Faculty Contact Information:
Dr. Michelle Mentzer
Quadrelle, Italia
University email: mmentzer@faculty.ed.umuc.edu
alternate email: drmentzer@mac.com
(w) 039- 081-825-7714
(c) 340-406-1967
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Consultation:
I reside in Italy. If you wish to contact me, email is the best way to receive a prompt reply; however, if you need to call, please feel free to do so within reasonable hours. Those hours are between 0800 and 2000 hours. I usually reply to emails within a few hours at most, when awake and not teaching. I welcome all correspondence.
If you are a student with special needs, please contact me as soon as possible so that we can arrange for your access to and completion of this course.
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Required Texts and Readings:
Goldenberg, I. & Goldenberg H. (2000).Family therapy: An overview (5th
ed.). Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.
Goldenberg, I. & Goldenberg H. (2000). Family exploration: Personal
viewpoints from multiple perspectives Pacific Grove, CA: Brooks/Cole.
McGoldrick, M., Gerson, R. & Shellenberger, S. (1999).Genograms:
Assessment and intervention(2nd ed.). New York: Norton.
Satir, V. (1988). The new peoplemaking. Mountain View, CA: Science and
Behavior Books.
Worden, M. (1999). Family therapy basics (2nd ed.). Pacific Grove,
CA: Brooks/Cole. | |
Supplementary Readings:
All graduate students should be prepared to utilize the UMUC online library at http://www.umuc.edu/library/. The library contains a large number of full text academic journals that are free of charge and immediately available. The library homepage also contains a number of links related to improving students’ research and writing skills.
You will be using journals for research and reading. If you have not taken the VLIB course online, please do so. It is a free online library course with UMUC, and it is a wonderful source of information. The librarians are friendly and always helpful as well. Please take advantage of this great resource offered to you. | |
Recommended Journals:
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Course Description:
| Prerequisite: PSYC 502. This course provides an opportunity for students interested in counseling and mental health to study basic theories and application for the principles of family counseling. By using various theories, students will learn how the application of family theories is used in developing a holistic understanding of the dynamics of a family. Through an in-depth comprehension of family behavior, students will use various family counseling theories demonstrating their skill development in counseling families. Students may receive credit for only one of the following courses: GUCO 532 or EDCP 665. | |
Course Goals:
| This course is designed to enable students to become familiar with general theories of family counseling as they apply to people from different social, cultural and economic backgrounds. It will assist students in preparing for the comprehensive exam and will prepare them for professional practice. | |
Course Objectives:
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This course has the following objectives:
- Understanding and appreciating systemic and developmental frameworks applied to family therapy, including gender, sexuality, and multicultural factors.
- Awareness of the history and evolution of family therapy in the U.S.
- Familiarity with the several basic models of family therapy commonly in use.
- Familiarity with the most current evolving models of family therapy.
- Appreciation of the role of research in family systems and therapy.
- Consideration of training and supervision needs for skill development in family therapy.
- Understanding current professional issues and ethical standards in working with families.
- Knowledge of various professional counseling organizations including their legal and ethical standards.
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Grading Information:
Grades for this course will be assigned as follows:
A 92%
B 80 – 91%
C 70 – 79%
F Below 70%
Please note that Bowie State University does not use "D" for graduate students. The grade "F" is used to designate academic failure. "FN" is used to designate failure for non-completion. Grades of Incomplete or Withdrawal are governed by UMUC-Europe policies. For further details, please refer to the UMUC-Europe Graduate Catalog, available in your local Education Center or online at http://www.ed.umuc.edu/general_info/publications/catalogs. | |
Course Requirements:
Graduate school at the masters level focuses on helping students obtain the education needed for success as professionals in their chosen fields. Thus, UMUC-Europe Graduate Programs and Bowie State University share the common goals of promoting excellence in academic scholarship through thoughtful inquiry and the skillful application of knowledge and theory for the betterment of society.
In order to maximize your graduate educational experience in general and this course in particular, you are required to:
Participate in online discussions..............40%
Genogram case study............................30%
Literature Reviews.............................20%
Complete one or more written examination(s)....10% | |
Description of Course Requirements:
Participate in classroom discussions: You are expected to come to class prepared to engage in all discussions in a professional and informed manner. Usually this requires approximately ten hours of preparation per week for a DE class. Each student will be expected to post a substantial post for each week, and comment/respond to at least two others. Responses are to be substantial, not superficial. They must add to the previous post, not simply reflect the author's content. Posts simply agreeing, encouraging or quoting text are welcome and appropriate, but are not counted toward weekly points.
Write a graduate case study: You are required to conduct professional-level research, including appropriately citing works of others and avoiding plagiarism. Resubmission of course work from previous classes (whether or not taken at UMUC, UMUC-Europe or BSU), partially or in its entirety, is not acceptable in this course and will result in an automatic failure on the assignment. Plan on committing approximately 150 hours over the duration of this course to producing professional level deliverables.
Genogram Paper:
This paper will include a neatly prepared Genogram of at least 4 generations and a minimum of 5 pages text that analyses the information. More information will be available on WebTycho.
Literature review:
Each student will review and summarize 2 articles published in professional journals since 1990 relating to Family Counseling, that corresponds with the readings covered in class for the chosen week. Each summary should include the author’s name (s) and affiliation(s), the journal’s name, results and significance or meaning of the results. Each analysis should highlight the main points of the chosen article and raise discussion about its application to the treatment of families in counseling. This can be accomplished in one page on concise technical writing. (Maximum length = 2 pages, double-spaced, APA style) Please post these papers to the Lit Review conference so that others can post comments, read and respond. | |
Course Schedule:
This schedule presents 13 units or modules, with each unit corresponding to a full week of DE.
Week 1 October 31 – November 05
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapters 1 and 2
McGoldrick text Chapters 1 and 2
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
Week 2 November 07 – November 13
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapters 3 and 4
McGoldrick text Chapter 3
Worden text Chapter 1
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
Week 3 November 14 – November 20
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapter 5
McGoldrick text Chapter 4
Worden text Chapter 2
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
Week 4 November 21 – November 28
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapter 6 and 7
Worden text Chapter 3
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
Week 5 November 29 – December 04
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapter 8
McGoldrick text Chapter 5
Worden text Chapter 4
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
Week 6 December 05 – December 11
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapter 9
McGoldrick text Chapter 6
Worden text Chapter 5
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
Week 7 December 12 – December 18
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapter 10
McGoldrick text Chapter 7
Worden text Chapter 6
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
Week 8 December 19 – December 23 Short Week
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapter 11
McGoldrick text Chapter 8
Worden text Chapter 7
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
Week 9 December 24 – January 01 BREAK
Week 10 January 02 – January 08
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapters 12 and 13
Satir Chapters 1 – 5 (Self-Worth)
Worden text Chapters 8 – 9
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
Week 11 January 09 – January 15
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapters 14 and 15
Satir Chapters 6 – 9 Family Communication
GENOGRAM DUE
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
Week 12 January 16 – January 22
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapters 16 and 17
Satir Chapters 10 - 16
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
Week 13 January 23 – January 29
Readings:
Goldenberg and Goldenberg Chapters 18 and 19
Satir Chapters 17 - 26
Respond to online questions for the week, and respond substantially to at least 3 others.
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Academic Policies:
Note: Any written assignment in this course may be submitted to TurnItIn.Com. This statement constitutes prior notice.
The official university policy on Plagiarism and Academic Dishonesty can be found at http://www.umuc.edu/policy/aa15025.shtml. Section I.C. states: "Faculty may determine if the resubmission of course work from previous classes (whether or not taken at UMUC), partially or in its entirety, is acceptable when assigning a grade on that piece of course work. Faculty must provide this information in their written syllabi. If the resubmission of course work is deemed to be unacceptable, a charge may not be brought under this Policy and will be handled as indicated in the written syllabi."
Please refer to Description of Course Requirements for specific information on how resubmissions will be treated in this course and to the UMUC-Europe Graduate Catalog for information on the following:
Academic Integrity
Course Load
Exception to Policy
Grade Appeal Process
Make-up Examinations
Nondiscrimination
Students with Disabilities
Hard copies of the catalog are available at your local Education Center. | |
Faculty Bio:
| Dr. Mentzer is a family counselor and professional trainer for both military and civilian sectors. She is currently working in Napoli as the Early Childhood Education Program Manager for Central Texas College, and teaching in the UMUC-Bowie Graduate Counseling program. Dr. Mentzer's undergraduate work was taken at the University of Kansas, in Education. Her M.A. in Counseling and was completed at Regent University in Virginia Beach, Va. Dr. Mentzer earned her Doctorate of Education in Counseling Psychology at Argosy University. Her primary focus was on family communications and attachment theory. After her residency at the Mental Research Institute in Palo Alto, she worked as the Group Manager at the Marine Corps Camp Pendleton Mental Health Clinic in Southern California. She currently resides in Italy with her husband and three children (22, 20, and 16) and her cats. Her hobbies include reading, used bookstore hunting, Macintosh computers, traveling across Europe in her VW Westy, and "being" in coffee shops around the world. | |