GROUP THERAPY IS HEALING IN COMMUNITY!

At a time of increasing need for relationships and community, Eastern Group Psychotherapy Society offers a Training Program in Group Psychotherapy that is designed to accommodate therapists and group leaders in clinics, agencies, and private practice. The program consists of three weekly components: Group Consultation, Didactic Instruction, and Experiential Group. The Training Program addresses racial and social justice issues in group work of all kinds.

Just some of the areas covered:

Early Group Development
Phases of Group Development
Othering in Groups
Systems of Power and Inequaliity
Racial Dynamics in Groups
Racial Affinity Groups
Non-Verbal Communication in Group Work
Embodied Ethics
Leader Interventions with Patients Experienced as Difficult
Transference and Countertransference

Trainees receive didactic instruction as well as guidance and consultation in how to begin and facilitate their own groups. For those who are already running groups, participating in this program will help you understand the processes and dynamics occurring among your group members and address challenges with clarity. Trainees will also participate in an “Experiential” process group to have the in-vivo experience of being a group member.

The program meets weekly from September through June on Zoom. The Didactic and Experiential Group Components meet on Wednesdays from 7:15 – 10:00 PM ET. The dates and times for the Consultation Group component of the program will be determined.

The Training Program Faculty is composed of senior members of the Eastern Group Psychotherapy Society and the American Group Psychotherapy Association.

A certificate is awarded upon completion of the program. The Training Program, with an option for additional consultation, is designed so that qualified applicants can use the educational and supervisory components toward inclusion in the International Board of Certification for Group Psychotherapy.

Faculty members consult with our Dean of Curriculum as they prepare their courses; meet annually with an expert in intersectionality, and are encouraged to engage in ongoing racial literacy and anti-oppression training.

Each trainee will be paired with a mentor who has group experience to help you get your very own group up and running!

Trainees will learn to:

Facilitate intimate connections & difficult discussions
Recognize the impact of systemic oppression on group dynamics
Experience and study one’s own social location and how the aspects of identity, power and privilege play out in groups

Experience the Power of Group Work:

Increasing feelings of connection and decreases feelings of isolation
Fostering relationships and noticing obstacles to intimacy
Being part of a larger whole & recognize one’s impact
Supporting and helping & being supported and helped.

Rolling Admissions until August 1st, 2025: Submit your application immediately to be considered for the upcoming September, 2025 – June, 2026 class!

Tuition $5,900

Need based partial scholarships are available through the J. Dustin Nichols Scholarship Fund.

A Reparations rate is available to cover partial tuition for Indigenous applicants and applicants of the African diaspora to enhance educational opportunities that have been historically denied.

CLICK HERE FOR THE APPLICATION FORM

FOR MORE INFORMATION CONTACT:

Co-Deans of Admissions
Fanita Henderson, LMHC, NCC, fanita.henderson@gmail.com, 516-330-0870
Ashley Leeds, LCSW, ashley@leedspsychotherapy.com, 917-900-2083

From a former trainee: “The EGPS Training Program approaches group therapy from a whole range of theoretical perspectives. There’s not ‘just one way’ to run groups”

The EGPS Training Program in Group Psychotherapy was the recipient of an “Award for Outstanding Contributions in Education and Training in the Field of Group Psychotherapy” presented by the International Board for Certification of Group Psychotherapists.

EGPS Training Program Mission and Vision Statements

Mission: The EGPS Training Program is committed to providing training in group theory and processes that recognizes significant aspects of personal identity. The program seeks to facilitate understanding of the impact of systemic and institutional oppression on individuals and groups; and to counteract racism and white supremacy through teaching of anti-oppressive approaches to group work, and through the process of administering the program. The program promotes racial literacy through anti-racism training, and the incorporation of diverse racial and cultural perspectives through our faculty and curriculum. We are committed to racial justice through the provision of reparations funding for Black and Indigenous trainees.

Vision: Recognizing that traditional group psychotherapy has been defined by western white dominant patriarchal culture, we envision group healing that draws on a greater variety of cultural practices and approaches to healing that seeks to not only to address the needs of individuals but of the greater society.