Supervising family therapists requires more than teaching technique—it demands a vision for how change unfolds within relationships. Without it, clinicians risk addressing surface issues while missing the deeper patterns that sustain them.
This training equips supervisors with the skills to guide family therapists toward insight, clarity, and lasting change by learning to “see the how.”
Dr. Vicki Loyer, PhD, LMFT, draws from decades of leadership in the field of marriage and family therapy, incorporating systems thinking, developmental theory, and equine-assisted psychotherapy. Co-instructor Tara Gardenhire, MA, LMFT, brings a trauma-informed, whole-health lens to supervision and family systems work. Together, they offer practical, grounded guidance for helping clinicians access deeper process-focused thinking in their therapy sessions.
Through real-world clinical examples, interactive discussion, and experiential insights, Dr. Loyer and Ms. Gardenhire help supervisors move from content-focused oversight to modeling the art of process-based family therapy. Their approach fosters the supervisor-clinician alliance and ensures that what happens in supervision mirrors the best of what happens in therapy.
Topics include tracking systemic family processes, shifting from solving to guiding, using metaphor to increase insight, understanding the role of power and privilege, assessing developmental and ecological tasks in family systems, and working with isomorphic parallels in supervision. Participants will also explore how to help clinicians recognize and validate client strengths and expand therapeutic possibilities.
Key Takeaways
Guide supervisees from content to process: Learn how to help clinicians shift their focus from storytelling to meaning-making in family therapy.
Expand clinical insight through parallel process: Understand how dynamics in supervision mirror those in therapy—and how to leverage that insight for growth.
Support culturally attuned supervision: Incorporate power, privilege, and systemic awareness into supervision to support inclusive, respectful client care.
Why This Course?
Led by expert supervisors: Dr. Loyer and Ms. Gardenhire bring rich teaching experience and deep clinical wisdom, rooted in systems theory and real-world application.
Integrates systems and supervision theory: This training blends theory with direct application—helping supervisors coach clinicians through complex family work.
Offered by a trusted CE provider: Telehealth Certification Institute is known for quality, ethics, and excellence in behavioral health continuing education.
Learning Objectives
Work with process rather than content.
Explain the role of power and privilege in families.
Use parallel process to personalize supervision.
If you're ready to move beyond content-focused supervision and learn how to help your clinicians engage in transformational family therapy, this course offers a clear path forward. Embrace a deeper vision of clinical supervision—one that fosters true change in both the therapy room and the supervision space.
Add to cart to begin learning instantly.
Learning objectives
- Work with process rather than content
- Explain the role of power and privilege in families
- Use parallel process to personalize supervision
This is a non-interactive self-study course. Instruction consists of 1 hour of video instruction and a post-test.
Availability: From the time of registration, you have six months to access the coursework.
Who Should Attend: This course is intended for clinicians who provide behavioral health services.
Teaching Methods: This is a non-interactive, self-study course. Teaching methods for this course include recorded lectures, videos, a post-test, and a course evaluation.
How to Attend: Instructions for attending and completing a course can be found here.
Dr. Vicki Loyer, PhD
Vicki Loyer (Carlson) Ph.D., LMFT, is the CEO/President of Blue Door Psychotherapy, a center for individual and family therapy services and a center for family therapy training. She is a clinical assistant professor at the University of Arizona Department of Psychiatry, and a Subject Matter Expert, Site Supervisor, and Instructor for Graduate Studies at Grand Canyon University. Using a competency focused family therapy approach to working with individuals and families, she provides equine assisted psychotherapy as an experiential therapy for greater depth. Most recently, as a result of Covid-19 restrictions, Dr. Loyer has expanded her practice and teaching in the area of delivering quality Telemental Health and has been a co-organizer of Webinars on Telemental health Ethics and Effective Therapy. Dr. Loyer is a regular contributing author to the House Calls section of the Tucson magazine Desert Leaf, has co-author of books on premarital relationships and youth-at-risk, and has been publishing and speaking in the areas of self-injury, mental illness, addiction, and family therapy for many years. Dr Loyer is an AAMFT Clinical Member, Approved Supervisor and a past president of the Arizona Association for Marriage & Family Therapy (AzAMFT).
Tara Gardenhire, MA, LMFT, Approved Supervisor
Tara believes in a whole health approach to mental health treatment with a focus on nutrition, exercise, and spirituality. She specializes in life span development (children, adolescents, adults, and aging) and family therapy, emphasizing work with trauma survivors, substance abuse, parenting, and couples. Tara has worked in the field of mental health for 10 years and is a licensed Marriage and Family Therapist.
Disclosure Statement:
The instructor(s) for this course receive compensation for their services. There are no reported conflicts of interest to disclose.
Credit Hours:This course consists of 1 continuing education hour of credit.
Counselors:
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Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC has been approved by NBCC as an Approved Continuing Education Provider, ACEP No, 6693. Programs that do not qualify for NBCC credit are clearly identified. Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is solely responsible for all aspects of the programs.
Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Mental Health Counselors. #MHC-0048.
Marriage and Family Therapists: Many MFT licensing boards accept our courses or one of the approvals which we have from professional associations. You can check with your board to determine if your licensing board would accept this course.
Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for licensed marriage and family therapists #MFT-0135, effective May 8, 2025.
Social Workers:
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Telehealth Certification Institute LLC, #1609, is approved as an ACE provider to offer social work continuing education by the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB) Approved Continuing Education (ACE) program. Regulatory boards are the final authority on courses accepted for continuing education credit. ACE provider approval period: 05/02/2024 – 05/02/2027. Social workers completing this course receive 1 clinical continuing education credit.
Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Social Work as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Social Workers #SW-0435.
Addiction Professionals:
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This course has been approved by Telehealth Certification Institute LLC, as a NAADAC Approved Education Provider, for educational credits, effective 2/9/2022. NAADAC Provider #193104, Telehealth Certification Institute LLC is responsible for all aspects of the programming.
Psychologists:
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Telehealth Certification Institute LLC is approved by the American Psychological Association to sponsor continuing education for psychologists. Telehealth Certification Institute LLC maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department’s State Board for Psychology as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Psychologists #PSY-0128.
Art Therapists: Telehealth Certification Institute, LLC is recognized by the New York State Education Department's State Board for Mental Health Practitioners as an approved provider of continuing education for Licensed Creative Arts Therapists #CAT-0093.
Other Professionals: This course qualifies for 60 minutes of instructional content as required by many national, state and local licensing boards and professional organizations. Retain your certificate of completion and contact your board or organization for specific filing requirements.
This is a non-interactive, self-study course.
