(Pictured above from left to right PsyD alumni Vince Pignatiello, Nikky Hill, Sarah Kopency, Kate Patterson, Alex Munro, and Susan Rogers.)
Numerous Antioch University faculty, students, and alumni from the New England campus helped organize and participated in a grassroots, one-day conference about psychology training. The conference, which was called “Trends in the Training Field: Adapting for Action,” was held on June 21 and was sponsored by the Community Health Center in partnership with the PsyD in Clinical Psychology program on Antioch’s New England campus, the University of Hartford, and Springfield College.
The conference was co-chaired by Kate Patterson, a 2013 alum of the Antioch PsyD, and by Kelly Weber, from the University of Hartford. The two wrote in their welcome letter to the conference program, “We are so pleased to have a wide range of experiences within one room. It is the cornerstone of our work to continue to be open to learning, to be authentic, curious, and to teach.” The one-day conference aimed to dissect and deepen the understanding of the experiences and trends that have shaped the field of behavioral health over the past five years, seeking to understand them more deeply and explore ways to improve. It raised the key question: how do you innovate based on what you already know? This question was particularly tackled by two keynote speakers: Catherine Grus, PhD, the head of the Education Directorate at the American Psychological Association, and the well-known Massachusetts psychologist and writer Alan Bodnar, PhD.
Lorraine Mangione, PhD, Professor and Director of Practica, said the strong Antioch presence at the conference wasn’t a coincidence. “Several of our graduates are employed at the Community Health Center, and they, along with others, decided to organize a conference focused on psychology training,” she explains. Mangione herself was on the Conference Committee and was involved with the whole planning of the conference, especially the creation of the program. She reports that she had an inspiring time at the event. As she says, “The day was filled with great ideas and conversations about the present and future of psychology.”
Recent years have brought notably beneficial changes to the field of behavioral health, including the expansion of telehealth, the rise of hybrid work environments that promote better work-life balance, and increased attention to the importance of mental health. However, these positive changes have also brought challenges, particularly the growing demand for behavioral health providers, due both to the swelling number of people seeking care and to the increased severity of cases. The intersection of these opportunities and challenges is ever-evolving, and professionals in the field are constantly evolving to address it. This dynamic formed the core focus of the conference.
Many other Antioch faculty, students, and alumni planned, presented, and attended the conference, including:
- Kathi Borden, PhD, Professor of Clinical Psychology, presented “Creating Higher-order Change: Preparing Psychologists for Advocacy, Leadership, and Management Careers” with alum Carmela DeCandia, PsyD ’99, and Jessica Mayo, PhD.
- Mangione presented “Bruce Springsteen to Mary Oliver: Art, Therapy, Training” with Doctoral Candidate Leo Parini.
- Vincent Pingatiello, PsyD, Chair of New England’s Clinical Psychology program, presented “Shame, Supervision, and the Shadow of COVID-19: Considerations for the Supervisory Relationship” with his Antioch colleague Alicia MacDougall and two of their PsyD students, Dur-e-Smeen Berki and Maranda Bowers.
- Alex Munro, another PsyD alum who currently works at CHC, was a member of the Conference Committee.
- Alums Susan Rogers, PsyD ’12, Nikki Hill, PsyD ‘11, and Sarah Kopency, PsyD ‘18, were in attendance.
The conference underscored Antioch University’s strong ties with local health organizations and the continued dedication of its alumni to promoting professional development and enhancing psychology training in practical environments. As Mangione explains, “Antioch faculty, supervisors, graduates, and students all took part, and they delivered an exceptional performance.”
