By Marjolein “Maddy” Zijdel (BFA’13)
As a young dancer growing up in New Jersey, I had numerous dance teachers who attended MGSA. These teachers had such grace and elegance when they moved, and I aspired to be like them. But then, in high school, I realized there was another part of me that knew I wanted to help people and make a difference in people’s lives on an emotional level.
At Rutgers, I majored in dance and took social work classes as my liberal arts credits. Even though my priority was dancing, the budding social worker in me was always present. I made sure I was an advocate for my fellow dancers, speaking about the importance of health and wellness and emotional safety. My ballet teacher, Sheri Alban, noted that I would stand in the back of the studio scanning my classmates to see if anyone needed anything from me.
As I got closer to graduation, I realized I was meant to be in social work, so I applied and got accepted to the Graduate School of Social Work at Rutgers. I fell in love with my second-year internship at the Office for Violence Prevention and Victim Assistance (VPVA), whose mission includes, among other things, raising awareness of and responding to interpersonal violence. I vowed that I would return to that office one day, and I did, two years later, as a full-time clinician. I now serve as the assistant director of clinical support.
I fell in love with this office because I was able to not only provide direct service as a clinician, but I was also able to help raise awareness around the problem of interpersonal violence on college campuses, through our annual events. In my current role, I provide counseling and advocacy services to students, faculty, and staff who have been impacted by interpersonal violence. I am just in awe of the survivors as they heal and grow and find their own meaningful path in life. The survivors’ resilience is inspiring.
Although I don’t dance regularly anymore, I do make sure to use dance and movement in my work. Dance is such a great outlet for emotions, and when I notice that a client is struggling with reconnecting with their body, I will use dancing mindfulness to help them. I will provide the client with a playlist of music around a particular theme, like grief, anger, or re-adjusting to the world as a survivor, and then I will give them prompts on how to move through the music set. Providing these clients, especially those who don’t have dance experience, with a prompt like using their body to paint a picture, helps them move through the sets independently. I love that I can use both of my degrees in my work, and I love that I am able to give back to the community that gave so much to me.
Image credit: Loura Zijdel