Leadership & Social Justice Certificate

Students will gain the skills, knowledge, and tools to integrate systemic principles and analysis into mental health leadership roles and, in particular, leadership advocacy for MFTs and systemic theory and therapy in organizations. This course will provide essential knowledge for those seeking to increase their position in the field.

Take a deeper dive beyond the introductory level of the master class, examining the impact of cross-cultural factors and social justice issues on the individual and family functioning of the clients we serve.

The course will emphasize the family in social context, both historically and contemporarily. It will study the impact of changing social conditions on individual and family functioning. Students will connect these cultural factors and issues of social justice to the professional mandate as a marriage and family therapist in our code of ethics of the “commitment to service, advocacy, and public participation. The areas of service, advocacy, and public participation are recognized as responsibilities to the profession equal in importance to all other aspects (AAMFT, 2015)."

This will be demonstrated by identifying cultural factors or social justice needs in our community and completing a service or advocacy project to address it as the capstone of this course. Students who have not had the master’s level introductory courses will have to do additional readings and in-class work to demonstrate competency.

This course will consist of an advanced examination of mental health public policy and the impact of policy on mental health care. This will include examining the implications for mental health access, funding, and services delivery based on local and national policy initiatives.

The course will consider these topics through a social justice lens to identify the systemic and cultural implications of public policy on maintaining systems of oppression within the context of mental health policy and practice.

Students will also gain advanced knowledge of policy-making within the field of marriage and family therapy. This course will prepare students to fulfill the ethical mandate of marriage and family therapists to maintain a “commitment to service, advocacy, and public participation. The areas of service, advocacy, and public participation are recognized as responsibilities to the profession equal in importance to all other aspects (AAMFT, 2015).”

Leadership Foundations

The focus of this course is to provide a review of leadership theories both from an historical perspective and the current leadership styles that have evolved since the Industrial Revolution. The course will include the opportunity for students to self-assess, develop, and create their own leadership style. The changing role of marriage and family therapists from provider to leaders in the health care market will be highlighted. Prerequisite: MF 777.

Advanced Entrepreneurship in MFT