Wheaton College Experts

David is a Licensed Marriage and Family (MFT) Therapist in Illinois and holds his Doctorate in Child and Family Development from the University of Georgia. As an MFT Associate Professor, clinician, and American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy (AAMFT) Approved Supervisor, he has taught and trained students and clinicians at numerous universities. David is the founding Director of the Marriage and Family Therapy program at Wheaton College. Additionally, he is an international leader in the field of marriage and family therapy, serves as Commissioner and chair of the Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE), is chair of the Marriage and Family Therapy licensure and disciplinary board, and is past President of the Illinois Affiliation of Marriage and Family Therapists (IAMFT). He also serves as a Fulbright Specialist, consulting with universities and organizations worldwide.

When David started the MFT program at Wheaton College, he cast a vision that within 10 years it would launch a MFT Clinic for the community of Wheaton, IL. The vision, which is now a reality, fulfills both the need to support the community with excellent marriage and family therapy services, as well as the need to have a state-of-the-art training facility for MFT master's level students to be well-equipped for their career as therapists. In 2020, The Marriage and Family Therapy Clinic at Wheaton College (formerly the Center for Family and Relational Health) opened and provided timely services amid the COVID-19 pandemic.

As a beloved professor and mentor, David provides exceptional supervision for MFT students at the Clinic. While he is a master clinician in marriage and family therapy, he holds special interests in working with adolescents and their families and including faith within therapy. He also enjoys working with families as they move from one stage of family life to another.

As a supervisor, David brings a sense of humor and a wealth of expertise into focus for the clinical development of his trainees. He challenges trainees in two specific ways: “You are the greatest therapeutic resource in the room” and “You cannot take people farther in therapy than you are willing to go yourself in your own journey.” You can learn more from David and Tara (his wife) on their podcast entitled “With U Podcast,” where they interview experts and engage in stories around relationships and life transitions.

If you would like to work with David’s clinical supervision team, please reach out and schedule an appointment.