Help a School Counselor Grow
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My name is Tay MacIntyre, I am a School Counselor in Albuquerque, New Mexico and I am raising funds for professional development to enroll in the evidenced-based, year-long Internal Family Systems Level 1 Training program. I am honored to have been accepted into this training group -only 32 spots-it's very competitive. Could you help spread the word and share this page with your networks?
~THANK YOU for considering my request for support~
What is IFS and why am I interested in training with this therapy model?
Here's a video on IFS from the developer, to help explain it -11 minutes but very insightful
Super clear and easy to understand explanation on the IFS model (9 min video)
I am excited to enter this training program in the therapy model Internal Family Systems, (known as IFS) because I want to deepen Self-love & energy, increase confidence in my work as a mental health counselor and gain new skills ~so I can both continue my work in high schools and launch a private practice on the side. I want to sharpen my tools and enhance the gifts I am bringing to the world, especially the world of teens and young adults.
My interest in getting trained in Internal Family Systems therapy model (IFS) is both personal and professional. My commitment to my own healing and growth has always strong -I have been a client in various therapy models (on-and-off) for many years. Currently, I am a client in weekly therapy with a highly skilled IFS therapist. This work has been truly transformative and fills me with hope!
I believe that anyone working with children and adolescents must do their own work and heal their own childhood wounds to be truly effective over the long term. When I first began teaching middle school art in 1997, I found the experience full of students & situations that triggered parts of me. Between then and now, I have worked with many practitioners in traditional therapy models and alternative healing models. After all this exploration, I am convinced IFS is the integration & healing model I have been searching for both as a client and as a counselor. One of the coolest things about the IFS model is its sustainability for both the counselor and the client. Instead of being drained by the work, the counselor is energized! AND the client gains skills to help themselves and move into being able to heal their own wounds and regulate their emotions without assistance. I truly believe in this model and it's potential for significant healing for individual students and our schools.
What happens in the training? From the IFS website:
"Level 1 trainings are comprehensive programs in which participants develop an understanding of the conceptual basis of IFS and learn how to apply IFS techniques to various clinical populations. Participants are also invited to explore their own inner worlds within a training's safe, nurturing context. A select group of IFS trainers teaches Level 1s using a format that features lectures, experiential exercises, video review, large and small group discussions, and small group supervision and practice sessions"
My goals for using IFS:
Currently, I am a licensed School Counselor for grades K-12 with a Master’s of Education in School Counseling. I have worked in private, charter and public schools, including boarding schools and international schools. In some positions my role has been very focused on mental health or substance abuse prevention/intervention and in others, the focus has been more academic. However, even in those academic support-focused roles, school counselors are the first stop for mental health issues and help students on a daily basis with depression, anxiety, thoughts/plans of suicide, eating disorders and a host of other issues. I love working with adolescents, especially high school students, they are my favorite age group. I am excited to begin training in this model and eventually to be certified in IFS (3 levels of training are required for certification)-and to incorporate the model into my work in schools.
Within the next five years, I plan to go through the steps to earn my therapist license as well, so I can develop a private practice on the side, which would bring greater financial stability and give me a path to support myself in retirement. My intention is to develop an IFS focused practice to primarily serve teens. Also, I am committed to always offering for some pro bono counseling to needy clients to make sure that counseling is accessible to historically underserved or unserved populations, especially those impacted by systemic oppression.
Why do I need financial support?
Although I have a full-time job, the public schools in New Mexico are very poorly funded -and educators' salaries are not well matched to the cost of living. For a single person, it's barely enough for basics and I currently live with significant austerity. My student loan debt from grad school is significant. In an effort to reduce debt, I no longer have credit cards. I worked a second job over the summer to build a small emergency fund. It is fair to say that I cannot save anything extra towards this goal with my current salary and bills -I simply have no means to fund professional development myself. And sadly, public schools here are no longer able to fund individual professional development. So I turn to you, my dear friends and family (and maybe a few very kind strangers!) for help to realize this goal.
What would it take to fully fund my request?
If every single one of my 289 Facebook friends donated $14, I would make my goal. But let's be realistic!
About 75 people follow and comment on my Facebook page (for which I am very grateful), so if each one of those sweet folks donated about $50, I would meet my goal!
However, in my life, $50 is a lot of money so it's hard to imagine other people being able to support at that level - so let's say if 159 people could donate $25 ~this dream would become a reality!
Every little bit helps and no donation is too small to be significant and appreciated. Your support of my training will directly help the students I serve and it's an investment that will continue to pay dividends for years to come in my healing work with struggling teens.
Dates of program:
January 27-February 2, 2019: in-person intensive, Austin, TX
June 9-15, 2019: in-person intensive, Danville, CA
And teleconferences on weekends throughout the year
The budget for funds: ( I was awarded a 50% tuition scholarship)
$1825 Tuition (after scholarship)
$45 registration fee
$600 Travel to Austin & California (2 round-trip flights)
$200 Rental car (Austin) and taxis (CA)
$1305 Room & board (2 -one week intensives)
$500 Cost to board my dogs (2 separate weeks while I'm in the intensives)
$4,475 Total needed
I need to raise the funds by December 21, 2018 to be sure I have enough by the full-refund cancellation date (45 days before training) I would lose my $500 deposit, though, if I have to cancel.
Want to learn even more about the IFS model? Here are some links for reference:
Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapy Model Training
What is IFS? (short video)
~THANK YOU for considering my request for support~
What is IFS and why am I interested in training with this therapy model?
Here's a video on IFS from the developer, to help explain it -11 minutes but very insightful
Super clear and easy to understand explanation on the IFS model (9 min video)
I am excited to enter this training program in the therapy model Internal Family Systems, (known as IFS) because I want to deepen Self-love & energy, increase confidence in my work as a mental health counselor and gain new skills ~so I can both continue my work in high schools and launch a private practice on the side. I want to sharpen my tools and enhance the gifts I am bringing to the world, especially the world of teens and young adults.
My interest in getting trained in Internal Family Systems therapy model (IFS) is both personal and professional. My commitment to my own healing and growth has always strong -I have been a client in various therapy models (on-and-off) for many years. Currently, I am a client in weekly therapy with a highly skilled IFS therapist. This work has been truly transformative and fills me with hope! I believe that anyone working with children and adolescents must do their own work and heal their own childhood wounds to be truly effective over the long term. When I first began teaching middle school art in 1997, I found the experience full of students & situations that triggered parts of me. Between then and now, I have worked with many practitioners in traditional therapy models and alternative healing models. After all this exploration, I am convinced IFS is the integration & healing model I have been searching for both as a client and as a counselor. One of the coolest things about the IFS model is its sustainability for both the counselor and the client. Instead of being drained by the work, the counselor is energized! AND the client gains skills to help themselves and move into being able to heal their own wounds and regulate their emotions without assistance. I truly believe in this model and it's potential for significant healing for individual students and our schools.
What happens in the training? From the IFS website:
"Level 1 trainings are comprehensive programs in which participants develop an understanding of the conceptual basis of IFS and learn how to apply IFS techniques to various clinical populations. Participants are also invited to explore their own inner worlds within a training's safe, nurturing context. A select group of IFS trainers teaches Level 1s using a format that features lectures, experiential exercises, video review, large and small group discussions, and small group supervision and practice sessions"
My goals for using IFS:
Currently, I am a licensed School Counselor for grades K-12 with a Master’s of Education in School Counseling. I have worked in private, charter and public schools, including boarding schools and international schools. In some positions my role has been very focused on mental health or substance abuse prevention/intervention and in others, the focus has been more academic. However, even in those academic support-focused roles, school counselors are the first stop for mental health issues and help students on a daily basis with depression, anxiety, thoughts/plans of suicide, eating disorders and a host of other issues. I love working with adolescents, especially high school students, they are my favorite age group. I am excited to begin training in this model and eventually to be certified in IFS (3 levels of training are required for certification)-and to incorporate the model into my work in schools.
Within the next five years, I plan to go through the steps to earn my therapist license as well, so I can develop a private practice on the side, which would bring greater financial stability and give me a path to support myself in retirement. My intention is to develop an IFS focused practice to primarily serve teens. Also, I am committed to always offering for some pro bono counseling to needy clients to make sure that counseling is accessible to historically underserved or unserved populations, especially those impacted by systemic oppression.
Why do I need financial support?
Although I have a full-time job, the public schools in New Mexico are very poorly funded -and educators' salaries are not well matched to the cost of living. For a single person, it's barely enough for basics and I currently live with significant austerity. My student loan debt from grad school is significant. In an effort to reduce debt, I no longer have credit cards. I worked a second job over the summer to build a small emergency fund. It is fair to say that I cannot save anything extra towards this goal with my current salary and bills -I simply have no means to fund professional development myself. And sadly, public schools here are no longer able to fund individual professional development. So I turn to you, my dear friends and family (and maybe a few very kind strangers!) for help to realize this goal.
What would it take to fully fund my request?
If every single one of my 289 Facebook friends donated $14, I would make my goal. But let's be realistic!
About 75 people follow and comment on my Facebook page (for which I am very grateful), so if each one of those sweet folks donated about $50, I would meet my goal!
However, in my life, $50 is a lot of money so it's hard to imagine other people being able to support at that level - so let's say if 159 people could donate $25 ~this dream would become a reality!
Every little bit helps and no donation is too small to be significant and appreciated. Your support of my training will directly help the students I serve and it's an investment that will continue to pay dividends for years to come in my healing work with struggling teens.
Dates of program:
January 27-February 2, 2019: in-person intensive, Austin, TX
June 9-15, 2019: in-person intensive, Danville, CA
And teleconferences on weekends throughout the year
The budget for funds: ( I was awarded a 50% tuition scholarship)
$1825 Tuition (after scholarship)
$45 registration fee
$600 Travel to Austin & California (2 round-trip flights)
$200 Rental car (Austin) and taxis (CA)
$1305 Room & board (2 -one week intensives)
$500 Cost to board my dogs (2 separate weeks while I'm in the intensives)
$4,475 Total needed
I need to raise the funds by December 21, 2018 to be sure I have enough by the full-refund cancellation date (45 days before training) I would lose my $500 deposit, though, if I have to cancel.
Want to learn even more about the IFS model? Here are some links for reference:
Internal Family Systems (IFS) Therapy Model Training
What is IFS? (short video)
Organizer
Tay MacIntyre
Organizer
Albuquerque, NM