PhD Music Education student Nerissa Manela’s extraordinary work with Miami Jam Sessions, a program that brings unique music opportunities to neurodiverse individuals in our community, attributed to her inclusion in Yamaha Corporation’s 40 Under 40 Excellence in Music Education earlier this year. This national recognition celebrates outstanding music educators who are making a difference by growing and strengthening their music programs.
Originally from New Jersey, Manela started playing violin when she was seven and then found her place in the world of orchestra. Even back then, she knew she wanted to pursue music education while her parents wanted her to pursue music therapy. As she began her college search, Frost’s diverse offerings made it easy for her to major in both. So, she did.
“I expected the music therapy knowledge would help my practice as a future music teacher—to be more empathetic and understanding of the different needs my students might have,” she explains.
In 2015, during her fifth year of studies, she did a six-month music therapy internship with Banding Together, a nonprofit music therapy organization in San Diego, California. One of the highlights of her week was working with a program called Jam Sessions, a free program that provides an inclusive communal music-making space. In addition, Banding Together has awarded over $109,000 for music therapy, adapted lessons, and camp scholarships to individuals (ages 2-22 years) with special needs.
A year later, when she returned to Miami to begin teaching in the Miami-Dade County Public School system, where she taught for six years, she knew she also wanted to stay involved in music therapy. So, she reached out to the award-winning Donna E. Shalala MusicReach program, which provided an opportunity for her to establish a partnership.
MusicReach made an in-kind donation of space and instruments and provided a dedicated teaching assistant for their sessions. Miami Jam Sessions had its first session on campus in the fall of 2017, and they are still jamming! MusicReach is still an active supporter and partner of Miami Jam Sessions.
This year, one of her colleagues in the Ph.D. program nominated Manela for the 40 Under 40 Program. “Music is a very innate part of the human experience,” explains Manela. “The music you do in school or use in therapy . . . well, there's a lot of room to find what will connect with either your client or your student. In music, there’s a lot that’s happening beyond the notes, rhythms, and harmony. But the place that it has in culture, the place that it has in teamwork and collaborating and finding something in common, or discussing song lyrics and expressing yourself through music . . . that’s how it ties us all together.”
Music is a universal experience, she adds. “As a professional music teacher and music therapist, I always ask how we can use music to connect with each other and learn more about each other.”
Manela has a Bachelor of Music in Music Education and Music Therapy from the University of Miami Frost School of Music and a Master of Philosophy in Arts, Creativity, Education and Culture from the University of Cambridge (UK).
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