Meet Our Interns
Intern Training Program
Our training program began in 1992 with a therapist intern from the marriage and family therapy program of one of the top schools in the nation, Purdue Calumet. Our intern program has since expanded to include students from Adler University, Capella, and Purdue Calumet. The program is highly respected by the academic community.
The experience of counseling under the close supervision of an experienced clinician is the critical component of training. SCC created its internship program to play a role in developing the next generation of quality therapists. In addition, the supervision of talented, enthusiastic interns seems to re-energize the grizzled veterans of our staff. Supervision seems to sharpen our skills. Finally, therapist interns significantly extend our capacity to serve low-income people.
The uniqueness of the Samaritan ministry is our ability to integrate spirituality into our counseling with clients. We believe that faith can provide resources that aid the process of healing. Since most training programs ignore spirituality, the internship year at SCC often is an intern’s only opportunity to learn to integrate faith. It has become part of our mission.
Each intern completes the discipline of spiritual autobiography, which seeks to understand the role of faith in one’s personal history and in his/her call to a counseling ministry. Through supervision, interns are taught to address faith issues through the use of spiritual dialogues with clients. The intern also learns how the use of spiritual practices with clients can aid in their treatment. Finally, didactic sessions connect key spiritual concepts, such as forgiveness, to the counseling process.