healthcare, therapy, and community resilience.
Panel One: Impacting Mental Health
Creative expression is a powerful force for emotional well-being. This panel brings together artists, therapists, and mental health professionals to discuss how the arts can support mental health initiatives, from art therapy to music interventions and beyond. Learn how artistic practices help reduce stress, process trauma, and foster resilience.
Whitney McLean is a Senior Therapist & Graduate Student Supervisor works at The Art Station, a local non-profit and community based mental health clinic that provides art therapy services to humans ages six and up. She supervises clinicians working toward licensure and has worked at Camp El Tesoro de la Vida. She served as the board president for the North Texas Art Therapy Association and currently serves on the Board of Directors for Arts Fort Worth. Above all, Whitney values social justice, reconciliation, and hopes to create a safe and positive environment for folks to create meaning and find healing.
With twenty-five years working in senior living and aging services, Heather Macchietto is the Director of the Senior Day Program at James L. West Center for Dementia Care in Fort Worth, Texas. Heather has a master’s degree in Dementia and Aging Studies from Texas State University and a bachelor’s degree in music therapy from Sam Houston State University in Huntsville, TX. She is a Certified Activity Director, Alzheimer’s Disease and Dementia Care Trainer and Dementia Practitioner.
Gianina Casale is a bilingual therapist (English/Spanish) with a Master of Arts in Dance/Movement Therapy and a specialization in Couples and Family Therapy. She integrates evidence-based, systemic, and creative arts approaches to support individuals, couples, families, and groups navigating anxiety, depression, trauma, relational challenges and other mental health concerns. At the Irving Family Advocacy Center, she pioneered a Dance /Movement Therapy group for children and caregivers, using movement-based interventions to foster attachment, emotional regulation, and trauma recovery
Stevie Dawn Carter, PhD is the Executive Director of The Fleetwood Project, leading the organization’s mission to create impactful, inclusive, and community-driven theatre. With a passion for storytelling and mental health advocacy, she curates productions that inspire conversation and connection. From show selection to performance, Stevie ensures every production fosters creativity and representation. When not working onstage or backstage, she is a full-time government professor at TCC South Campus.
Panel Two: Physical Health
How can the arts contribute to physical healing? This conversation highlights innovative programs where the arts intersect with medicine- whether through movement therapy, hospital-based arts programs, or creative interventions that improve patient care and overall health outcomes.
Stacy Birst-Yates' passionate approach to therapy truly blends in psychology, art, and mind/body wellness. Prior to launching her private practice, Stacey Counsels, she had the privilege to work within various inpatient and outpatient hospital settings, specific to both oncology and rehabilitation; a variety of preschool/elementary settings; and with the Cancer Support Community of North Texas.
Debbie Dacus received her B. S. and M. A. degrees in Music Therapy from Texas Woman’s University. Since 1987, she has enjoyed a private practice, specializing in newborns to adults with varying IDD and those on the autism spectrum. For 26 years, Debbie divided her time providing contract music therapy services to area school districts and conducting private individual and group music therapy sessions from her home studio. Debbie has facilitated in-services and workshops throughout the U.S.
Dr. Catherine Bevan, a Fort Worth native, received her Bachelor of Arts degree from Washington University in St. Louis where she graduated cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa. She returned to Texas to complete her medical degree at UT Southwestern with residency training at Parkland Memorial Hospital in Obstetrics and Gynecology. Dr. Bevan spent an additional year as an Assistant Professor at UT Southwestern, specializing in gynecologic surgery and emergency women’s care. She has since earned additional certification in Minimally Invasive Gynecologic Surgery. Dr. Bevan is a painter and dancer as well and is a huge proponent of the arts community in Fort Worth.
Dr. Stephen Fung graduated from Touro College of Osteopathic Medicine - Middletown, New York and completed a Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation residency at Beaumont Health in Taylor, Michigan and Performing Arts Medicine Fellowship at UNT Health Science Center. He is currently a faculty at UNTHSC, teaching medical students and residents. His arts background includes a B.A in Dance (Ballet and Contemporary) at the University of California, San Diego, Dancesport, vocal (Tenor for Vocal Magic), piano, and violin.
Dr. James Aston, D.O., is a Family Medicine physician who trained in Performing Arts Medicine in Fort Worth at UNTHSC under the tutelage of Drs. Sajid Surve, DO, and Yein Lee, DO. Dr. Aston is also a regular columnist for Classical Singer magazine, where he writes about the medical concerns of vocalists. His professional interests include providing performance aware primary care, and performer health through all ages. Dr. Aston is married to a pianist, Martha, and has a gaggle of kids who all play various instruments. During whatever free time he has, he sings in various choirs, swings various kettlebells, masquerades as a gardener and makes a lot of sawdust in his garage shop.
MODERATOR: Andrieka Lockett, MSW, is a Program Manager of Community Engagement for Texas Health Community Hope, the outreach arm of Texas Health Resources, working to create a healthier community through innovative partnerships, investments, and opportunities outside hospital walls. With a genuine passion for fostering positive change and community transformation, Andrieka has an extensive background in community engagement and strategy, lending her expertise to build innovative programs and strengthen communities through integrated approaches.
Panel Three: Utilizing the Arts for Community Healing
The arts don’t just heal individuals- they also help communities recover from crisis, social upheaval, and systemic and historic trauma. This panel explores how creatives and cultural organizations are leading the way in community-wide healing, using creativity to rebuild connections, inspire hope, and drive social change.
Carlos Gonzalez-Jaime is the inaugural Executive Director of Transform 1012 N. Main Street, a non-profit organization that, in an act of reparative justice, is transforming the former Ku Klux Klan auditorium in Fort Worth, TX, into The Fred Rouse Center for Arts and Community Healing and a founding Board Member for the Main Street America Historic Northside District Program, alongside an advisory role on the board of Tarrant County Coalition for Peace and Justice, and TCU College of Fine Arts Board of Visitors.
Christopher Blay is a Liberian-born American artist, curator, and writer. He is currently the Director of Public Programs at the National Juneteenth Museum in Fort Worth, Texas, and formerly Chief Curator of the Houston Museum of African American Culture [2021 - 2024]. Blay was the News Editor at Glasstire from 2019 - 2021 and served as curator for the Art Corridor Galleries at Tarrant County College in Fort Worth from 2009-2019. Now an independent curator, Blay has organized David-Jeremiah: The Fire This Time, opening August, 2025 at the Modern art Museum, Fort Worth, and the Citywide African American Artist Exhibition in Houston for the Museum of Fine Arts Houston, which opened in December, 2024 at the Glassell School.
As the founder and CEO of Community Flourish, LLC, Dr. Danika Franks collaborates with design-oriented professionals, thinkers, and innovators across industries to transform healthcare environments. Dr. Franks' board certification in emergency medicine, 20+ years of practice, and expertise in medical education administration drive her mission to enhance community engagement, well-being, and learning outcomes. She provides insights on the design and planning of healthcare and medical education spaces, drawing from her experience as the inaugural dean of students at a local medical school in Fort Worth, where she developed innovative curricula and service-learning models.
MODERATOR: Jessica Fuentes is a writer and arts professional whose work spans art criticism, art education, and culture, appearing in Hyperallergic, The Brooklyn Rail, Southwest Contemporary, and scholarly journals including the Journal of Museum Education and the Art Education Journal. As the News Editor for Glasstire, an online magazine dedicated to Texas art, Fuentes contributes news articles, reviews, opinion pieces, artist profiles, and interviews. In 2023, she received The Andy Warhol Foundation Arts Writers Grant to support a series of articles highlighting Texas art spaces founded by and for artists of color.