The Groves Conference on Marriage and Family: History and Impact on Family Science

About the Authors

Anna L. Cole, M.S., LMFT, is a Clinical Fellow of the American Association for Marital and Family Therapy and a licensed marriage and family therapist in private practice in Calhoun, Louisiana, and is the founding chair of the Louisiana regulatory subboard for licensed marriage and family therapy. She wrote the rules and regulations for LMFT licensure in the state and served for 9 years as the delegate to the Association for Marital and Family Therapy Regulatory Boards (AMFTRB). She served as secretary for AMFTRB and played a pivotal role in working to establish standards for licensure portability. She is the author of more than 20 journal articles on marital therapy and marriage enrichment and has co-authored chapters in books, such as the Sourcebook of Family Theories and Methods. Anna was the first person elected to serve as the student member on the AAMFT Board of Directors. She also has served as a member of the AAMFT Membership Committee and the AAMFT Judicial Council as well as holding state offices including president in the Iowa Division. She is a long-time member of the Groves Conference, AAMFT, NCFR, and Better Marriages (formerly ACME).

Charles Lee Cole, Ph. D., LMFT, C.F.L.E., began his career at the NIMH Clinical Research Center in Ft. Worth, Texas as a Research Sociologist in 1967 and became a university professor in 1968, serving on faculties at the University of Arkansas in Little Rock; Denison University in Granville, Ohio; The Ohio State University in Columbus Ohio; Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa; and The University of Louisiana at Monroe. He was the founder of the Marriage and Family Therapy Doctoral Training Program at Iowa State University and Delta Kappa the International Marriage and Family Therapy Honor Society. Dr. Cole held the Hanna Spyker Endowed Chair in Marriage and Family Therapy at the University of Louisiana at Monroe and has received 16 awards for his teaching, research, and leadership in the marriage and family profession over his career. Charles "Chuck" is the author of more than 100 publications, has presented Page  308over 150 refereed papers and workshops at major conferences in the marriage and family field, and has contributed invited chapters to major textbooks and reference books in marriage and family. In his retirement he continues to do research and consultation and has a private practice in marriage and family therapy. He is a Life Member, Clinical Fellow and Approved Supervisor of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy, and has been a member of the Groves Conference since 1972 when he received the Groves Conference Scholarship. He served terms on the board of directors for both NCFR and the Groves Conference. He served as program chair for the 1990 Groves Conference titled "The Family-Peace Connection."

Marcia Lasswell, M.A., (University of Southern California) is a marriage and family therapist and past president of the American Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. She is Professor Emerita in marriage and family therapy at California Polytechnic University in Pomona and is retired as Clinical Professor of Marriage and Family Therapy at the University of Southern California. She is a member of the Groves Academy, has served on the Groves Board, and organized two Groves Conferences as chair and co-chair. She is a prolific writer of textbooks in marriage and family and practical family advice.

Virginia Hayes Sibbison, B.A., M.Sc., Ph.D. (Pennsylvania State University) is Executive Director, Welfare Research, Inc. (WRI), since March, 1976. She is responsible for the day-to-day corporate and administrative functions of WRI and the conduct of all program activities. Responsibilities also include frequent interaction with top-level government agency administrators, corporate CEOs, and foundation directors, as well as with WRI's own Board of Directors, which is composed of prominent representatives of public and voluntary agencies, foundations, and health and educational institutions. WRI is a not-for-profit organization that conducts research, evaluation, technical assistance, training, policy analysis, and resource materials development in the field of human services. The organization's activities require close working relationships with federal, state, and local government agencies, the New York State Legislature, nonprofit provider agencies, foundations, and Page  309community-based organizations. She is active in the not-for-profit community in New York City and in the State of New York. Additional activities include the New York Council on Family Relations, serving as treasurer and president, and the National Council on Family Relations. She is a Pennsylvania State University Alumni Fellow (1980) and Pennsylvania State University College of Health and Human Development, Petersen Society Member (2012). She has served on the board of directors of the Robert Sterling Clark Foundation from 1996 to the present. She is long-time member of the Groves Conference, a Lifetime and Academy member, and served as Treasurer and Board Member from 1982 to 2010.