A New Chapter of Our Shared Story
In this new year, the ACPE Foundation will open a new chapter. Our endowment has grown to over $8 million, and we have significantly more funds available for innovative grants. Until now, available awards were between $10,000 and $20,000. Starting this year, we can give up to $ 200,000 and create additional grant opportunities. Please watch this space for announcements of new award cycles and application deadlines.
As I have expressed in previous newsletters and Trace Haythorn emphasized just last week, we want to use these funds to advance our commitment to Justice, Equity, Diversity, and Inclusion in ACPE.
This week, the Foundation Board will meet and discuss how to implement ideas from ACPE members to support the following goals: (a) a new scholarship program to help centers without resources to launch CEC position(s), especially for CECs from underrepresented populations (i.e., race, gender/gender identity, spirituality, etc.); (b) ongoing support for the Boisen Scholars to fully participate in annual conferences; (c) support for international students seeking to complete ACPE units in the U.S.; (d) funds to support underrepresented psychotherapists to engage in ACPE psychotherapy activities; (e) summer scholarships for underrepresented students to make summer CPE units more accessible to more students, and (f) funds to annually support research projects, usually in partnership with outside organizations.
This new chapter with new grants supporting underrepresented ACPE psychotherapists, educators and programs is part of a larger volume with many contributors. Stu Plummer is one of the authors of our shared story. He died a month ago in Jackson, Wyoming, at the age of 89. Stu was an ACPE Educator, served in regional director and interim executive director roles and was awarded the ACPE 2001 Distinguished Service Award for his contributions and leadership. Along with a few ACPE colleagues, Stu had the vision to create the Foundation in 2007 which allowed for many contributions and healthy growth over the past decade. We are grateful for Stu’s creative vision, his wisdom and service that started a story with many more chapters to come.
Help us continue Stu’s legacy. Make a gift to the ACPE Foundation today!
Dagmar Grefe is the Chair of the Foundation for ACPE and can be reached at dgrefe@chla.usc.edu