About Philip J. Ward

Philip Ward has been an addiction treatment practitioner and educator since 1991. He holds a Master of Social Work from the State University of New York and is a Credentialed Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Counselor. His instructional design and systems development work has been ongoing since 1996. Current interests involve a study of the dialogic intersect between counseling, spirituality, and education.

The purpose of this document is to illustrate my path toward personal and professional development; which is, of course, ongoing.

I began my career working as a counselor for five years in a crisis detoxification center. During this time I completed studies in an addictions counseling associate degree program. The program; which was offered by Sullivan County Community College, influenced my entire career and since that time I have held a dream of becoming the director of an addictions counseling educational program. I had a choice at that time of attending workshops or taking college courses; I chose college courses as I saw them as a more legitimate educational source. In my opinion, the clinical training that I received through Sullivan County Community College was better than that which I received in my graduate social work program. For example, the program had an entire semester devoted to interviewing skills. During the semester, students were required to submit videos and conduct live exercises that were critiqued using an objective criteria. A sad reality is that this program no longer exists. My mentor during my enrollment in an undergraduate degree in Community and Human Services encouraged me to do two tasks:

- to go on to earn a degree in social work, and

- to return to the college as an instructor once I successfully completed my graduate studies

My belief was that a graduate degree in social work would provide legitimacy to my addictions specific work. While in graduate school, I focused on addictions-related studies as a way to widen my addictions base. To accomplish this goal, I focused on studying trauma, grief and loss, and policy studies.

Since 1991, becoming a master-level addiction practitioner has been the core theme of my work. I have purposely studied and strategically developed myself along a career pat. The entire focus has been to help individuals find recovery from addictive disorders. My work was initially driven by my own recovery process and the passion brought about by seeing people around me die from the disease of addiction.

Another aspect of my foundation involved religious studies as addictions involves spirituality. As a way to develop a better understanding, I completed approximately 20 credits in theological studies such as comparative religion and the religious history of the United States. Based on this knowledge, I developedaddictions-specific spirituality training and have been the lead trainer for OASAS in this subject area. Additionally, I have been a guest lecturer on the use of spirituality as an addiction-specific theoretical construct.

Another building block in my addictions-specific foundation has involved my own personal growth through psychotherapy, self help meetings, studying yoga psychology, and martial arts.

I have always been a voracious reader, and I have continually collected books and studied to increase my liberal arts education.. My reading primarily has been in the areas of philosophy, religion, literature, and psychology. My goal has been to be able to develop a working knowledge of major theorists. I have studied a variety of theorists such as Carl Rogers, Wolfgang Kohler, Karl Jung, Sigmund Freud, Martin Buber, Eric Berne, Murray Bowen, Paulo Friere, Milton Erickson, etc,.My idea has been to build a foundation upon which to develop my own theoretical constructs.

In 1996, I developed several therapeutic programs based on Vedic psychology. These programs are still being used today in a number of treatment facilities. I have discovered that the majority of addictions treatment models are psychotherapeutic constructs that have been applied to addictions counseling. The field needs but does not have an addiction specific treatment construct, and my next project is to write a book that presents a model that may be used by counselors to deliver outcome focused practice.

My studies have allowed me to critique what and how I have been taught. My goal consistently has been to get at the root or underlying truth behind the words and concepts.

In 1998 I began work for the New York State Office of Alcoholism and Substance Abuse Services (OASAS) as a staff development specialist. I worked for eight years as a staff development specialist developing trainings, conducting trainings, and developing trainers and training systems across New York State. I continue to work for OASAS in an administrative capacity as a county specific program manager.

In 2003 I began to teach at Empire State College. The main question I had when I began teaching was how to teach most effectively? This question sent me on a quest to study education theory. I learned about distance education as it occurs through digital mediums. My studies led me to develop an instructional framework that is based on distance learning, best practice research, and education best practice research.

I utilized this framework to build a course that is designed to bridge the gap between research on adolescent addictions treatment and direct practice. My course has been very well received by both the college and the students and my work has reached across and outside of the United States. I have had a number of practitioners take the course simply for their own professional development.

Over the years I have continued to study the addictions treatment industry and have come to several conclusions:

  • The field is not recognized as a bona-fide profession and due to this fact, addiction counselors suffer through low pay, and a lack of professional legitimacy.
  • The field is not driven by standards as in there is no infrastructure.
  • How people become competent counselors is not explained by the industry.
  • Supervision and instruction are not guided by relevant research.

To address these conclusions, I have developed a research-based and addiction-specific competency development framework. I have validated my conclusions through a study of addictions workforce development systems that are located around the world. All of my research in this area has been developed into a book that is designed to provide a direction for the addictions treatment industry. My goal is to articulate the concern and to set forth an agenda that addresses the issues in a thoughtful manner. The book is the culmination of my work over the past eighteen years. I am working on two projects involving dialogism; one involves writing a text that illustrates an addictions specific theoretical construct The second project involves the development of an outcome-based supervision guide. I also am working to understand collectively-held ideologies and how they are developed and demonstrated within our society.

My plan is to continue my own professional growth and development through continual study. My growth is also hastened through a commitment to genuine dialogue.