Student Profiles

Emily McCarthy graduated in 2024 with a double major in Art and Psychology. Although she completed her studies just as the Expressive Arts minor was being introduced, she found deep resonance with its goals and approaches—especially through the course Art as Therapeutic Process, which she took in the spring of her senior year. That experience was pivotal in affirming her desire to become an art therapist and clarified her path forward.

Deeply committed to the healing power of creative expression, Emily was accepted into several top-tier Art Therapy graduate programs, including Thomas Jefferson University, Drexel University, NYU, and Florida State University. She ultimately chose to attend Florida State University, one of the nation’s leading programs in Art Therapy, where she was awarded a prestigious graduate fellowship. She begins her graduate studies in Fall 2025.

Jolie Patten majored in Art and minored in Expressive Arts. Her senior thesis is a vibrant celebration of play, experimentation, and curiosity—an immersive, psychedelic wonderland that invites viewers to re-engage with childlike wonder. Her installation uses bold colors, abstract forms, and unconventional materials to create a joyful, interactive space that embraces expressive arts “low skill / high sensitivity” practices. Her creative approach emerged in part from her navigation of physical disability, which challenged her ability to engage with traditional forms like photo-realistic painting. In response, she redefined her art practice around accessibility, intuition, and embodied exploration, cultivating a thesis that reimagines what art can be when we value presence over precision. Looking ahead, she plans to pursue a career in the field of expressive arts, where she can continue exploring the healing and transformative power of creativity.

Emily Stober graduated with a BFA in Music Theater and a minor in Expressive Arts. With a passion for both performance and social inquiry, Emily brought a critical and creative lens to her work in the Expressive Arts minor. Her research explored the cultural limitations of Guided Imagery in Music, examining how the modality’s reliance on Western classical music can create barriers for individuals from non-Western cultural backgrounds. Through this work, she advocated for a more inclusive, culturally responsive approach to music-based healing practices. While she is pursuing a career in musical performance after graduation, she remains deeply interested in the expressive arts and envisions integrating creative, community-based modalities into her future professional path.

A current sophomore and Elon College Fellow, Lily Donoway is pursuing an independent major in Creative and Therapeutic Arts—a unique interdisciplinary program she designed to integrate her interests in Art, Psychology, Human Service Studies, Outdoor Leadership, and Expressive Arts. Her engagement with the Expressive Arts minor played a key role in shaping this path, offering both inspiration and academic grounding for her self-designed course of study. Passionate about the intersection of creativity, care, and community, Lily is exploring how the arts can support healing, personal growth, and connection to the natural world.