Hello! I am the current Chair of the ISSTD’s Professional Training Program (PTP), with Jill Hosey as the Chair-Elect and Peter Maves as the Past-Chair. With us, are Su Baker and Joan Turkus, as the Curriculum Developers.
The PTP has a special place in my heart, because it was my entry port into ISSTD. I was researching how to find support to work with my first client that had dissociative identity disorder, and I found ISSTD, and I immediately enrolled in the Level I course. It’s fair to say that I never stopped!
The PTP is central to ISSTD’s vision and mission of education and support, and much of the internal administrative support of the society is to keep the PTP running. The PTP is constantly expanding, and between hiring new faculty, supporting said faculty, revising the curriculum and addressing both the big picture and the details, it’s a busy hive!
Most recently, the uber talented Jill Hosey spearheaded an amazing committee to recreate a “Child and Adolescent” course, which will be one of several Level III options. The committee worked tirelessly and no detail was left out. I salute and thank you all; Patti van Eys, Alexis Arbuthnott, Eva Young, Billie Jo Bennett, and Chris Rench. I am in awe of you all!
The Advanced Level courses are being expanded and divided; there will be several topics offered, with fewer classes than a full course, yet a deeper dive than before. This way, you can each choose the topics of your interest, and skip those that are not relevant to your practice.
We have a brimming agenda for 2025, with more courses being offered, opportunities to bring in new faculty, and more ways to guide and support faculty in their roles. So, if you are skilled in a specific content area, consider coming on board to teach it! If you haven’t taken the PTP courses yet, I encourage you to start; it’s a journey you will find enriching and supportive.
Fun fact: New rules coming up about attendance meaning cameras on the entire time so get your webcams ready!
As always, I’m open to hearing from you, any feedback, questions or otherwise: faigeflakserlcsw@gmail.com