COUPLE & FAMILY THERAPY TEACHING & CLINICAL TRAINING IN TURKEY

PROFESSIONAL & CULTURAL EXPERIENCES

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WHY NOW? WHY TURKEY? WHY FULBRIGHT FOR SABBATICAL

• “WHY DO PEOPLE MOVE? WHAT MAKES THEM UPROOT AND LEAVE EVERYTHING THEY’VE

KNOWN FOR A GREAT UNKNOWN BEYOND THE HORIZON? WHY CLIMB THIS MOUNT

EVEREST OF FORMALITIES THAT MAKES YOU FEEL LIKE A BEGGAR? WHY ENTER THIS JUNGLE

OF FOREIGNNESS WHERE EVERYTHING IS NEW, STRANGE AND DIFFICULT?” (YANN MARTEL,

LIFE OF PI)

• TURKEY CONNECTIONS: PERSONAL & PROFESSIONAL

• CHOOSING TO DO A FULBRIGHT

• THE CONTEXTS I EXPERIENCED: FULBRIGHT COMMUNITY, UNIVERSITY COMMUNITY, CFT

CLINICAL COMMUNITY, PERSONAL & SOCIAL COMMUNITIES

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COUPLE & FAMILY THERAPY FIELD

• IN THE US: ACCREDITATION (AAMFT/COAMFTE), TRAINING/EDUCATIONAL PROGRAMS,

MENTAL HEALTH LAWS, LICENSING, PROFESSIONAL BOARDS AND ORGANIZATIONS, ETHICS IN

THE FIELD – ALL WELL-ESTABLISHED

• OUTSIDE OF THE US: ONLY CANADA HAS SIMILAR CONTEXT FOR CFT EDUCATION, PRACTICE,

ETC.

• INTERNATIONALLY & IN TURKEY: MENTAL HEALTH PRACTICES AND TRAINING STILL VERY MUCH

STEEPED IN PSYCHOLOGY, WITH CFT BEING A SPECIALIZATION RATHER THAN DISTINCT FIELD

OF RESEARCH, TRAINING, CLINICAL PRACTICE

• MENTAL HEALTH LAWS, CODES OF ETHICS, LICENSING; MOSTLY NON-EXISTENT IN TURKEY

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CFT & HOST COUNTRY AND INSTITUTION

• OZYEGIN UNIVERSITY: IN CEKMEKOY, PRIVATE, ONLY 9 YEARS OLD, CFT PROGRAM BRAND

NEW, STARTED LAST FALL WITH ONLY 6 MASTER’S STUDENTS; CFT FACULTY AND PROGRAM

HOUSED IN DEPT. OF PSYCHOLOGY – 4 FACULTY INCLUDING ME; ALL FEMALE; ALL OBTAINED

DOCTORATES IN CFT IN THE US

• CFT IN TURKEY: ONLY 7 CFT PHD LEVEL ACADEMICS/CLINICIANS (I WAS ONE OF THEM)

• CFT TRAINING AND EDUCATION PROGRAMS IN TURKEY: ONLY 2 PROGRAMS IN ALL OF

TURKEY, BOTH IN ISTANBUL, OZYEGIN ONE OF THEM

• NONE THAT ARE ACCREDITED: OZYEGIN CFT PROGRAM WORKING ON ACCREDITATION FROM

PROFESSIONAL ORGANIZATION, INTERNATIONAL ASSOCIATION FOR FAMILY THERAPY (IFTA)

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COURSES TAUGHT AT OZYEGIN

• FALL 2016: ONE UNDERGRADUATE ELECTIVE COURSE (HUMAN SEXUALITY; 40 STUDENTS) &

ONE MASTER’S CFT REQUIRED COURSE (FOUNDATIONAL THEORIES IN COUPLE & FAMILY

THERAPY; 6 STUDENTS)

• SPRING 2017: TWO REQUIRED CFT MASTER’S COURSES (CONTEMPORARY FAMILY THERAPY

THEORIES; 6 STUDENTS & PROFESSIONAL ETHICS; 7 STUDENTS)

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OTHER ACTIVITIES AT OZYEGIN

• CLINICAL SUPERVISION OF CFT STUDENTS: PROVIDING LIVE, BEHIND-THE-GLASS SUPERVISION OF STUDENTS

CLINICAL WORK (SPRING 2017 SEMESTER)

• CONSULTATION, COLLABORATION, AND CREATION OF CFT PROGRAM: ATTENDING CFT FACULTY/PROGRAM

MEETINGS REGULARLY; PROVIDING INPUT AND FEEDBACK ON CLINICAL ISSUES RELATED TO NEW TRAINING

CLINIC (PAPERWORK, DOCUMENTATION, FEE STRUCTURES, LEGAL DOCUMENTS, ETC.)

• PROVIDING “SUPERVISION MENTORING” FOR CFT FACULTY TOWARDS REQUIREMENTS FOR THEM TO OBTAIN

THEIR AAMFT APPROVED SUPERVISOR STATUS – AN IMPORTANT TRAINING AND SUPERVISION CREDENTIAL

• INFORMAL MENTORING AND ADVISING OF CFT GRADUATE STUDENTS

• INFORMAL MENTORING, ADVISING, AND CONSULTATION OF UNDERGRADUATES, ON GRADUATE APPLICATION

PROCESSES: WRITING LETTERS OF REFERENCE, MEETING ONE-ON-ONE TO REVIEW STATEMENTS OF INTENT,

ETC.

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CONTINUATION OF PROJECTS, RESEARCH, PRESENTATIONS, RELATED TO HOME INSTITUTION

• PRESENTED AT IFTA CONFERENCE IN MALAGA WITH CU DENVER COLLEAGUE ON ONGOING

RESEARCH PROJECT: CROSS-CULTURAL IMPLICATIONS & EMPIRICALLY-BASED CFT CLINICAL MODELS

• CO-EDITING WORK ON TWO BOOKS; COLLABORATION WITH CU DENVER COLLEAGUE: BOTH

BOOKS FOCUSING ON MULTICULTURAL ISSUES, ONE FOCUSING ON CLINICAL SUPERVISION AND

THE OTHER ON SYSTEMIC THERAPIES (2 OF MY OZYEGIN COLLEAGUES ARE CONTRIBUTING A

CHAPTER EACH TO THIS SECOND BOOK)

• PREPPING, REVISING, SUBMITTING, MANUSCRIPTS ALREADY IN THE PIPELINE

• CONTINUED INVOLVEMENT ON SCHOLARLY JOURNAL BOARDS AND REVIEWING MANUSCRIPTS

(JMFT, CONTEMPORARY FT, JCRT)

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FEEDBACK FROM HOST INSTITUTION: STUDENTS

• UNDERGRADUATES: APPRECIATIVE OF OPPORTUNITY TO TAKE CLASS LIKE HUMAN SEXUALITY,

APPRECIATED MY CULTURAL LENS (INDIAN, US, IMMIGRANT), FOUND MY “ALTERNATIVE”

ASSIGNMENTS TO BE CHALLENGING & GROWTH-INDUCING (E.G. JOURNALING), ASKED IF I

WOULD TEACH THE UNDERGRADUATE ETHICS COURSE IN THE SPRING, LIKED THAT I TAUGHT A

SERIOUS SUBJECT WITH SENSE OF HUMOR AND RESPECT/SENSITIVITY

• GRADUATES: APPRECIATED A DIFFERENT/OUTSIDER LENS ON BOTH ACADEMIC LEARNING &

CULTURAL EXPERIENCES, BRINGING FOCUS ON ETHICS, LAWS, LICENSING,

PROFESSIONALIZATION OF THE CFT FIELD AND PRACTICE, THE MENTORING AND MY

AVAILABILITY, CLINICAL SUPERVISION OPPORTUNITY, MY PERSPECTIVE ON EDUCATION,

CLINICAL TRAINING AND CULTURAL/POLITICAL EXPERIENCES IN TURKEY

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MY TREE!

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FEEDBACK FROM HOST INSTITUTION: CFT FACULTY, DEPT. COLLEAGUES

• AN OUTSIDER PERSPECTIVE

• MY YEARS OF CLINICAL, ACADEMIC EXPERIENCE AND EXPERTISE IN CFT

• CULTURAL EXPERIENCES & LENS: PERSONAL AND PROFESSIONAL

• MY EXPERIENCE OF LAWS, ETHICS, LICENSING, ACCREDITATION

• FLEXIBILITY IN TEACHING UNDERGRADUATE COURSE AS WELL AS MASTER’S COURSES

• ADDITIONAL SUPPORT TO CFT FACULTY FOR THEM TO CONTINUE THEIR PROFESSIONAL

DEVELOPMENT (APPROVED SUPERVISOR)

• MY INPUT, FEEDBACK, CONSULTATION ON THE “NUTS & BOLTS” OF ESTABLISHING THE NEW CFT

TRAINING CLINIC, ATTENDING PRACTICUM AND OTHER CLINICAL SUPERVISION OPPORTUNITIES

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WHAT I LEARNED, GAINED FROM EXPERIENCE

• CULTURAL KNOWLEDGE, CULTURAL RESPONSIVENESS – NUANCES OF TRAINING, TEACHING, CLINICAL WORK

IN DIFFERENT CULTURAL SETTING

• PRIVILEGE TO GET TO KNOW INTIMATELY, A DEVELOPING NEW PROGRAM, ITS FACULTY, STUDENTS, ETC. – A

VIBRANT, EXCITING ACADEMIC & UNIVERSITY ENVIRONMENT; FULL OF HOPE AND PROMISE

• BEGINNING TURKISH LANGUAGE SKILLS – VERY BASIC, BUT IT’S A START!

• IMMERSION IN & LEARNING ABOUT, TURKISH CULTURE, POLITICS, SOCIAL ISSUES

• OPPORTUNITY TO SHARE NOT ONLY MY US CULTURAL EXPERIENCES AND KNOWLEDGE BUT ALSO MY INDIAN

CULTURE/HERITAGE WITHIN THE CONTEXT OF BEING AN IMMIGRANT

• THREE WEEKS IN JUNE, DRIVING AROUND TURKEY: BLACK SEA AREA, CENTRAL ANATOLIAN REGIONS,

MEDITERRANEAN AND AEGEAN REGIONS; & MULTIPLE OTHER SHORT TRIPS IN TURKEY

• PERSONAL, PROFESSIONAL, CLINICAL COLLABORATIONS, RELATIONSHIPS, CONNECTIONS, MEMORIES, TRAVEL,

AND INVALUABLE EXPERIENCES THAT WILL LAST ME A LIFE-TIME!

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• “TRAVEL IS FATAL TO PREJUDICE, BIGOTRY, AND NARROW-MINDEDNESS, AND MANY OF OUR

PEOPLE NEED IT SORELY ON THESE ACCOUNTS. BROAD, WHOLESOME, CHARITABLE VIEWS OF

MEN AND THINGS CANNOT BE ACQUIRED BY VEGETATING IN ONE LITTLE CORNER OF THE

EARTH ALL ONE'S LIFETIME.” (MARK TWAIN, THE INNOCENTS ABROAD)

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