Our Vision

Through a combination of in-depth course work, personal growth experiences, intentional reflection, and personal therapy we envision our graduate students developing:

Self-Awareness

• Aware of personal themes and issues and their interaction with client concerns
• In contact with their fears, struggles, and inadequacies, but also mindful of their strengths and accomplishments
• Sensitive to the impact clients have on them
• Aware of and comfortable with the spiritual dimension of their work
• Committed to a life-long process of self-exploration and personal growth

Character

• Mature, solid people who are safe to be with and calm in the presence of the range of human experience
• Always hopeful in the middle of distress
• Secure and humble, so that when they engage with others, nothing about who they are is at stake, nor do they have to be clever or appreciated or put their insight on display to win applause
• Honest and meaningfully vulnerable with others

Knowledge

• Creative, reflective and able to develop a healing vision for clients
• Critically thoughtful about how to have an impact on client lives
• Discerning about how client challenges can be transformed into growth experiences
• Attentive to relevant ethical standards and competent ethical decision-makers
• Adept at integrating theory, research, and experiential knowledge

Interpersonal Skills

• Attentive to client strengths and uniqueness and eager to applaud their successes
• Warm and sensitive listeners who are respectfully curious, never invasive, but eagerly willing to walk through whatever doors are opened
• Multiculturally sensitive and inclined to celebrate diversity
• Able to gently expose areas for growth and to encourage responsibility without compulsion, without pushing, without condescension, and without requiring compliance from the client