Music Therapy Faculty

Jessica DeKleva, PhD, MT-BC, earned her doctorate in Music Education with an emphasis in Music Therapy from Florida State University, where she also earned her master's and bachelor’s degrees in music therapy.

Dr. DeKleva brings extensive clinical, academic, and administrative experience to her role, having worked as a music therapist and administrator for a private practice in Tallahassee, Florida, since 2017. She has served as an adjunct professor, graduate assistant, and music therapy consultant at Florida State University, teaching a wide range of undergraduate and graduate courses, including Nonverbal Communication in Human Interaction, Music Therapy Drumming, and Experimental Research in Music.

Her scholarly work focuses on the integration of music therapy in educational and clinical settings, particularly within child welfare and trauma-informed care. She has co-authored a forthcoming book chapter in The Oxford Hanbook of Special Music Education and Music Therapy and has presented frequently at local, regional, and national conferences on topics ranging from private practice to interdisciplinary collaboration.

Dr. DeKleva is the recipient of the 2024–2025 Florida Institute for Child Welfare Dissertation Fellowship and the 2024 Mary J. Hilliard Award Scholarship. She is certified in Trauma-Focused Cognitive Behavioral Therapy and NICU Music Therapy, underscoring her commitment to evidence-based, client-centered care.

A dedicated mentor, Dr. DeKleva has supervised music therapy interns and practicum students from institutions across the Southeast and serves on multiple professional committees, including Fundraising Chair for the Southeastern Region of the American Music Therapy Association and Co-Chair of the Florida State Task Force for Music Therapy.

Dr. Victoria Policastro Vega is an accomplished music therapy clinician, educator, and lecturer.  She received her bachelor’s degree in music education from West Virginia University.  Dr. Vega received her master’s in music therapy from Loyola University New Orleans.  Dr. Vega completed her doctorate at Temple University where she studied under Dr. Kenneth Bruscia.  She is the third person to receive her Ph.D. in music therapy in the nation.  She has worked at several hospitals and rehabilitation centers in the New Orleans area, working primarily in neurology.  Dr. Vega has delivered several sessions and workshops at music therapy and psychiatric regional and national conferences, as well as at several regional universities.

She is very active in the American Music Therapy Association.  On the regional level, Dr. Vega has been vice-president and president of the South-Central Region for two terms.  On the national level she has served on the American Music Therapy National Executive Committee as council coordinator of professional practices, clinical training and education committees, Education and Training Advisory Board and the Judicial Review Board and has represented her region on the Assembly of Delegates.  Dr. Vega’s research interests are music therapy with neurologic disorders, professional burnout and personality.  Dr. Vega is the recipient of the AMTA regional "Excellence in Music Therapy" award in 1998 and the "National Presidential Award" in 2006. She was coordinator of the Music Therapy Program at Loyola from 2000-2013 and served as the Associate Dean of the College of Music and Fine Arts from 2013-2017.

Rhé H. Washington, MMT, NMT, MT-BC is a native of Chicago, IL.  A lifelong musician began playing the piano at 4 years old – he is an accomplished pianist, vocalist, composer, arranger, and mallet percussionist. Rhé studied music through his formative years and studied at multiple schools including NYU and Berklee School of Music. Through the years he has worked on many projects including stage, session work, commercials, corporate and private engagements. Has 2 solo albums to his credit and has hopes to complete a third. He has performed in orchestras, symphonic bands, jazz bands, night clubs and churches across many genres - throughout the United States and abroad. In 2015 he pursued a career in music therapy and received a master’s degree in Music Therapy from the Loyola University of New Orleans in 2018. To date, Rhé is a music therapy educator and a published Community Music Therapy researcher – see Voices:  A World Forum of Music Therapy March 2023 – Vol. 1.  Finally, he works as a music therapist in private practice in the New Orleans/Baton Rouge area bringing music to heal others – Purple Note Music Therapy, LLC.

Thrad Weibley, MMT, MT-BC is a musician, educator, board-certified Music Therapist, and small business owner. He received his bachelor’s degree in Music with a minor in Music Technology from Susquehanna University and his master’s degree in Music Therapy from Loyola University New Orleans. He has been board certified since 2022. 

Thrad brings extensive and diverse music, leadership, and administrative experience to his role, having worked professionally as a live audio engineer, tour manager, stage hand, and musician/performer since 2008. He continues to work in behavioral health hospital settings with inpatient adolescents, adult psych, trauma, eating disorder, detox, dual-diagnosis, and partial- and intensive outpatient groups. He also founded, owns and operates Safe In Sound Music Therapy Services, LLC in 2024, with a current focus on providing affordable mental health services to New Orleans area service industry workers. 

Thrad’s scholarly work is informed by his experience working in psychiatric inpatient hospital settings and investigates the significance of harmful sound and music in music therapy assessment. He has applied to present his findings at the 2026 SER-AMTA music therapy conference and endeavors to continue the research.