Get Involved

Become a Site Visitor

Who is a Site Visitor?

• Volunteers their time on behalf of the Commission on Accreditation
• Serves as the 'Eyes and Ears' of the Commission
• Verifies quality in academic programs
• Contributes to the MFT Profession

Why Become a Site Visitor?

• Help expand the MFT field
• Help to ensure quality instruction of Marriage and Family Therapy.

What does it take to become a Site Visitor:

• Minimum of five (5) years of advanced experience as a licensed MFT practitioner and/or educator/researcher in the field of marriage and family therapy (which includes but is not limited to: experience in a university, clinical, or related setting)
• AAMFT Approved Supervisor and/or State Approved Supervisor
• Current knowledge of the standards for marriage and family therapy education
• Successful completion of COAMFTE Site Visitor Training
• Licensed marriage and family therapist
• Current knowledge and experience in the profession of marriage and family therapy
• Participation in a site visit or site visitor refresher training every two (2) years to maintain 'active' status

How to become a Site Visitor?

• Submit Eligibility Application for Site Visitors
• Engage in Self-Paced Online Review of Accreditation Materials: become familiar with accreditation process
• Attend Virtual Training on Wednesday, October 30, 2019, 1:00 PM-4:00 PM Eastern Time.
• Successfully complete Online Assessment with a score of 80%: helps to assess your knowledge of the COAMFTE accreditation process and standards
• Attend Skill-Based Virtual Training on November 15, 2019, 1:00 PM-4:00 PM: engage in an experiential exercise with other participants and practice on-site verification and report writing.
• Complete a Site Visitor Training Survey: complete a short survey of your experience and provide feedback on the training.

COAMFTE Network Communities

• Commissioner Community
• Eligibility Review Committee Community
• Program Director Community
• Site Visitor Community
  
• Standards Review Committee Community
• Accreditation Review Program Community

Active Site Visitors

Programs are required to complete and submit the Conflict of Interest Form with their self-study materials. Full disclosure of all potential and actual Conflicts of Interests with any of the active site visitor listed below must be noted on the Conflict of Interest Form. Please note that the completion of the Conflict of Interest Form does not guarantee a site visit. Site visits are scheduled based on the review of the program’s self-study materials by Commission on Accreditation for Marriage and Family Therapy Education (COAMFTE).

To maintain active site visitor status, site visitors must:

• Participate in a site visit within two years from their site visitor training; and 
• At least once every two years.

Site visitors who do not participate in a site visit every two years will be considered inactive and must retake the site visitor training prior to participation in a site visit (COAMFTE Accreditation Manual: Policies and Procedures).

Eligibility Review Committee

The Eligibility Review Committee (ERC), a subcommittee appointed by the COAMFTE chair, is responsible for conducting reviews of Eligibility Criteria documents and determining when a program has demonstrated, through a substantially complete response, that it is prepared to proceed in the accreditation process. The ERC is comprised of marriage and family therapy educators and doctoral students enrolled in COAMFTE-accredited programs, who have a minimum of a master’s degree in Marriage and Family Therapy or a related mental health field and familiarity with COAMFTE’s accreditation standards, policies and processes.

COAMFTE is looking forward to working with the following of ERC Members:

• Alise G. Bartley, PhD
• Dale Bertram, PhD
• Leonard Michael Bohanon, PhD
• Jetlexis Carlos
• Megan L. Chapman
• Christie Eppler, PhD
• Kami Gallus, PhD
• Heather A. Katafiasz, PhD
• Lisa V. Merchant, PhD
• G. Bowden Templeton, PhD
• Jeffrey W. White, PhD
• Monique E. Willis, PhD

Standards Review Committee

The Standards Review Committee (SRC), a subcommittee appointed by the COAMFTE chair, is responsible for: (1) implementing procedures for the review process every five (5) years and (2) providing the COAMFTE with on-going feedback reflecting the state of accreditation standards and interpretations throughout the five-year cycle. 

COAMFTE is looking forward to working with the following SRC Members:

• Suzanne Bartle-Haring, PhD
• Elizabeth Fawcett, PhD
• Jennifer Hodgson, PhD
• Heather Katafiasz, PhD
• Daniel Lord, PhD
• Carol Messmore, PhD
• Craig W. Smith, PhD

Accreditation Reviewer Program

The Accreditation Reviewer Program, appointed by the COAMFTE Chair, is responsible for conducting reviews of COAMFTE accreditation documents (including self-study materials, annual reports and initial and renewal of accreditation documents) to identify areas of program’s compliance and non-compliance with COAMFTE accreditation standards and provide recommendations to the Commission regarding accreditation actions

COAMFTE is looking forward to working with the following members who will be part of the inaugural cohort of the pilot Accreditation Reviewer Program:

• Jay Burke, PsyD
• Rashmi Gangamma, PhD
• Dale Hawley, PhD
• Douglas Jones, PhD
• Kelly Kennedy, PhD
• Martha Marquez, PhD
• Aaron Norton, PhD
• Lori Pantaleao, PhD
• Krista Speicher, DMFT
• Emma Sterrett-Hong, PhD
• Daniel Stillwell, PhD