This course provides students with clinical understanding regarding substance use, addictions and domestic violence offering a trauma-informed assessment and treatment. Students will learn to appreciate the complexity of substance use disorders, diversity of care, and providing informed referrals to evidence-based support services. They will learn to conceptualize and treat families in crisis in a systemic way, promoting recovery, safety, wellness, and harm reduction to improve care and support for those with substance use and addiction.

As an advanced course in Marital and Family Therapy, MFT670 will focus on the systemic issues and treatment of couples and families addressing essential topics like divorce, remarriage, stepfamily and blended family issues, severe illness and death, sexuality, and intimacy as well as violence and sexual abuse. Issues that are related to diversity and power and privilege as they relate to the areas of age, gender, sexual identity, health/ability, culture, SES, spirituality, and ethnicity will also be addressed.

This course examines the major legal and ethical issues involved in the practice of therapy. Special attention is given to the American Association of Marriage and Family ethical standards, the laws of British Columbia regarding the practice of therapy, uniquely to Christian perspectives and responsibilities. Issues that are related to diversity and power and privilege as they relate to the areas of indigenous culture and history, age, gender, sexual orientation, health/ability, culture, SES, spirituality, and ethnicity will also be addressed.

This course provides students with an introduction to group theory and acquisition of group leadership skills. Also included will be group development, ethical considerations, and the use of groups in church, parachurch and community mental health settings. The course will be taught from a relational/systems perspective. Using key theories of group counseling and family systems models, the class will explore attachment issues, recapitulation of family of origin in the group, boundary setting, and other individual/relational dynamics that occur in group work.

An advanced course in Marital and Family Therapy, the course will focus on theories of family therapy, practical application of theory to therapy situations, clinical skill building and spiritual issues as they relate to Marriage and Family Therapy. It is assumed that students have had prior learning of Systems Theory. Students will be required to actively participate in the learning modules. Students will be required to apply the concepts learned to personal and group projects.

This course introduces the theory and practice of multicultural counselling and family therapy including various aspects of diversity: identity formation, race, ethnicity, class, gender, sexual orientation, spirituality, ability/disability, and aging. Students will have the opportunity to explore their own culturally informed belief systems, values, and practices. Research and class content will focus on knowledge and understanding worldviews that underlie client behavior, relationships, and resources. Ethical issues and culturally sensitive therapeutic approaches will be explored.

This course introduces students to conceptual, executive, and perceptual therapy skills, including forming a therapeutic relationship, clinical documentation, crisis management and countertransference issues. The skills will be acquired in class lectures and exercises as well as weekly practice sessions with their peers. Issues that are related to diversity and power and privilege as they relate to the areas of age, gender, sexual orientation, health/ability, culture, SES, spirituality, and ethnicity will also be addressed. Open only to MAMFT graduate students or with special permission.

This course introduces the classic and post-modern family systems concepts and theories. Multiple models of family systems therapy will be presented to provide a framework for conceptual integration and application to clinical practice. Throughout the course students will be encouraged to assess and integrate family therapy theories with a Christian worldview. This course also provides opportunities for professional development through personal reflection and the construction of an integrated therapeutic perspective on the process of change and care within family therapy.

The course provides opportunity for the articulation of transformational leadership (both cultural and personal). It requires leaders to communicate their vision of growth and opportunity. Students gain insight into effective leadership communication as they examine the worldviews, history, and economic challenges in developing nations (in East Africa and Central America). This course explores underlying cultural and faithbased worldviews by means of an interdisciplinary travel study.