Navigating the Emotional Landscape of Divorce: Collaborative Divorce – A Career Niche for Couples, Marriage, and Family Therapists

 Earn 1.5 CE Contact Hours

This interactive workshop is intended to introduce couples, marriage and family therapists (and therapists in training) to the Collaborative Divorce Model, demonstrating how they can effectively utilize their clinical skills to support clients through the collaborative process without engaging in traditional therapy.

Additionally, this 90-minute workshop will describe and demonstrate the way in which professionals from various disciplines (legal, mental health, and financial) intersect to become a Team and guide families through a peaceful divorce and beyond, with no court intervention.

Learning Objectives:

Participants will be able to:

• Understand and describe the Collaborative Divorce model, its benefits and potential drawbacks.
• State the ethical guidelines around doing this work from the perspective of AAMFT and International Academy of Collaborative Professionals (“IACP”)
• Identify their potential role as Collaborative Mental Health Professionals utilizing their clinical skills without doing therapy.
• Know how to engage with attorneys and financial professionals in supporting clients through the Collaborative process.

Who Should Attend:

Family therapists, social workers, and mental health professionals

Meet Dr. Randy Heller:

Dr. Randy Heller received her doctorate in Family Therapy from Nova Southeastern University and wrote her dissertation on the Role of the Mental Health Professional working in Collaborative Divorce. Randy has held numerous positions as an Educator, Exceptional Student Specialist, and Family Therapist. Dr. Heller is licensed as a Marriage and Family Therapist (MFT) in Florida, New York, and Connecticut, is a Florida Certified Supreme Court Family Mediator, Qualified Parenting Coordinator, Reunification Specialist, Certified Hypnotherapist, and Founder and Clinical Director of The Family Network, Collaborative Counseling Center for Positive Growth and Change, established in 1994.

Randy served as a Board member for The Florida Academy of Collaborative Professionals (FACP) for over 15 years and was both Vice President and then Past President of The Collaborative Family Law Professionals of South Florida for four years. Heller currently serves as a Board member of the New York Association of Collaborative Professionals (NYACP), as well as the International Academy of Collaborative Professionals (IACP). Dr. Heller is an active committee member in all three organizations, as well as being as a more recent member of the NYSCDM. She also wrote and teaches a semester graduate course in Collaborative Divorce to MFT grad students at Nova Southeastern University, in its tenth year, out of which she developed and directed the Veterans Collaborative Pro Bono Clinic for over six years.

Dr. Heller is also a national trainer and presenter on all family matters related to peaceful resolution of conflict and has published several articles and book chapters on the Role of the Mental Health Professional in Alternative Dispute Resolution including and not limited to the Handbook on Mediation. Randy has a passion for her work, for teamwork, and for “living in the solution” to life’s challenges.

← Return to Workshops