Scholarship fund established to benefit marriage and family therapy program
Janel Shoun-Smith |
New MFT scholarship fund will help provide professionals to fight today's epidemic of depression, anxiety and addiction
Lipscomb University’s Marriage and Family Therapy master’s program has been steadily growing since its establishment in 2012, and this year leaders announced a new opportunity for you to be involved in that growth.
The program has established the MFT Scholarship Fund directly benefiting students in the marriage and family therapy program. Marriage and family therapists specialize in treatment of individuals, couples and families, using a relational approach to mental health care.
“With the overall increase in serious mental health issues such as suicide, opioid addiction, anxiety, depression, PTSD and loneliness like we have never seen before, there has never been greater demand for well-trained mental health clinicians and relationship experts,” said Chris Gonzalez, director of the master’s program which also operates the Lipscomb Family Therapy Center on Granny White Pike.
“According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, the marriage and family therapy profession will grow 23 percent over the next decade. In emerging urban centers such as Nashville, with thousands of people moving in each month, more therapists are needed to keep up with the demand,” Gonzalez said.
Since its first cohort graduated in August 2012, Lipscomb’s program has trained more than 100 new therapists, Gonzalez said. More than 95 percent of program graduates are working in the field and most land a job within the first six months, he said.
Lipscomb MFT graduates are in Ph.D. programs at universities such as Michigan State, Kansas State and Georgia. They are running their own private practices, have become clinical directors, and have built a strong reputation, making Lipscomb graduates highly sought after.
“When you support this scholarship fund, you are investing in a school teacher looking to make a mid-career shift; a new graduate looking to make a difference in the world; a minister looking to expand their skill set within their existing ministry. Then when they have the skills, you are supporting the healing and growth of every single client they touch in their career — thousands of people,” said Gonzalez.
The purpose of the MFT Scholarship Fund is to support students who demonstrate financial need and or demonstrate excellence as an emerging therapist.
The fund is open for sustaining donors who make regular monthly contributions, one-time donors and donors wishing to make a large donation, which would be especially helpful to establish an endowed fund.
If you would like to make a donation to the MFT Scholarship Fund log onto https://www.lipscomb.edu/gift or contact Gonzalez at 615.966.6651. To specify the gift for the MFT scholarship Fund online, click on “other” and type “MFT Scholarship” in the description box.
About the Lipscomb Master in Marriage and Family Therapy
The Lipscomb M.MFT program is a 60-hour, 24-month program structured in a cohort model which meets or exceeds all coursework and supervised practicum/internship requirements for MFT licensure in Tennessee. Students in this program attend full-time and year-round, taking most courses on Tuesday evenings at our off-site location in Cool Springs. Students complete 500 hours of supervised clinical work in addition to their coursework. This degree prepares students to provide marriage and family therapy services to individuals, couples, and families in a variety of settings in the community such as mental health centers, agencies, private practices, churches, and para-church organizations.
In 2014, the program achieved the highest attainable accreditation for a six-year period with an unprecedented "no stipulations" under current standards from the most rigorous accrediting body in the field of MFT, the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE).