November 2016 PCC Newsletter

November, 2016

PCC Newsletter Neumann University

Laying Aside Swords Theme —

Offers Challenge to AAPC Atlantic Region General Lee did it at Appomattox Courthouse to Ulysses S. Grant. General Charles O’Hara did it twice in his lifetime: first to Washington at Yorktown and later to Bonaparte at Toulon, France. General Seishiro Itagaki of the Seventh Area Army did it to Mountbatten, supposedly on a school porch. What each of these men have in common is the giving up of his sword to the victor of their shared battle. Each and all “lay aside their swords” for the sake of peace, unity, healing and forgiveness.

On Friday, November 11, and Saturday, November 12, members of the Atlantic Region of AAPC, their guests, interested students and “emerging professionals” will come to Neumann University’s Community Hall, in the rear of the Mirenda Center, to hear about and reflect on a much more metaphoric meaning for “laying aside swords.” The plenary speaker who will address the participants on Saturday morning is Michael Lee Cook, Th.D., noted for his work in areas of family life and pastoral psychotherapy. A panel representing viewpoints coming from four members working with diverse populations will offer feedback following the plenary.

Other topics to be covered in breakout sessions related to the theme will come from counselng experts who work with sufferers of domestic abuse, intergenerational trauma, gender identification, eating disorders, and personal, social and political injurers. These break-out sessions will take place during two periods on Saturday.

While the call for volunteers is closed, attendance is not. Information on the conference, its agenda, registration and lodging can be found on page 8 of the newsletter and on the regional website at https://aapcatlantic.org/

Pastoral Clinical Mental Health Master’s Named At the beginning of the Fall semester, Mr. Steve Bell, executive director of Marketing & Communications, contacted S. Suzanne to ask: “What do you know about the award PCMHC just received as one of the 11 Top Value Counseling Master’s Degrees in PA. Sister had to confess she did not know of the PCMHC having been nominated nor so ranked. “In fact,” Mr. Bell continued, “Neumann’s program is ranked number 1.”

According to the website, the PCMHC program was so awarded because it “is easily one of the top counseling master’s degrees in the country, presenting a masterful blend of social psychology and spiritual doctrine to ambitious students at a competitive price point. This program benefits from accreditation not only from CACREP, but also the American Association of Pastoral Counselors (AAPC), which opens the doors to an enormous range in career opportunities in both secular and religious institutions.” Especially important to the faculty and staff, was TCS noting that two core strengths: “Neumann University has skillfully drawn on its spiritual roots and dedication to community service.”

Inside this issue: 2014 Grad Follows Spirit to 2 Positive Psychology Degree Dr. Time Hanna Sows Seeds of Justice and Honoring Diversity

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Ph.D. Students Awarded for Service

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Two New Ph.D. Students Share Selves, Goals

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Faculty Feats Reviewed

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Alpha Omega Nu Events

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AAPC Conference Outlined 8

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Linda Schiavone, PCC ‘14

Shares how Positive Psychology intersects with her spirit Linda Schiavone, who graduated from the Pastoral Counseling program with her Master’s degree in 2014 and was awarded the S. Madonna Marie Cunningham, osf award for Service has ventured into a new field of study. She reports on her new program and how it complements her work as a pastoral counselor.

Six years ago I began the Pastoral Counseling program at Neumann, and while unsure of how I would eventually use my degree, I was content to allow the future to unfold. I completed my practicum at Philadelphia’s Bethesda Project, a Philadelphia sheltersystem that provides housing and care to the city’s homeless population, and did my internship at Life Counseling Services, where the counseling population was varied and plentiful.

Attending to the proposed pillars of well-being – positive emotion, engagement, relationships, meaning, and accomplishment – is a way to achieve and sustain happiness,

Grateful to be offered a position there after graduation, it provided me a steady stream of clients to help me on my way toward the 3000 clinical hours for my Licensed Professional Counselor credential. From there I joined Daemion Counseling Center, providing affordable mental health care to the community, and work alongside my pastoral supervisor, Fran Cuneo, also a Neumann alum. I am still accumulating my hours - 2326 at my last count!

While counseling has proven to be far richer, more complex, and more fulfilling than I ever imagined, I continue to discern where I might be called, both professionally and personally. I have been interested in positive psychology ever since I can remember. Like fish that live in water, it is such a part of who I am that I hardly even notice my engagement in it. I have taken in much of the literature over the years, and last year read Flourish by Martin Seligman, “founder” of positive psychology, who brought the science to the forefront. When I finished Flourish, I intuitively and practically understood that attending to the proposed pillars of wellbeing – positive emotion, engagement, relationships, meaning, and accomplishment – is a way to achieve and sustain happiness, so it became a key to my therapeutic approach with clients.

I was so convinced that integrating positive psychology with pastoral counseling was the missing piece of my professional puzzle, that I applied to, was accepted into, and study at the University of Pennsylvania’s Master of Applied Positive Psychology (MAPP) program. I am happily entrenched in this unique one-year master’s program, founded by Seligman and now in its twelfth year, learning alongside 38 students from as far away as India, Brazil, Switzerland, Australia, Singapore, Thailand, and Canada, and 14 states across the US, not one of whom works in mental health! They are experienced professionals in education, business, coaching, meditation, journalism, medicine, entertainment, the travel industry, you name it. Each has a perspective that helps to broaden my understanding of people in this world.

The integration of pastoral clinical counseling with positive psychology is ripe with opportunity. Integrating the two resonates personally with me because living in abundance, with positive emotion, engaged, in relationship, with meaning and achievement is my own grateful response to a life lived according to my core values. These, in turn, are rooted in my faith. My pastoral approach in therapy is in perfect alignment with the tenets of positive psychology and I am excited about the range of possibilities of what it will look like in actual practice. For now, I work part-time at Daemion Counseling Center, and plan to complete my LPC requirements at the same time that I graduate from MAPP next year. I am grateful for the pastoral program at Neumann that brought me to this rich intersection in my life!

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From FL to MA to MD —

Dr. Tim Hanna brings dedication to social justice to Neumann Timothy S. Hanna, Ph.D. joined the faculty at Neumann University in August as an Assistant Professor of Counselor Education and Supervision as part of the department of Pastoral Clinical Mental Health Counseling. In addition to teaching in the Master’s program, Tim is primarily engaged in teaching, student support, and program development for the doctoral program in Pastoral Counseling. Dr. Hanna shares about his background that led him to the NU campus: Now that I am here some three months I can say that I am excited to have joined Neumann’s Pastoral Counseling department. I earned my PhD in Counselor Education and Supervision from Loyola University Maryland, and am eager to share that training and background with students interestThese [Franciscan ed in a similar paradigm of religious and spiritually-integrated mental values] resonate health care. My own journey into pastoral counseling began in Florida with my with undergraduate studies in microbiology, and subsequently psycholo- understanding and gy. Seeking to explore in greater detail the “spiritual” dimension of the human experience, I veninterest in tured into the field of theology, up in Cambridge, MA, earning a Master’s of Theological Studies promoting a more from Weston Jesuit School of Theology,. During those studies, I found myself continuously reequitable society flecting on the intersection of psychology and theology. I was grateful to learn eventually of the and greater respect field of pastoral counseling, which offers both an academic integration of psychology and theoloand dialogue gy, as well as a concrete, practical outlet of service in spiritually-integrated mental health care. across the diversity and margins of That led me to Maryland and Loyola. Over those eight years of study, I gained invaluable experience teaching and counseling at local community colleges. I was especially fond of the dihuman experiences. versity of individuals, cultures, and life experiences that I encountered in those settings, and the challenges and opportunities they afforded. Over the course of those experiences, I was able to earn my professional clinical license (LCPC), and continue in my desire to focus on offering counseling to more generalized populations in community counseling settings. In particular, I find such a service to be an important vehicle for reducing the stigma against mental health, as I’m able to meet everyday people, dealing with everyday issues, validate and work constructively on the hidden layers of psycho-spiritual experiences and wellbeing. This further ties in theologically as ultimately promoting a fuller human flourishing.

The second piece of that human flourishing for me is the more systemic level of our collective human well-being. I have been challenged and ultimately inspired through my graduate studies by the topic of social justice. It ended up being a central theme of my dissertation and I have also engaged in various workshops and colloquia on the topics of social justice and diversity. I find my interest in those topics to mesh well not only with our profession as pastoral counselors, Sharing their common concerns for sobut also with the Franciscan values of Neumann University. Service, respect and dignity, stewardship for creation, celebration of the uniqueness of each individual – cial justice and issues of diversity, Dr. Tim Hanna welcomes Homecoming all of these resonate with my understanding and interest in promoting a more equi- speaker, Dr. Emmaanuel Lartey to camtable society and greater respect and dialogue across the diversity and margins of pus for Homecoming. human experiences. That remains one of my primary research interests, in addition to exploring how personality interacts with various ideological orientations, and the more general focus on religious and spiritual integration in mental health care.

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Honoring their Service —

Ph.D. students recognized by area organizations Delaware Tech Honors Ronaldo Tello during Hispanic Heritage Month Celebration Delaware Technical Community College’s Stanton and George Campuses honored Ronaldo Tello for his commitment to the Hispanic community and culture in Northern Delaware at its Seventh Annual Hispanic Heritage Month Honoree Celebration.

With this award Neumann is honored three times since the recipient, Mr. Ronaldo Tello completed all his collegiate studies at the university: B.A. in Fall, 07; M.S. in PCC in Fall, 09 and is moving to finish his Ph.D. PC in FA/18. A resident of New Castle County Ronaldo is well known throughout the tristate area for his involvement in the Hispanic community, including his extensive work with youth. He serves as a behavioral health counselor for the State of Delaware and directs Delaware Hispano Magazine which he launched in 2012. Delaware Hispano was created to connect readers with community resources. It is published monthly and is the most-read Latino publication with a print and online circulation of 32,000.

At the Delaware Tech Hispanic Heritage ceremony, Ronaldo Tello stands in the middle, the fifth from either side.

Ronaldo actively represents Latinos in the Delaware community. From October 2014 through June 2015, he served on the Delaware Center for Health Innovation: Charter for Patient and Consumer Advisory Committee. He is a member of the Delaware Hispanic Commission's Health and Social Services subcommittee and the Delaware Fatherhood/Family Coalition among other volunteerism. Previously, Mr. Tello received the 2014 Hispanic Choice Award for individuals who influence the Hispanic community in the Philadelphia, New Jersey and Delaware region, and the 2014 Delaware Press Association Award.

Linda DiMatteo among Nominees for Gloucester County, New Jersey, Women of Achievement Award The Women of Achievement of 2016 Award was sponsored by the Gloucester County Commission for Women, the American Association of University Women and the Gloucester County Board of Chosen Freeholders. Twelve nominees were chosen and the women were honored for their professional and humanitarian contributions to the community. Among these was Linda DiMatteo, PCC Spring, 08 and Ph.D. in PC to come in Spring 18.

Linda was cited for her contribution to the counseling profession in the field of trauma related to addiction, corrections, community mental health and private practice in Gloucester County. Linda, a certified EMDR Therapist, is working on her certification in Brainspotting. Linda’s counseling perspective focuses on mind, body, spirit healing and integration through connection to one’s bio/psycho/social/ spiritual being. Linda’s work focuses on the emergence of spirituality through holistic practices. Additionally, Linda has 35 years of business experience in the aerospace industry.

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Two of newest members of Ph.D. cohort

Introduce themselves, share goals The Ph.D. program in Pastoral Counseling welcomed its fourth cohort in August with the start of the Fall semester. Two members took time to give some background on themselves and why they look to the doctoral degree.

Reverend Curtis D. King, MDiv., MS, NCC, LGPC, wears two related but different hats at least for the present. Rev. King currently resides in Columbia, Maryland with his spouse Andrea.

He notes that “both of us have been clergy for over 20 years, and now, between the two of us, serve four congregations in the Baltimore Washington Conference of the United Methodist Church.

Rev. King is presently employed at Urban Behavioral Associates in Baltimore City, a comprehensive community mental health center. He adds that, beginning November 1, I will become a part-time clinician, so that I can spend more time in my academic pursuit. Looking ahead, I desire to teach master’s level pastoral counseling students. As I learn to become proficient in doing research, I expect to add my voice to the ongoing pastoral counseling dialogue. Lastly, I will grow my private practice and assist others seeking to become private practitioners.”

Hi! My name is Jonna Rachele Garvin. I am an Italian girl and a West Virginia native raised by a nurse and a physician with strong faith, a desire to help others, and deep gratitude. I am also a cousin, niece, granddaughter, friend, daughter, and sister.

After receiving a B.S. in physiology, I chose to pursue a career in chaplaincy. I attended Baptist Theological Seminary at Richmond, earning a M.Div. I completed my clinical training and earned a M.S. in Patient Counseling from Virginia Commonwealth University. An ordained Baptist minister, I currently serve as the manager of chaplaincy services with Novant Health UVA Health System in Northern Virginia.

My vision is to connect those in need in my home state with the resources and meaning which can be found through the care and relationship of pastoral counseling. I love to volunteer, to paint, to hike the trails in Northern Virginia with my dog, spend lazy days with my “furbabies” at home, and watch the Washington Nationals play baseball. If you would like to know more about my work and me, please visit my website at www.refuahplace.wordpress.com or connect with me via email at jo_garvin@knights.neumann.edu.

On her site Jonna reflects: In working with those who are struggling with illness, I have often used the image of a shattered vase, pieced back together. The tiny cracks and gaps left by the breaking are where the light can get in, and out, a way that others can find light by which to better understand their own story. This is the nature of soul care; we are called not to repair ourselves to perfection, but to allow our own stories to shine more brightly to empower ourselves and others.

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Dr. Timothy Hanna is currently working on turning his dissertation on religion and spirituality in social justice pedagogies into various professional contributions. On this front, he has been accepted to present on that topic at the Maryland Counseling Association conference on “Multidimensional Approaches to Social Justice," being hosted in Baltimore this November. He is also co-presenting two presentations at the locally hosted AAPC conference, one entitled “What is acceptance and forgiveness” on Friday evening and a workshop on “The Transition Person” on Saturday. On a publishing note, Dr. Hanna was a contributor to a collection of essays on Commitment to Justice in Jesuit Higher Education, third edition, published October, 2016 by Loyola Press.

The last several months have been full of articles and Members of the Pastoral Clinical Mental Health faculty join Dr. reviews for Suzanne Mayer, ihm. Ph.D. as she, reappointed to Mirenda (center) and Dr. Emmanuel (on Dr. Mirenda’s left) at the opening of the annual Homecoming Lecture held October the editorial board for the Journal of Counselor Leadership and 15 in the Schmidt Room of the Living and Learning Center 1.

Advocacy, the publication of Chi Sigma Iota, national honor society for graduate counseling educators and students, edited mittee for the Women in the Franciscan Intellectual Tradiand reviewed four submissions. She also read and edited the draft of a new book by Kathryn Hermes, DSP, on mid-life spirit- tion {WIFIT}, a network of scholars who study early Franciscan Women. She also facilitated WIFIT’s annual business uality for the Pauline Press.

As a member of the AFCU Strategic Initiative Two Task meeting during the Congress and participated in a collaborative meeting with representatives of the Franciscan Institute Force, S. Suzanne shared in producing an online comprehensive program for mission integration among Franciscan colleg- to plan Franciscan topics for next year’s Medieval Congress.

July found Sr. Diane at the Franciscan Institute at St. es and universities entitled Faculty Development and the FranBonaventure University, as a member of the organizing comciscan Intellectual Tradition available now for those wanting a basic overview of Franciscan heritage. Finally, with proof that mittee for the Franciscan Institute’s first international conwhat a person writes lives on, she received word from Brother ference on Franciscan Women: Medieval and Beyond, held Edward O’Donnell, ocd, that an article “Theo-Poetics, Merton from July 12-15, 2016. She also presented a joint paper with Dr. Beth Toler, titled “Medieval and contemporary models of and Mary: The Center Holds,” previously published in hard development in dialogue with Angela of Foligno’s Liber.” In copy has been selected for the new online Spiritual Life, between these two events, she spent three weeks in June (2016): 2(2), 48-62. visiting her eldest brother in Phuket, Thailand, including exAs a participant at the Lily-funded Wabash Workshop ploring the beautiful temples and spirituality of Thai Budfor Early Theological faculty, 2016-17, Dr. Sophia Park attended dhism. the first of three workshops last June at Crawfordsville, IN at Beth Toler had a busy summer! Along with her cowhich she also presented “Using Art in Teaching Theological presentation, Beth offered workshops at the Association AFConcepts in Counseling.”

CU Conference in Indianapolis, and the Institute for S Diane Tomkinson’s, osf, summer activities included Francsican Studies at Bonaventure University in New York.

She also successfully completed her certificate in Advanced attending the International Medieval Congress at Western CLinical Supervision at Smith College School of Social Work.

Michigan University in Kalamazoo, MI, May 12-15, where she Finally, Beth had an article published in the recent edition of presided at a session titled “Franciscan Women as TheologiSacred Spaces, the on-line journal of the AAPC. ans” that she organized as a member of the Executive Com-

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Alpha Omega Nu NEW Officers

Prepare for Fall Activities with CSI Grant Application Do not ask anyone on Alpha Omega Nu (AONu), the graduate student honor society, What is new?, unless you have about an hour to listen. The three new executive officers, who were installed on the evening of the Community Learning Experience, November 3, have been hard at work since August planning activities events, doing action plans and making arrangements for the Fall and Spring semesters. These three include President Stephanie Fortunato, President-elect Elizabeth Barr, and Secretary-Treasurer Michelle Engle.

One of the first items on their list, after discerning the need for some Stephanie Fortunato educational experiences for members, was to investigate Chi Sigma Iota’s opportunities for funding such events. Discovering Regional grants that are applicable to “support activities in chapters that promote and recognize excellence in the areas of leadership, professional identity, advocacy, scholarship, and enhanced member involvement through active counselor community engagement.” Since as part of the survey conducted along with elections, AONu members indicated they wanted some information and resources for “life after PCMHC,” the new officers decided to apply.

The project they will be organizing for dates in the spring include offerings in professional outlook, preparation for job searches, opportunities to make connections or establish their own practices along with licensing and credentialing. The new Executive Committee also is planning a spring Elizabeth Barr outreach to continue the heritage of giving service in the community. They will be delighted to hear about ideas for what and for whom in the near future.

Finally, two other items for what is new are the new Chapter Faculty Advisor (CFA) and, looking ahead to the new year, the invitation to new members. On the first, Dr. Tim Hanna, who teaches in both the master’s and doctoral programs, has agreed to serve as the new CFA. Dr. Hanna has the added advantage of knowing both the M.S. and Ph.D. students who are members of AONu. In terms of the second new, letters of invitation will appear in mail folders sometime after the start of the new year. If interested, go to Chi Sigma Iota’s website to see what are the requirements and benefits of belonging. http://www.csi-net.org/?page=Membership Michelle Engle

Neumann University’s Spiritual Direction and Formation Certificate Program has entered into a “teach-out” phase leading to the suspension of accepting new students into the program for at least one year. Sr. Diane Tomkinson, OSF, current coordinator of the program, has met with current students, faculty members and spiritual direction supervisors over the past few months to share this news. Although a strong group of enrolled students is moving toward completion of the SFD certificates in SP/S 2017 and SP/S 2018, the viability of the program requires an incoming cohort of at least eight new students each year. Despite intensified marketing and recruitment efforts over the past year, SFD has seen a a continued reduction in incoming students, leading to the decision to suspend the program for new admissions until an incoming cohort of at least eight students can be formed.

Neumann’s SFD program has a long history and strong reputation of “providing innovative, transformational education in the Catholic Franciscan tradition.” The decision to suspend the SFD program reflects Neumann’s commitment to maintaining the quality of the program for current students and others, hopefully into the future. Six students (plus one auditor) are currently enrolled in the two-semester practicum course toward completion of their certificates in either SP or S, 2017.

The practicum will be offered again in FA 2017-SP 2018 as the rest of current students complete their studies toward receiving their certificates in spring or summer 2018.

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All are encouraged to attend this wonderful event where several Neumann faculty and students will be leading and presenting workshops, including Michelle Engle, Tim Hannah, Suzanne Mayer, ihm, John Schaal, and Beth Toler. Other student volunteers will be assisting at the workshop. For more information, or to register, please visit the Atlantic Region's website at http://aapcatlantic.org

Rest in Peace We remember Lisa Anne Geller Keynote speaker: Rev. Dr. Michael Lee Cook (LMFT)

On Friday, November 11 and Saturday, November 12, Neumann University has the pleasure of hosting the annual AAPC Atlantic Region Fall conference. The theme of the conference is Laying Aside our Swords: Healing through Acceptance and Forgiveness.

This theme will be creatively engaged from a variety of activities, lectures, and workshops. The keynote speaker, Michael Lee Cook (LMFT) is a lecturer in Pastoral Care and Counseling at Columbia Theological Seminary and in private practice at Micah Counseling Services where he offers spiritually-integrated psychotherapy and clinical supervision.

Rev. Dr. Cook’s research and teaching interests include adoption, family studies, leadership and emotional intelligence, interpersonal psychology, pastoral theology, and social constructionism. His work is informed by extensive education, training, and practice in clinical pastoral education (CPE), pastoral psychotherapy, and theology. He is the author of Black Fatherhood, Adoption, and Theology: A Contextual Analysis and Response (2015) and has written peerreviewed journal articles in the areas of family life and pastoral psychotherapy.

Schaad, PCC 13, who died suddenly on September 1, 2016. Lisa’s funeral Mass was held in Christ Our Light Roman Catholic Church in Cherry Hill, NJ. We pray in a special way for Lisa’s husband Bob and her two daughters, Katie and Christine.

Pastoral Care and Counseling Newsletter Neumann University One Neumann Drive Aston, PA 19014-1298 November, 2016 The Pastoral Care and Counseling Newsletter is a department publication issued several times during the academic year. Written by and for the members of the Pastoral Care and Counseling Department, it contains articles, reviews, interviews and forms of reflective material of interest to these members submitted in advance to the editor of the publication.

Editor: Suzanne Mayer, ihm, Ph.D. Contributors:

Faculty and Staff of PCMHD