WISR SEMINARS ïSEPTEMBER, 2006

I. INTERDISCIPLINARY SEMINAR

Connections between Cutting-Edge Developments in the Natural Sciences & Participatory Action-Research: Claiming Science for All of Us                   Thursday, September 14, 6:30– 8:30 pm 

John Bilorusky, PhD, WISR Faculty. This seminar is part of WISR’s action-research series, and for this session we will search for insights that we can use in community-based, participatory action-research.  Specifically, we will consider a few examples of the content and process of cutting edge developments in the natural sciences in the last few years and over the past century.  Here, at WISR, our emphasis on knowledge-building and inquiry is aimed at demystifying science and helping people to learn that science and scientific methods are not fixed abstractions but works in progress that grow out of the efforts of real human beings, with all the strengths and limitations that we as human beings bring to science and inquiry.  A short article written by John will be made available as recommended reading in preparation for the seminar.  All WISR students are required to make every effort to attend at least five or six seminars on action-research, unless they are living outside the Bay Area. Dr. Bilorusky has had an active interest in the sciences for over 40 years and did his undergraduate studies in Physics (BA, with honors in Physics, University of Colorado, 1967). 

Black Scholars Forum                                                           Thursday, September 21, 6:30-8:30pm

Vera Labat, MPH, WISR Faculty. We will have a critically oriented discussion of the 2nd part of the film, The Century of the Self.  This discussion will continue on the 3rd Thursdays, in the upcoming months:  10/19 and 11/16.  This film challenges how identity is constructed and the very idea of the individual self.  It is important to our Black Scholar discussions in that we are socially mediated beings, and we need to understand the impact of the social identity and environment in which we live. The Black Scholars forum intends to build on the experiences and knowledge-base of African Americans within WISR and the community at large.  WISR learners of all ethnic and cultural backgrounds are welcome to share and add their experiences, insights and questions for a rich dialogue aimed toward social change and justice that is well-informed and inclusive. Participants are invited to bring finger food snacks to share.

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                        II. MARRIAGE  FAMILY THERAPY (MFT) SEMINARS

These seminars, though designed for students pursuing an MFT license, are open to all students.

MFT Faculty request that nonstudents planning to attend MFT seminars let them know in advance.

Public Health Promotion in a Traumatized World              Saturday, September 9, 10am-1:00pm

Vera Labat, MPH, WISR Faculty. We will look at the role of family counseling as it relates to public health promotion in the broader social context.  Vera Labat will present the UN definition of health and its implications for public health promotion within the family, community, state and nation.  The discussion and dialogue will center on various social crises, including AIDS, SARS, Influenza Pandemic, global warming and the consequences of Hurricane Katrina. (Deborah Pruitt, PhD, will lead an MFT seminar: October 7th, 10am-1 pm)

Domestic Violence, Part I Saturday, September 30, 10:00am-1:00pm
Ronald Mah, MA, MFT, WISR Faculty          .  Couples therapy and relationships will be examined through the lens of domestic violence.  Indications and counter-indications for individual work versus couples work with domestic violence will be discussed.  We will also discuss issues of attachment and contributing diagnoses or other issues that contribute to domestic violence. This is a Behavioral Science Examiners required course of at least 15 hours for the MFT masters program. (Parts II & III on Domestic Violence will be: October 28^th, 10am-3pm, andNovember 18th, 10am-1pm.)