Wayne's Background:

Wayne E. Gustafson, DMin, LMHC is an ordained minister in the United Church of Christ, a retired licensed mental health counselor, and an authorized trainer in ACPE Spiritually Integrated Psychotherapy. He brings decades of experience as a prison chaplain, pastoral counselor, adjunct professor of pastoral care, adjunct faculty in psychology, and interim parish minister. Since 2005, he has served on the faculty of the New York School of Ministry – a New York Conference, United Church of Christ program.  There he teaches pastoral care courses and continuing education workshops for clergy and lay leaders.

Dr. Gustafson’s teaching is informed by extensive clinical and educational formation, including a Doctor of Ministry in Psychology and Clinical Studies and a Master of Divinity from Andover Newton Theological School, and a Bachelor of Arts from Cornell University. His professional training includes multiple units of Clinical Pastoral Education in hospital and correctional settings, EMDR Levels 1 and 2, clinical hypnosis, critical incident debriefing, and certification as a trainer in Spiritually Integrated Psychotherapy. He has held leadership roles within the American Association of Pastoral Counselors and ACPE, and has published on ethics in counseling in the Encyclopedia of Psychology and Religion.

As an instructor, Dr. Gustafson emphasizes ethical practice, pastoral presence, systems thinking, and the integration of psychological and spiritual perspectives in caregiving and ministry. In addition to his teaching and training work, he is the author of two novels, Community of Promise: The Untold Story of Moses and The Wisdom Weaver. He lives with his wife in an intentional community in Ithaca, New York, and continues to focus his work on education, formation, and support for ministers and mental health professionals.

Content & Course Format:

The SIP training program is a multi-disciplinary, inter-spiritual, multi-racial community of persons gathered for education, connection, and formation in the work of spiritually integrated psychotherapy. It serves licensed and pre-licensed mental health professionals (i.e., counselors, social workers, marriage and family therapists, pastoral counselors, psychologists, psychiatrists, addiction specialists, and more), as well as graduate students in any of those disciplines who seek to explore the ways spirituality, religion, and the search for meaning influence their own lives and the lives of their clients.

For more on current trainings and the core curriculum click here.