What an exciting year 2014-2015 was. The Commission on Accreditation for Family Therapy Education has renewed our accreditation for 6 years, May 1, 2015 – May 1, 2021. We value our status as an accredited program and work hard to make sure we maintain our accreditation status.
After completing my second self-study in seven years, I have decided to step down from my teaching and program administration role at K-State in May 2016. I have been honored to serve as program director and professor of the MFT program since 2007 during a time of great transition, with the founders of our program, Candy Russell, retiring, and Tony Jurich dying suddenly. We welcomed new faculty Jared Durtschi and Amber Vennum who have done a great job. The program is in a great place.
I am moving to a full-time funded research position, maintaining an office in the Family Center and continuing to chair and/or serve on student graduate committees. We will be searching this year for an associate or full professor with a strong research track record to serve as program director and MFT faculty member. If you are interested in returning to K-State or know of a good candidate, please contact Jared Anderson, chair of the search committee.
Candy Russell, who was a professor at K-State for 37 years and co-founder of the marriage and family therapy program, radiates warmth and calm.
We sit in her lightly colored home in Manhattan, surrounded by books and art — a painting of a New Mexico Pueblo, a monochrome etching showing a multitude of people heading towards an old Spanish mission in a religious processional, and a spunky black pig with white spots and large teeth created by New Mexican folk wood-carvers.
Although stunning, her art holds deeper meaning for her: it allows her to bring home part of New Mexico’s spirituality.
The long-time professor says she finds beauty in the idea that all people are connected; she explains she considers New Mexico spiritual because it is the “coming together of the three cultures: the Anglo, the Native American, and the Hispanic.”
Ruben Parra-Cardona, associate professor in the program of couple and family therapy at Michigan State University and associate director of the MSU Research Consortium on Gender-based Violence, will present the second Jurich Lecture on Social Justice at 3 p.m. on Thursday, Sept. 17.
Ruben Parra-Cardona
He will present “Building Bridges of Social Justice: Embracing prevention research to support Latino/a communities in the U.S. and Mexico.”
The afternoon lecture and reception will be at the K-State Student Union. On Friday, Sept. 18, marriage and family therapy alumni and friends are invited to breakfast at the Family Center and then join a program and center tour.
Parra-Cardona’s research, funded by the National Institute of Mental Health (NIMH), compares and contrasts the differential treatment efficacy and cultural relevance of two culturally adapted versions of an evidence-based parenting intervention.
Picture at the Flint Hills Discovery Center in Manhattan are, from left, Jared Anderson, Nancy O’Conner, Camille Lafleur, Sandi Stith, Joyce Baptist, Marcie Lechtenberg, Amber Vennum, Terry Pfannenstiel and Jared Durtschi.
Jared Anderson, Ph.D., LMFT
The associate professor’s research focuses on the cognitive and relational factors that are associated with diabetes management in couples, relationship development in China and processes related to marital quality and stability. He recently presented research at the annual Pairfam users conference in Germany. Jared and several graduate students are developing differentiation-based approaches to relationship education and are conducting basic research on differentiation in committed couples. Jared continues to work on projects with the Kansas Department for Children and Families and the U.S. Air Force.
Nancy O’Conner, LCMFT
A clinical associate professor/director of the Family Center, Nancy works with the Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services on Home-Based Family Therapy. This project, in its 9th year, recently launched a fidelity component and has an increased focus on therapist self-care and supervision. Nancy is a state-approved mediator/trainer and co-developed RG Mediation Services which provides affordable mediation services to the community through the Family Center and is a means for students to become state approved mediators.
Camille Lafleur, Ph.D., LCMFT
The research professor is active on the Kansas Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Foundation and the Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board Advisory Committee. Camille leads trainings for in-home family therapists in Kansas through the Home-Based Family Therapy Partnership in collaboration with the Kansas Department of Aging and Disability Services. Additionally, she provides individual and family therapy in a private practice setting.
Sandra Stith, Ph.D., LCMFT
A university distinguished professor, Sandi Stith is Virginia Mowrey McAninch professor of family studies and human services, and directs the marriage and family therapy program. Sandi is a board member and Fellow of the National Council on Family Relations. She works with the USAF Family Advocacy Program managing and conducting a variety of family violence-related research projects, including a project to develop and test a risk assessment measure for IPV, and leads a large meta-analysis project examining risk factors for partner violence.
Joyce Baptist, Ph.D., LCMFT
An associate professor, Joyce’s research interests include the impact of war deployment on the sustainability of military families, clinical effectiveness of EMDR therapy, couple relationship maintenance, inter-racial relationships and minority groups. She is conducting a clinical study using EMDR therapy to treat depression and family-of-origin attachment injuries; she will be presenting her research at the EMDR conference. Joyce is the editor-in-chief for the Journal of Feminist Family Therapy, a board member for the Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board in Kansas, and the EMDRIA Research Committee. She is an advisor to the Malaysian Student Association at K-State. In January 2016, she will co-lead a study abroad trip to Malaysia.
Marcie Lechtenberg, Ph.D., LMFT
A clinical supervisor and instructor, Marcie is on the interdisciplinary steering committee for the Graduate Certificate in Social Justice and has been a member of the team that has developed coursework for the certificate. Her areas of research include social justice issues in therapy and making changes at mid-life.
Amber Vennum, Ph.D., LMFT
The assistant professor recently received the Dawley-Scholer Award for Faculty Excellence in Student Development from the College of Human Ecology. Amber collaborates with communities to address factors that create disparities in mental health and relational outcomes through intervening during adolescence and young adulthood. She is focusing on improving access to mental health services through school-based family therapy, researching risk and resiliency factors for relationship stability in young adult romantic relationships, and using mobile technology to create adaptive relationship education interventions to help emerging adults establish and sustain healthy, long-term romantic relationships.
Terry Pfannenstiel, Ph.D., LCMFT
A clinical supervisor and instructor, Terry is the former outpatient program director at Pawnee Mental Health where he is currently a senior clinician and supervisor. The past president of the Kansas Psychological Association, Terry currently serves on the Kansas Behavioral Sciences Regulatory Board and as the chairperson for the regulatory board’s complaint review committee. He is an item writer for the National Exam for marriage and family therapists.
Jared Durtschi, Ph.D., LMFT
An assistant professor whose research focuses on predictors and processes linked with relationship quality, relationship quality trajectories, transition to parenthood, and family process between parents and children. In addition to his roles at K-State, Jared works with AAMFT’s Minority Fellowship Program to provide statistical and research mentoring to 25 MFP doctoral students in MFT programs across the country.
Members of the 2015 cohort studying towards a Master of Science degree in marriage and family therapy are, from left, Michelle Busk, Sally Hodges, Caitlyn Crawford, Thomas Childs, Jordan Crosson, Aimee Hubbard, Tom (Yile) Su and James Bridges.
Students in the 2015 doctoral cohort are InSoon Hoagland, Austin Beck, Chelsey Torgerson, Emel Genc, Lauren Oseland, name withheld by request, Jessica High and Denzel Jones.
Dr. McCollum earned his Ph.D. from K-State in 1986. The author or co-author of five books, he is professor and director of the marriage and family therapy program at Virginia Tech.
What is special about K-State’s MFT program?
So many things are special. One is its history. Kansas State has been training marriage and family therapists for decades. I graduated nearly 30 years ago and it was a well-established program then. Another is the strength of the faculty. Dr. Candy Russell and Dr. Anthony Jurich were the core faculty members when I was a student and both were national leaders in the field. That trend has continued including now with my classmate and wonderful colleague Dr. Sandra Stith directing the program.
Why are you in MFT?
I have been a therapist for 40 years now – beginning my MSW practicum in 1975 in a community mental health center in Des Moines, IA. At the time I began to study MFT seriously – while I was a social work trainee at the Menninger Clinic which was then located in Topeka – MFT was a revolutionary field. It provided a radical new way to look understand the difficulties people brought to therapy and a wide range of exciting techniques to help them. I remain committed to that possibility – that a systemic understanding can truly be the basis for change at all levels.
In your opinion, what does it take –personally – to have a career in MFT?
I think if you aren’t fascinated by people and their experiences, you won’t last long as an MFT. I feel very grateful for the experiences I have had by proxy as people have allowed me into their worlds to see both the best things that happen in their lives and the most difficult. It has truly made my life richer.
Teri Nelsen
Teri Nelsen
Dr. Nelsen, a licensed clinical marriage and family therapist working at Ft. Riley, earned both a master’s and a doctorate degree from K-State’s MFT program.
Why are you in MFT?
It was my calling — seriously. As an undergrad, I read about MFT and immediately knew it was my passion. Healthy family relationships are a top priority for me both personally and professionally.
What do you do in your current job?
I am honored to provide mental health services to military service members and their family members/dependents in a military medical treatment facility department of behavioral health. I treat them for PTSD, depression, and anxiety, and work with couples and families to help them cope with the stresses of military life style — as well as typical marital and family issues. I have also provided clinical supervision to several MFTs who worked with me to help them obtain their clinical licensure.
What are your biggest challenges in your job and how to you meet them?
Dealing with the military medical system and sometimes conflicting goals of what’s best for my clients vs what’s best for the military (and for tax payers). I use my MFT skills – lots of patience, humor, and diplomacy. Also, I do my best to leave work at work and enjoy my evenings and weekends with family and friends, exercise (walk my dogs!), and doing crafts (mostly knitting) while listening to/ watching funny movies/ TV (especially British humor).
Here are a few of the reasons we are so proud of our students:
• Jonathon Kimmes student was named top PhD apprentice journal reviewer.
• Charity Clifford received the Kansas Association for Marriage and Family Therapy Jurich Student Leadership Award.
• Patricia Barrow-Gomes received an award for her National Council on Family Relations poster.
• Erika Smith earned an award for her K-State Research Forum poster.
• 2 students earned Poresky assistantships.
• 5 students were singled out for their graduate teaching assistantship work.
• 4 students presented cutting edge research posters.
• 11 students won prestigious scholarships, several received more than one.
• 3 students earned fellowships.
Some stuck close to K-State. Others fanned out through the country. Wherever they went, students who earned their Ph.Ds. or master’s degrees last year are putting their K-State MFT educations to work.
