The Philadelphia Child and Family Therapy Training Center is proud to recognize Deanna Laser as a nominee for the 2025 Marion Lindblad-Goldberg (MLG) Award. This prestigious award honors professionals who exemplify the principles of Ecosystemic Structural Family Therapy (ESFT) and demonstrate an unwavering commitment to strengthening families and communities.

A Passion for Growth and Systemic Change

Deanna has been a dedicated booster in her program, navigating numerous challenges, including the pandemic. Through it all, she has remained committed to her growth and the well-being of the families she serves. Her ability to balance authenticity, transparency, and continuous learning makes her an exceptional clinician, mentor, and leader.

Deanna embraces a systemic perspective, recognizing that challenges within families are relational, contextual, developmental, and trauma-informed. She helps teams and caregivers shift their focus from isolated behaviors to meaningful family interactions, guiding them toward lasting change.

Empowering Caregivers and Strengthening Families

One of Deanna’s greatest strengths is her collaborative approach with caregivers. Regardless of the challenges a family faces, she finds ways to connect, highlighting strengths and fostering hope. Her work is deeply rooted in social ecology, recognizing how lived experiences shape family culture while also providing resources for resilience and success.

Working in a region where families often experience economic hardships, Deanna ensures every family is treated with respect, dignity, and belief in their ability to grow. She intentionally finds something to appreciate in each caregiver, reinforcing their capacity for positive change.

A Well-Deserved Nomination

Deanna Laser’s dedication to systemic family therapy, her unwavering support for both families and colleagues, and her ability to navigate complex challenges embody the very best of ESFT-FBMHS. We are honored to recognize her as a nominee for the 2025 Marion Lindblad-Goldberg Award and celebrate the incredible impact she continues to make in the field.

Join us in congratulating Deanna on this well-deserved recognition!

MLG Award- Supervisor

The Philadelphia Child and Family Therapy Training Center is proud to announce that Denise Stoneroad has been nominated as a supervisor for the 2025 Marion Lindblad-Goldberg (MLG) Award. Denise’s nomination is a powerful recognition of her unwavering commitment to systemic family therapy, her leadership in guiding clinicians, and her dedication to fostering resilience in families.

With a deep appreciation for systemic perspective, Denise challenges the traditional view of adolescents with “bad” behavior being seen in isolation. Instead, she ensures that her teams assess family interactions as a whole, seeking to understand the root causes of behaviors rather than focusing on a single identified client. During the challenges of the pandemic, she demonstrated exceptional leadership, guiding her team to grow stronger, adapt, and collaborate rather than becoming isolated—just therapists encourage families to do in therapy.

As a supervisor, Denise embodies the balance between professional boundaries and collaboration. She has cultivated a culture where clinicians build their own competence and resilience rather than relying on her to “rescue” them. By reinforcing patience and preparation, she helps clinicians and families develop the confidence to tackle challenges independently.

Denise also engages in social ecology with a keen sense of self-awareness. She encourages her teams to explore their own lived experiences and how those experiences shape their professional growth. A strong proponent of deliberate practice and videotaping, she fosters an environment of continuous learning—both for herself and for those she supervises.

Where others might see chaos as overwhelming, Denise sees opportunity. She remains calm and courageous in the face of crises, guiding her teams to help families make meaningful, lasting changes. Whether supporting caregivers in shifting family dynamics or helping clinicians navigate their own professional challenges, she instills the mindset that struggle is a stepping stone to transformation.

Denise’s ability to assess with complexity while acting with simplicity makes her an invaluable mentor. She helps her teams synthesize large amounts of data, break it down into meaningful insights, and use it to engage families in treatment planning. Through her guidance, clinicians help caregivers see problems in a new light and build stronger, child-centered, caregiver-led plans for family success.

Denise Stoneroad’s nomination is a testament to her extraordinary impact on systemic family therapy. Her leadership, insight, and commitment to second-order change embody the very essence of the MLG Award.

Please join us in celebrating Denise and her remarkable contributions to the field. Stay tuned as we continue to highlight the incredible nominees shaping the future of family therapy!

We’re thrilled to share a special recording featuring Tamara Allen, an alumna of the ESFT-FBMHS program and a Booster from the Allentown Cohort! In this insightful video, Tamara reflects on her journey, the impact of the program on her clinical practice, and her dedication to creating meaningful change for families. Her passion for systemic family therapy and her commitment to fostering resilience shine through in every moment.

Watch the video to hear Tamara’s inspiring story and gain valuable insights from her experience!

This collaborative research, authored by Steve Simms, Jennifer Benjamin, Todd Franke, and Pinky Patel, focuses on validating the MFAF within Pennsylvania families, aiming to enhance the tools available for family assessment in therapeutic settings.

The study’s findings contribute to the field of systemic family therapy by providing a reliable instrument for practitioners working with diverse family structures.

We invite fellow professionals and researchers to read the full article here:

1. Parenting Styles and Discipline

• Family Connection: The way parents enforce rules, boundaries, and discipline within the home.
• Social Ecology Impact: Cultural norms and societal expectations often shape parenting approaches, such as collectivist cultures emphasizing obedience and respect or individualist cultures prioritizing independence.

2. Conflict Resolution

• Family Connection: How family members handle disagreements, whether through open dialogue, avoidance, or escalated arguments.
• Social Ecology Impact: Broader societal influences, such as workplace stress or community norms about emotional expression, can affect how conflict is addressed within families.

3. Celebrations and Traditions

• Family Connection: Birthdays, holidays, or rituals unique to the family.
• Social Ecology Impact: Traditions may be influenced by cultural heritage, religious practices, and the family’s interaction with their local community.

4. Family Roles and Responsibilities

• Family Connection: Expectations for caregiving, household chores, or decision-making responsibilities.
• Social Ecology Impact: Economic conditions, gender roles, and societal shifts (e.g., dual-income households) shape these roles within the family.

5. Emotional Support Systems

• Family Connection: Families offering encouragement during stress or celebrating achievements.
• Social Ecology Impact: Access to community resources, social networks, or extended family involvement can enhance or limit a family’s ability to provide emotional support.

6. Communication Patterns

• Family Connection: The frequency and style of communication between family members (e.g., open, hierarchical, or minimal).
• Social Ecology Impact: Broader influences, like technology use, workplace demands, or societal norms around expressing feelings, can shape how families communicate.

7. Routines and Daily Practices

• Family Connection: Shared meals, bedtime routines, or weekend activities.
• Social Ecology Impact: Work schedules, school systems, and neighborhood safety often determine the feasibility of maintaining routines.

8. Adaptation to Stress and Change

• Family Connection: How families cope with financial difficulties, relocation, or loss.
• Social Ecology Impact: Access to support systems (like religious organizations, community groups, or healthcare services) significantly influences a family’s resilience.

9. Education and Learning Support

• Family Connection: Parents assisting children with homework or prioritizing education.
• Social Ecology Impact: The quality of schools, availability of resources, and societal attitudes toward education play a role in shaping these family interactions.

10. Health Practices

• Family Connection: Meal choices, exercise habits, or approaches to healthcare.
• Social Ecology Impact: Broader health trends, access to healthcare facilities, and community attitudes toward wellness often intersect with family practices.

Systemic family therapy stands at the intersection of healing, connection, and transformation. The MLG Awards not only celebrate the incredible achievements of today’s leaders in the field but also pay homage to the foundational work of systemic family therapy’s pioneers, such as Salvador Minuchin and Dr. Marion Lindblad-Goldberg. Minuchin’s groundbreaking contributions established structural family therapy as a cornerstone for understanding and addressing relational dynamics, while Dr. Lindblad-Goldberg advanced this legacy by integrating ecological and trauma-informed approaches. This award recognizes the profound impact systemic family therapy has on families, communities, and professionals. By honoring those who exemplify these values, the MLG Awards inspire ongoing innovation and excellence in a field dedicated to addressing complex challenges and fostering meaningful change. It’s more than an award; it’s a continuation of a legacy that transforms lives, one relationship at a time. Join us in celebrating the extraordinary contributions of systemic family therapy practitioners who, like Minuchin and Lindblad-Goldberg, are committed to making the world a brighter, more connected place.