As a team, we strive to be radically inclusive. We are eager to help amplify the voices of historically and presently marginalized communities. We are an anti-racist group, and we support and encourage intersectionality. We challenge defensive design and hostile architecture wherever we see it, whether digitally or in a physical space. We advocate for “design justice,” in the words of Sasha Costanza-Chock.
We aim to make our program and our spaces as accessible as possible to all participants. We do not discriminate on the basis of on the basis of race, color, religion, sex, sexual orientation, gender identity or expression, age, disability, marital status, citizenship, national origin, or any other characteristic of our participants. Anyone acting in a discriminatory matter will be discretely asked to exit the program. We embrace diversity in all its many forms, and are committed to creating a safe space where we may share the sounds of music with one another.
Jeremy Deliotte, Moderator and Group Leader
A singer all his life, Jeremy Deliotte, a double-arm amputee, is a moderator, motivational speaker, group leader, and program facilitator. A graduate of Bronx Community College in Media Studies and Communication, he has extensive experience in music therapy working alongside world-renowned music therapists. He serves on the Peer Advisory Board at the Light House Guild in the Behavioral Medicine Department and is currently facilitating a music group for veterans that takes place online and in person.
Concetta Tomaino, Music Therapist
Dr. Concetta Tomaino, DA, LCAT, MT-BC. Musician, music therapist, neuroscientist, adjunct professor at Lehman College, director of the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function (IMNF), established from research and clinical studies conducted with Oliver Sacks over decades of working together at Beth Abraham Hospital. She explores how music can assist, support, and enhance the quality of life for people afflicted with cognitive, physical, and/or emotional difficulties and teaches an introductory music therapy course and “Music and the Brain” at Lehman College.
Her new book, Music Has Power in Senior Wellness and Healthcare: Best Practices from Music Therapy, was released in November by Jessica Kingsley Publishers and is now available in print and as an e-book. She was featured in “The Extraordinary World of Music and the Mind,” by John Colapinto for AARP on Nov. 22, 2023.
Felicity Howlett, Group Leader Assistant
Felicity Howlett received a CUNY BA degree in psychology from City College in 2021 and is currently a student in the MALS program at the Graduate Center. Previously, she earned a Ph.D. in musicology from Cornell University where she focused on the music of the twentieth century. Her thesis explored the solo piano interpretations of Art Tatum. Presently, she volunteers in a “Music for Veterans” music therapy program under the direction of Concetta Tomaino at the Institute for Music and Neurologic Function.
Raquel Neris, Program Implementation and Management
Raquel is passionate about creating engaging learning experiences. She works for CUNY EDGE as the Staff Development Associate and at Borough Manhattan Community College as the OpenLab Student Engagement Coordinator. She is also the product owner of EduCash, an educational program that helps kids learn finances through play.
Raquel is fluent in Portuguese, Spanish, and English, and her interests include language education and fostering cultural exchanges amongst students and learners of all ages, from children to senior citizens.
Caitlin Cacciatore, Website Maintenance and Revision
Caitlin Cacciatore is a poet, author, and essayist who lives on the outskirts of NYC. She is passionate about accessible design, bridging the technological divide, amplifying the voices of vulnerable and marginalized populations. Caitlin graduated summa cum laude from Macaulay Honors at Baruch in 2021 with a degree in Artificial Intelligence Studies. She is pursuing an MA in Digital Humanities at the CUNY Graduate Center and working on editing her debut novel.
Caitlin won first prize in Bacopa Literary Review 2020 for the elegiac poem, “Sacrament,” and was long-listed for the international erbacce-prize in 2021, 2022, and 2023. She was most recently published in The Good Life Review with “Cli-Fi,” and was nominated for the 2024 Best of Net Anthology by Sunlight Press for her poem, “Still Life with Roses.”
