Probably the best thing about School Connections is the comararderie and openness in communication between schools and practitioners. In other conference venues in the “school business”, unfortunately, it’s more “business” than students fit-to-schools, and that is not the case here in San Francisco. Re-connecting with domestic and international partners like Shawnigan in BC, the Knox School in Saint James, Marvelwood in Kent, Ecole d’Humanite in Switzerland (and the list goes on) makes School Connections unique and refreshing in it’s approach to private education. San Francisco? Not a bad place to hold a conference, eh? Steve Blanchard, Carrie, and myself had a great time together and nailed down projects we’re collaborating on together. Hopefully in the future, some of these conferences will open up to parents who can see for themselves what is truly out there in the private school community. In the meantime, call on the professionals, and we can help find the correct solution, not just an opinion.

I have time to reflect on my flight back home to California from London. All of the goodness I experienced from meeting my new UK therapy partners is foremost on my mind. Clinical work is important, and innovative therapeutic work is most critical for both the US and the UK therapists in forming alliances to meet the more demanding needs of our client families. As one new friend Noel put it, “strategizing” the systemic changes in mental health service delivery is most critical; with my other new friend Barny underscoring the importance of building trusting relationships while breaking down outdated agency barriers. This morning before my flight, I took this photo of swans gliding on to a pond in the middle of Hyde Park that provides a visual of how mental health services can be provided when the building of strategic alliances is working positively. I am very pleased with my trip to London, and my meetings. I have come back with a renewed sense of what the world of international well being is to become, and how special is the work.

What makes the English, well English ? This week I feel I found an answer in the combined intelligence and warmth of those born and bred in the mother country, as well as those coming to the UK from other countries. To learn the manners and ways of the English and to become “truly English” takes time. So why wait? Come study abroad with one of my partners and find out for yourself. Do it for the summer. Come as a student, executive or retiree. We can make it happen.

Happily, I accepted an invitation to visit Canaan CT the home of Mountainside treatment program. At the foot of the Berkshires, there isn’t really much to take away from personal commitment to treatment —just beautiful scenery. And that’s only the beginning. The physical plant is tasteful and well designed. New construction is starting for additional housing and activity centers, and the designs is attractive. But what makes Mountainside most attractive is the staff. Professional, yet friendly. Humble, yet informative. My client is doing terrific, and the program communicates with me, making it easy to keep parents informed as treatment is progressing. If you need the “right choice” for your son or daughter, and you need a professional to help manage to increase the success, don’t hesitate to call and ask questions.

It isn’t a matter of luck, it’s a matter of 30 years of experience that makes for success in designing the individual therapeutic goal with the right therapist’s skills and approach. After conducting our own psychological assessment analysis, this individual was not prepared for a more physically rigorous wilderness expedition making the Hawaii choice the right one. Dr Burdick never sends an individual out to a setting he hasn’t visited or plans to visit in the immediate future. The staff are those with whom he is always familiar, and generally long standing secure relationships are the norm. In the case of Hawaii, he has known the owners since day one, and in fact helped engineer the cultural therapeutic approach used today by the program. In using native culture motifs, vocabulary, philosophy, and values the Pacific Quest program has thrived on the south end of the Big Island of Hawaii since it’s inception. Mike and Suzanne McKinney have done outstanding work, and have allowed us to even have a voice in the hiring of therapists for the program. This is what collaboration is all about to bring about success for families in ways unseen in the private therapy world in working with adolescents and young adults.