MICHIGAN PSYCHOANALYTIC COUNCIL

Minutes

Present, MPC  Board members: M. Atwell, D. Freiband, S. Freiband, M. Frye, R. Hatton, R. Hutchison, D. Klein, M. Rivette, M. Rudy, E. Waiess, P. Wood.  Past President: M. Meisels. Members: R. Liberman.

1. The minutes of the meeting of April 22, 2013 were approved unanimously.

• Overall situation is unchanged: about $9K in account. Investments growing a little.
• Our tax preparer has filed for a postponement for us. The return will be filed soon.
• Rudy will be showing the board a bank statement, at least yearly, which it can compare to his transaction statements.
• Payments to instructors will be made soon.
• We have not yet repaid $5K to the development fund; we may do that in the Fall.

• Meisels noted that this is his last regular meeting at the board, after about 25 years.  Board members expressed many thanks for his services and acknowledged him as a prime mover and one of the creators of MPC. 

• Summary:  we taught 5 courses (2 were electives).  The committee is in the final process of setting up courses for next year.  Making decisions about what to offer, given candidates’ needs.   Development sequence, Freud sequence, continuous case PLUS 2 courses designed to indu:   basic concepts    symptoms, pathologies and assessment. The relational psychoanalysis course revamped (hope to have 8).   Looks like a good year.
• Future:  Brenda Lepisto has resigned as director of the child analysis part.  She has suggest names of people who will do it. 
• We need a director of adult analysis.  It is not clear how full a program we will be offering in the next few years. We will to meet needs of current candidates. We may want to offer other kinds of courses, including those that would be accessible to more/different audiences.
  • S. Freiband: Let’s not start thinking we don’t have a training program. The present low number of candidates is a phase. Shorter courses sound like the Professional and Community Development  model.  She wants us to keep long courses with the depth that provides.   We have a good program for next year, and we need to think about the following year. All are welcome to come to the training-and-elections committee.
  • Rudy:  The presentation on the financial side of practice can be followed by presentations about the courses.
  • Meisels:  Who is our market, and what do they buy.  If they want short courses, give them.  Interested in ethics? provide it.  Meet their needs.  Then offer more. The training program flier includes the information that there will be a $100/hr fee for supervision. It is advisable not to put that in the flier.
  • Rivette:  We only address our own members.  We need to reach out, do things for other folks.  E.g. a PhD for social workers, in psychoanalytic social work (Chicago) is expensive, and people pay for it.  
  • Weiss: We might offer a course on psychoanalysis and families.  
  • Hatton is starting a monthly study group on the Finnish dialogue methods.   Rivette: we should publicize things like discussion groups.
  • D Freiband:  folks in English literature are very interested in psychoanalysis.  We might publicize MPC offerings to that audience.
  • Total number of people taking classes is down quite a bit. total was down. The courses are great.  As a rule, people like them, and come back for more. Some that had high enrollment the previous time they were offered had low enrollment or didn’t make, this time.

• Rivette moved to set aside some funds to promote the Relational Psychoanalysis Psychotherapy program within and without MPC. Meisels 2^nd the motion.  Discussion of ways to promote it. The parliamentarian noted that we do not need a motion on this funding: the T&E committee can just provide the funds, following ideas from this discussion.

• The motion was withdrawn, and Wood indicated that T&E would proceed with this.
• The program for next year is set.   Wachtel is on for November 9 (almost all in place).  Fran Waters in the spring; the kind of event(s) and the pay are still to be worked out. Sophie Levenger foundation funds were committed, but now aren’t. We can still request funding from the foundation.

·      At retreat, a certificate for Ivan Sherrick.

 ·      There is another application for certification as a child therapist. We may want to facilitate that process. The requirement that the applicant make a presentation introduced delay, because it is hard to schedule them. This process is under discussion. Others are coming to be members/ to get certification.

• Membership:  No Report

There are presently 95 members.

• Elections – Marybeth Atwell

Election is over.  We elected Ralph to 2 positions.  Have to repair.  He will take the ’13-16 position and we find someone to fill last year of the ’12-15 position.  Atwell is looking into finding a secure way to do electronic voting.

The election results:

Sonya Freiband- President-Elect

Peter Wood- Vice-President of Education and Training

Margery Adelson- Vice-President of Programs

Reena Liberman- Vice-President of Certification

Michael Rudy- Treasurer

Alice Michael- Secretary

Robert Hooberman- Member-at-Large

Ralph Hutchinson- Member-at-Large

• PCD:  No Report

• Bulletin:  David Klein

Final expense report for last bulletin.  Under budget.  The printers keep lowering their costs.

Next year?  Reena and Bob Cohen and Klein, are working on that.  Klein may not do it, as he will have other MPC duties next year.

·       Retreat:  Marybeth Atwell

• Website - Reena Liberman

We have a technician working on the site.  Almost repaired and revised.   On-line registration is working.  Links are being repaired. We may be able to use the site for a secure way to do elections.

Wood notes that this has been a huge amt of work and we appreciate Liberman’s work.

·      Accreditation: - Ralph Hutchison

• Social Action: no report
• : no report
• Newsletter: no report
• Parliamentarian & Bylaws:  no report
• Strategic Planning:  no report

·       Bylaw Committee. 

Frye reports that voting on the proposed bylaw change is now in process

·       Library Committee – no report

The meeting was adjourned.  10:30.

Minutes respectfully submitted by Marilyn Frye, board secretary.

Note:  it is MPC policy that Board meetings are open to all MPC members.  Priority is given to Board members to address issues, but all MPC members may speak at meetings, time permitting.