DIGEST-Volume10.4-FULL

28 TPC Digest | T here is a growing demand for accredited counselor education and supervision (CES) doctoral programs to train future counselor educators as more master’s-level programs become nationally accredited by the Council for Accreditation of Counseling and Related Education Programs (CACREP). As such, there is a need to establish these CES doctoral programs, particularly in areas across the country that have fewer programs. In order to successfully initiate and sustain a CES doctoral program, program leaders need intricate knowledge of complex systems. These systems include higher education administration, professional and educational accreditation bodies, funding agencies, pertinent laws, and any other system with key stakeholders. The knowledge required to initiate and sustain a CES doctoral program is vast and varied depending on the university and local politics. T he purpose of this study was to gain insight into this knowledge base, specifically by exploring the necessary strategies for gaining administrative support for starting a CES doctoral program. Fifteen faculty from CACREP- accredited CES programs with experience in developing and sustaining doctoral programs were interviewed with a semi-structured interview protocol. Rebecca Scherer, Regina Moro, Tara Jungersen, Leslie Contos, Thomas A. Field Gaining Administrative Support for Doctoral Programs in Counselor Education