THE NATIONAL GROUP PSYCHOTHERAPY INSTITUTE

Training Group Therapists for the 21st Century

2017-2019

Molly Donovan, PhD, Chair

Robert Schulte, MSW, Dean

Schedule

All conference sessions take place on a Friday and Saturday
9AM–6:30PM.  12 CE/CME credits are awarded for attendance at each weekend.

October 6 – 7, 2017
January 26 – 27, 2018
April 27 – 28, 2018

September 28 – 29, 2018
January 25 – 26, 2019
April 26 – 27, 2019

The deadline for applications is September 1.

The Institute comprises a two-year program of six intensive group conferences, focusing on contemporary approaches to psychodynamic group psychotherapy and issues in group therapy. Each conference offers multiple opportunities within the faculty/member community for didactic and experiential learning, including lectures and panel discussions, demonstration groups, small group experiences and large group experiences.

Participation in the Institute is open to mental health practitioners and clinicians-in-training who are interested in learning about groups and about group therapy. Group therapy experience, either as a participant or a group leader, is not a pre-requisite. There are two levels of participation: full Institute participants attend the entire cycle of six conferences and belong to the same small group throughout; single-conference participants attend on a per conference basis and are assigned to a small group formed only for that particular conference.  It is possible to register for multiple conferences.

The Conferences

October 6 – 7, 2017

Effective Therapy Groups and Their Leaders: Psychodynamic and Sociocultural Dimensions

Chair: Stacey Jackson-Lampley, PhD

There are many ways to lead and conceptualize a therapy group. In this inaugural conference we will consider the interplay of psychodynamic processes and sociocultural factors in both the development and ongoing leadership of an effective group. Interactive plenaries and experiential small and large groups will illuminate both the dynamic and social unconscious of group life in the here-and-now, and examine the role of theory as a guide for the group psychotherapist.

January 26 – 27, 2018

Reflection and Revelation: The Group Therapist’s Use of Self and Self-Disclosure

Chair: Jonathan Stillerman, PhD

We’ve come a long way from the classical analytic mandate that psychotherapists serve as blank screens for their patients’ projections. Yet, how therapists most effectively use and reveal themselves in treatment remains an area of spirited debate. This conference will locate that conversation within the unique context of group therapy, exploring how we as group therapists can best use ourselves in the service of the group. We will pay special attention to the complex decision to self-disclose in group, and the related questions of what to reveal, how to do so, and how to evaluate the impact on individual members and the group as a whole.

April 27 – 28, 2018

Passionate Groups: The Interplay of Envy, Competition, Shame and Intimacy

Guest Presenter: Steve Van Wagoner, PhD

In psychotherapy groups, members cope with vacillating experiences of inclusion and exclusion that arouse powerful feelings of attraction and identification, as well as frustration, envy, and shame. Envy, and its influence on competitive and potentially destructive action, is so common and pervasive that no group therapy is without their interplay. Through didactic and experiential learning, participants will identify and analyze various ways of constructing intimacy and competing for relatedness, and learn to identify and verbalize passionately held feelings of envy, rejection, shame, and perceived loss of power as a way of neutralizing their destructive potential.

September 28 - 29, 2018

Times of Crisis: Groups in the Aftermath of Communal Trauma

Chair: Kavita Avula, PsyD

The transitional stage following exposure to a mass trauma or disaster is a critical period. Unskillful and overly structured interventions can further harm already vulnerable individuals and communities as they first begin to process their experiences. However, offering nothing can result in survivors feeling abandoned and alone. This conference will highlight the vital role of the group therapist in the aftermath of community-wide emergencies and explore ways of intervening that avoid re-traumatization. We will emphasize a continuum of psychological interventions based on the unfolding phases of recovery from trauma that promote healing and resilience on individual, group and community levels.

January 25 – 26, 2019

Groups in the World / Worlds in the Group

Co-Chairs: Rosemary Segalla, PhD, Ayana Watkins-Northern, PhD, and Mary Dluhy, LICSW

Group therapists tend to focus on intrapsychic, interpersonal, intersubjective and group-as-a-whole dynamics. This conference will highlight the often-overlooked dimension of context and the ways contextual forces - social, economic, cultural and political - influence group treatment and larger social systems. We will pay special attention to the importance of embracing multiculturalism and examining power and privilege in group work, as doing so encourages dialogues about individual differences (race, gender, sexual orientation, ability and disability, religion, class, age, etc.), which can enhance understanding among group members and promote group cohesion.

April 26 – 27, 2019

How Do I Leave Thee? Endings and Existential Issues in Group Psychotherapy

Co-Chairs: Farooq Mohyuddin, MD and Maryetta Andrews-Sachs, LCSW

Existential issues - freedom, isolation, meaninglessness and death - intertwine throughout our lives and the lives of our group members and underlie all our therapeutic work. This final conference of the two-year cycle will provide the perfect context for Institute members to experience these profound human issues first hand and explore their impact on therapy group members and group dynamics.

Please note: This last conference will be limited to those students who have been enrolled in the full two-year Institute. No single conference registrations will be accepted.

Small Group Experience

Each participant will be assigned to a small process group of 7-10 members. These groups, led by one or two faculty members, will maintain the same membership throughout the duration of the Program. The goal of these groups is to integrate the didactic material presented by providing the participants with an in-vivo opportunity to experience and observe small group dynamics and processes as they unfold.

Large Group Experience

All participants will be members of a large group experience that will convene three times over the duration of each conference. These large group meetings will be facilitated by a multi-person team of faculty consultants. The educational goals are to illuminate large group unconscious processes, identify covert and overt barriers to communication, and to recognize the influence of sociocultural and other contextual factors on a therapy group.

 

Eligibility and Selection

The Program is open to psychiatrists, medical residents, psychologists, doctoral psychology students, social workers, social work students, nurses, counselors and other licensed mental health professionals.

Please apply. Applicants are invited to submit a CV and application. An interview with the Program Chair, Dean or a member of the Selection Committee will be conducted prior to acceptance into the two-year Program.

The deadline for applications is September 1.

 

Training Component Options

A faculty advisor is available to assist any Institute member seeking additional training components to supplement their educational Institute experience, including: 

• Supervision of clinical group work
• Basic Principles of Group Psychotherapy Course
• Guidance in beginning a therapy group
• Continuing education opportunities in group therapy

 

For Further Information

Contact the Chair or Dean with any additional questions:

Molly Donovan, Chair, 202-822-8070,
drmollyd@aol.com or
Robert Schulte, Dean, 703-838-1633,
bobgroup@aol.com

CE/CME Award

72 CE/CME credits for the 2 year cycle..

Tuition

$2000 total, $1000 due each year.

Scholarship Support

The Sy Rubenfeld Scholarship Fund provides financial support for tuition for clinicians-in-training and early career professionals based on available funds. Contact the Dean for more information. Scholarship application.

 

NGPI Faculty

Molly Donovan, PhD, CGP, FAGPA (Chair)
Robert Schulte, MSW, CGP (Dean)

Maryetta Andrews-Sachs, MA, CGP, FAGPA
Kavita Avula, PsyD
Mary Dluhy, MSW, CGP, FAGPA
Stacey Jackson-Lampley, PhD
Beatrice Liebenberg, MSW, CGP, DFAGPA
Hallie Lovett, PhD, CGP
Farooq Mohyuddin, MD
Reginald Nettles, PhD, CGP
Leon Paparella, MSW, CGP
Rosemary Segalla, PhD, ABPP, CGP, FAGPA
Jonathan Stillerman, PhD, CGP
Harriet Swankin, MSW, CGP (sabbatical)
Steve Van Wagoner, PhD, CGP, FAGPA (sabbatical)
Ayana Watkins-Northern, PhD, CGP
Barry Wepman, PhD, CGP, FAGPA

Guest Faculty

Karen Eberwein, PsyD
Bradley Lake, LICSW,
Victoria Lee, PhD
Bruce Pickle, PhD