Annual Report 2008 by The Chicago School of Professional Psychology

t ac k l i n g t h e n e e d 2007â&#x20AC;&#x201C;2008 annual report

There has never been a more urgent need for competent, determined psychology professionals prepared to serve our communities and our world. The Chicago School is not merely responding to that need. We are tackling it head on.

In 2006, Chicago lost more children to acts of school violence than all of Illinois lost to the Iraq War. With only one psychologist for every three schools, the Chicago Public Schools have found themselves ill-equipped to deal with the aftermath.

Actively disengaged employeesâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;the least motivated and the least productiveâ&#x20AC;&#x201D;

cost the American economy up to $350 billion per year in lost productivity.

Latinos account for the fastest

growing, but most underserved, segment of the U.S. population. In Chicago, one in four residents is Latino, and in Los Angeles, it is nearly one in two. Yet, there are only 20 Latino mental health professionals for every 100,000 Latino residents in the United States.

Worldwide, more than 450 million people suffer

from some form of mental disorder, often the result of trauma, genocide, war, or natural disaster. In many of the hardest-hit countries, less than 10 percent of those with mental health needs have access to services that can help them.

A Vision, A Mission, A Future In preparation for the Annual Report, Board Chair Ricardo “Richard” Grunsten and President Michael Horowitz reflected on the past year and on their shared vision for becoming the premier school of professional psychology in the world.

Question: Take us through the decision to form The Chairman and President’s Task Force on Mission and Scope, and how you worked collaboratively to develop a vision for the future. G: The roots are based on our belief that psychology is not just for psychologists; psychology applies to every aspect of life. It seemed logical that if we believe in our mission and we have a successful formula, it made sense to broaden our message and get more students and more institutions connected to us. H: We talk frequently about meeting the full potential of psychology—and the interesting thing is, plans as bold as what we are doing can’t come out of conversations that Richard and I have. We were pleased that the task force came back with broader and bigger aspirations than we had at the moment.

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G: Originally we talked about how do we expand The Chicago School presence? Do we look at possibilities outside the Chicago area, and do we look at education outside of psychology? The initial discussions were about expanding what we had; I think the task force and the board came back with a license to consider other options.

The Chicago School Model is about

breaking down the artificial limits of psychology. H: Their specific embrace of major locations on the coasts with an aggressive timeline and other innovative models of higher education really let us know that they were ready for much

more. Richard said ‘since we are The Chicago School, why not think of cities like Shanghai, Paris, New York, London?,’ which was kind of an epiphany at the time: let’s think really big: The Chicago School way. G: The multinational perspective came about through my business. I thought, why shouldn’t this school be comfortable working internationally? If you are going to think internationally, it makes thinking nationally, East Coast/West Coast, less daunting. Hey, if we’re going to be in China, what’s the big deal being in Los Angeles? It basically changed the overall perspective on how we think about The Chicago School. Question: Was there ever any discussion of changing the name of the school? H: Yes, we talked about it, but there is growing confidence that The Chicago School is a powerful name. We had a former vice chair of the board who commented that it would be good if we could get to a point where The Chicago School means an approach to psychology, not just the physical location. We are now seeing that happening. In all of our programs, The Chicago School Model is about breaking down the artificial limits of psychology. So even in Business Psychology, psychologists were perceived as human resource people, and Richard, you said ‘shouldn’t they be thinking about consumers and how to grow a business?’ G: I think it makes a great deal of sense to look at psychology as a much broader discipline than traditional therapy. And it can range from issues that people have in school, to businesses with personnel issues to organizations trying to communicate with a community.

What would you say to someone who says there are already too many psychologists in the field? H: I tell them they have it backwards. I think there are too few psychologists because we are living in a time where government and social service agencies and other organized entities that helped people in the past are really not meeting the needs that are out there. Psychology has a way to build community, strengthen businesses, and strengthen relationships.

We’re meeting more needs and solving

more kinds of problems in more parts of the world. G: Those people may not have a clear view of how we define psychology. H: Change is a constant, so our comfort in rolling with change has made the difference. Whatever we are doing today will have to be modified for one year, three years, five years, but I think a contribution we’ve brought is our comfort with the environment. It changes and we go with it. Question: Do you believe The Chicago School is impacting the entire field of psychology? G: Well, we’ve had presidents from other schools come here and visit, basically asking ‘how do we do what you’re doing?’ which is very flattering.

H: Our CFO gets a little nervous because he’s from traditional business and he says ‘stop giving away the secrets’ because in higher education there’s more tradition of sharing. G: Everybody wants our secret sauce. H: We are moving the needle, and I go back to the question about people saying there are too many psychologists. Yes, we’re increasing the supply of psychologists…but not the same type of psychologists those people are thinking of. We’re meeting more needs and solving more kinds of problems in more parts of the world. G: Often, views of the future tend to be wrong. If you look at old magazines that showed you what cars of the future would look like, they got it completely wrong. If you look at visions of what this century would be like, they’d have all these robots walking around…there was no vision of the personal computer. So when people say ‘if present trends continue, this can happen,’ well, you know what—present trends never continue. There are always significant changes and we have to be alert and open to those changes. We think we are pretty good at that. H: When we updated the Mission Statement in 2000-2001, Richard was insistent that one word be a part of it: innovation. While a lot of people talk about it, I think it’s been a rallying

Let’s think really big:

The Chicago School way.

cry here—to always rethink what we are doing. It has given us confidence to be different. G: The great successes have come from people innovating. Rembrandt started off by making things a little more out of focus than the other artists…he did OK! The Wright Brothers challenged the prevailing wisdom that it was impossible for a heavier-than-air machine to fly. See, you have to look at things in a different way to do things that are exceptional. There’s risk in that, no question. But I like the risk-reward equation, and we’ve done OK with that.

To listen to a podcast of the complete conversation between President Horowitz and Mr. Grunsten, go to www.thechicagoschool.edu/annualreport.

Emerging Needs. Cutting-Edge Treatments. In a world beset by change, psychology cannot stand still. Its enduring relevance lies in the ever-expanding creativity of its practitioners, in new and continually evolving applications of their profession. At the vanguard of this evolution is The Chicago School. With values grounded in innovation and service, our collective lens is trained on the emerging needs of society, and on the development of

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solutions to the psychological challenges of the 21st century.

6.03.07—Students and faculty participate in 6th annual Naomi Ruth Cohen Conference

6.19.07—Clinical Psychology hosts first Dissertation Day

6.21.07—School Psychology program gains ISBE accreditation

6.23.07—Students travel to behavior therapy conference in Germany

7.19.07—Fudan University students visit for month–long exchange

7.20.07—Center for Academic Excellence introduces new programs

Addressing the L atino Need

Tackling Autism

Reuniting At-Risk Families

A newly launched Center for Latino Mental Health—the first of its kind in the Midwest—helped jump-start the profession’s response to the unique mental health needs of our nation’s fastest–growing ethnic group. Degree and certificate programs, research, and community service projects focus on the development of culturally competent psychology services and the preparation of a new generation of professionals equipped to provide leadership in this increasingly vital area of expertise.

With a repertoire of proven skills that can virtually eliminate the diagnosis of autism in young children, Applied Behavior Analysis (ABA) students use their internship placements to radically alter the futures of their small clients. ABA techniques, which represent the only empirically validated treatment for autism, are increasingly in demand as diagnoses of this disorder continue their alarming ascent (in the 12 years leading up to 2006, they multiplied almost ten-fold). The development of a new doctoral program—a Psy.D. in ABA—offers ongoing evidence of The Chicago School’s tireless commitment to addressing this challenge.

Using a bug-in-the-ear system to coach struggling parents through difficult disciplinary interactions, Forensic Psychology students are learning the difference a skilled intervention can make. Parent-Child Interaction Therapy, a proven strategy for reducing the recurrence of abusive behavior, has secured the respect of Illinois DCFS workers, who are working with The Chicago School to deliver pioneering therapeutic services designed to reunite families and reduce the need for foster-care placements.

solutions in the making

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Crisis is reality in today’s world. At The Chicago School, we never stop identifying new opportunities for creative response that can change the shape of tomorrow, both locally and around the globe.

At a time when school violence has redefined the K-12 experience, we are in discussions with the Chicago Public Schools about the role our institution can play in addressing the dire shortage of psychologists in our schools. As our veterans return from tours in Iraq and Afghanistan, we are exploring opportunities to develop and deliver treatments that address the challenges of post-traumatic stress disorder and traumatic brain injury. As Rwanda continues to struggle with the effects of genocide, HIV/AIDS, and gender-based violence, we are in conversations with the country’s leaders about developing a large-scale counselor training program for a culture that doesn’t have a word in its language for “psychology.”

Broader Reach. More Agents of Change. We take our responsibility—and our capacity to bring about change—seriously. As the largest nonprofit school of psychology in the world, The Chicago School is poised to dramatically extend its reach, to build on its strengths and successes, and to assume a leadership role in the development of the 21st century psychology workforce. In 2008, we awarded degrees to a record 350 new psychology professionals; as we broaden our vision to include new programs, new campuses, and new learning formats, that number will climb T CS AN N U AL R E PO RT 2007– 08, PAGE 6

exponentially. The world waits.

08.17.07—APA convention reception offers alumni a chance to reconnect

8.30.07—Mountains Beyond Mountains selected as Book of the Year

9.01.07—New post-doc program launched as TCS welcomes 590 new students

9.10.07—1st Annual Job and Volunteer Fair draws 260

10.07.07—Cambridge Center Conference draws nation’s top ABA scholars to The Chicago School

10.11.07—Sponsored by the U.S. State Department, Iraqi youth workers visit Chicago School

A West Coast Presence

New Populations, New Opportunities

Going Global

After 30 years of addressing the need for more psychologists in the Midwest, The Chicago School took its unique approach to psychology education and moved west. Our new Los Angeles campus—the first outside the Chicago area—opened its doors April 1. Intentionally located in the most diverse city in the most diverse state, the campus seeks to continue the focus on community service and meeting the needs of the underserved that have become hallmarks of our educational model.

Class schedules and room assignments gave way to anytime, anywhere learning when the Online Campus opened its virtual doors March 1. Targeted at a new breed of professionals—those who recognize the value of incorporating psychology into their existing work rather than practicing psychology directly—the new course lineup accommodates the needs of mid-career professionals who don’t want to put their day jobs on hold to pursue career advancement.

The world’s most populous nation has become home to The Chicago School’s first international presence. Collaboration with Fudan University, consistently ranked as one of Asia’s leading universities, has led to opportunities for student and faculty exchanges as well as the potential for joint degree and certificate programs. In March, we opened an office in Shanghai to coordinate our ongoing and expanding international efforts with China.

new programs

Online and on-ground, we are expanding into new areas of psychology specialization:

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Career Counseling Child and Adolescent Psychology Gerontology International Psychology Media and Consumer Psychology Organizational Leadership Sport and Exercise Psychology

Community Service. Global Outreach. For The Chicago School, the goal of preparing tomorrow’s professionals has never been enough. Our desire to make an impact now has always been prominent in the pursuit of our mission, and has spawned the model of community engagement that defines our educational philosophy. We prepare students for psychology careers by putting them to work—in our community and beyond. This year, our idea of community service underwent further metamorphosis as we made the decision to reach beyond our own borders to address the need for

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psychology on distant continents. Our efforts have become global; impact will not be far behind.

Serving the Chicago Area in Hundreds of Ways 11.14.07—President Horowitz makes return visit to China to continue conversation about cross-cultural academic opportunities

12.09.07—10 Chicago School students visit Bethlehem, Jerusalem and Jericho

12.21.07—Clinical Counseling program adds six new concentrations

12.21.07—ABA announces new Psy.D degree

1.11.08—Alumni Council elects Scottie Girouard (M.A. ’03) as chair

1.25.08—Chicago School partners with CARE to host international photographer Phil Borges’ exhibit, “Women Empowered”

10.16.07—Fudan Professor lectures on Chinese culture in Chicago

10.16.07—Agreement with Germany’s IVS signed to pave the way for articulation

10.24.07—ABA hosts conference focusing on disabilities as a diversity issue

10.26.07—Trustees approve Chairman and President’s Task Force Report

10.28.07—Students create Unity Quilt with Lawrence Hall Youth Center

11.12.07—Strategic Plan updated: Becoming the Premier School of Professional Psychology in the World

Learning by Doing

Organizations throughout Chicagoland benefit from the time, effort, and professional skills contributed by Chicago School students and faculty. Last year, these partners provided more than 400 placement opportunities for students fulfilling community service, community-based research, practicum, internship, and service-learning commitments.

Embracing Those Who Share Our Commitment

2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 500,000

$10,000,000

400,000

$8,000,000

300,000

200,000

100,000

$11,104,209 Dollar Equivalent

557,360 Service Hours

A plaque acknowledging the Utigard-Transwestern gift will be unveiled at a ribbon-cutting ceremony for the new facility in fall 2008.

$12,000,000

$8,856,600 Dollar Equivalent

This year, Utigard and Transwestern, the commercial services firm for which he serves as executive vice president, took their relationship with The Chicago School to the next level by making a major gift to support a portion of the newly acquired space in

With Transwestern’s help, the school recently acquired new space on the fourth floor of the neighboring Mart, as well as adjacent “just-in-time real estate” that will accommodate the continued growth of academic programs and student enrollment.

S e rv i c e H ours P rov i de d (dollar equivalents to the right) 600,000

446,045 Service Hours

“I remember being at Dearborn Station when the campus was confined to a few rooms,” he says, referring to the Polk Street address that the school occupied before moving to its current Wells Street location in 2004. “But Michael Horowitz had a dream. To go from then to what the school is today…it’s hard to realize that it’s actually the same institution.”

“Over the years, we have invested a lot of time and energy in The Chicago School,” Utigard says. “During that time, I have developed a very special affinity to the school; it was time to invest some money too.”

Our service efforts were recognized this year when The Chicago School became the first school of professional psychology to be named to the President’s Honor Roll for Higher Education Community Service. Sponsored by the Corporation for National and Community Service (CNCS), the honor roll represents the highest federal recognition a school can achieve for its commitment to service learning and civic engagement.

$7,256,000 Dollar Equivalent

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A commercial real estate executive, Utigard has led the seemingly non-stop quest for new classroom and office space as the school has continually outgrown facilities almost as fast as it has completed renovating them.

Last year, Chicago School students and faculty contributed more than 500,000 hours of pro bono or low-cost services at an estimated value of more than $11 million.

362,800 Service Hours

Phil Utigard has witnessed first hand the transformative growth that has characterized The Chicago School during President Horowitz’s tenure.

the Merchandise Mart. The Mr. and Mrs. Philip R. Utigard and Transwestern Treatment and Observation Room will be the centerpiece of the school’s Forensic Center, which was launched in 2007 as the practice arm of the Forensic Psychology program.

hours

Phil Utigard: Making Space for Growth

President ’s Honor Roll

$6,000,000

$4,000,000

$2,000,000

$0 2005–06

2006–07

2007–08

Note: Service hours and dollar equivalents are summaries of data from the offices of Community Partnerships, Clinical Services, Placement & Training, and all academic departments.