If you have attended any of Resolana’s volunteer get-togethers, you’ve definitely noticed the calm, radiant presence of a petite blond woman. If you have volunteered with Resolana’s dance program at the Dallas County Jail, you have experienced the transformative force of dance through the movement program that she helped found and shape. This is Dr. Barbara Miller, a dentist by profession and healer by calling who sees dance as an integral part of her work. The Baylor Dental Journal recently honored Dr. Miller with an extensive article about her work.
Dr. Barbara Miller started dancing early, as a 3 year old, and credits dance for giving her ‘voice’ early in life when she was a shy girl. She hopes it would give the women in jail the same sense of freedom, opportunity for expression and fun during the movement workshops. They would feel more connected to their bodies and so overcome the sense of powerlessness they’ve experienced through abuse from many sources; find fun in a physical activity that doesn’t involve drugs of alcohol.
Resolana’s creative movement program is unique not only for conceptually integrating dance in treatment with the goal of ultimately preparing women to get back to society transformed and empowered. The program is unique also in its holistic application. Leadership is shared during the classes, establishing a model for the ladies to see play out. Dance classes represent a wide range of styles and forms, from liturgical to ethnic, and allow for the search of internal freedom. Within the bare walls of the jail, dance allows eyes to turn inwards and create an internal space for each woman in which she can start build on her self-knowledge and potential.
Read more about Dr. Miller’s work in the Baylor Dental Journal article. Better yet, volunteer in one of the dance or other Resolana classes to experience how this transformation comes to life for everyone involved, no matter if they have to stay there, in the jail, after the class ends.
Tags: Dr. Barbara Miller
