Authority, Leadership
& Role —
Bringing
Mind & Body
to Work
Group Relations
Conference
Chicago, IL
June 6-8, 2025
Roosevelt University
Introduction
The Group Relations Conference is an educational event whose primary task is to provide opportunities to study the exercise of authority through interpersonal, intergroup, and institutional relationships that develop within the conference itself as a temporary social system.
The principles and methods of this conference originated at the Center for Applied Social Research, Tavistock Institute of Human Relations, London, England under the leadership of the late A.K. Rice. The Washington School of Psychiatry and the Department of Psychiatry of Yale University Medical School introduced conferences using these principles and methods to the United States in 1965. The A.K. Rice Institute for the Study of Social Systems, a not-for-profit organization, was established in 1970 to advance knowledge of the dynamics of groups, organizations and social systems.
This conference is sponsored by the Chicago Center for the Study of Groups and Organizations (CCSGO), Roosevelt University Department of Psychology, the A.K. Rice Institute, and other organizations:
Sponsored by:
ADVENTURE
FORWARD
THERAPY
This is the first in-person Group Relations Conference to be held in Chicago in five years. I am especially proud to have Roosevelt University as the host sponsor for the event. Roosevelt University was founded on the values of courage, acceptance, and a commitment to social values. These values are consistent with those of group relations, an educational community that also strives to be inclusive and which values perspectives of individuals from diverse backgrounds. In the spirit of both Roosevelt University and the A.K. Rice Institute, all are welcome at this dynamic living institution, which is designed to study itself for the purposes of illuminating leadership and other emergent dynamics in groups.
Another factor that makes this particular group relations conference unique is the integration of Group Challenge Events (GCE’s). Whereas most of the conference is dedicated to studying unconscious processes in groups, the GCE’s give members an opportunity to engage in tasks that are closer to the demands of the real world, in which concrete tasks are continually required of us. Members will therefore be given opportunities to study the group’s behavior in multiple contexts, which promises to provide a rich and enjoyable learning experience for all. Please note that no special athletic ability is required for these events, and they can include people of all ability levels.
Note from the Director
Barney Straus
Structure & Method
This conference is designed for individuals who wish to study the exercise of authority in groups and understand more about their own responses to exercising and encountering authority. The conference is organized as a sequence of group and inter-group interactions. Events include experiences in:
Small Study Group (SG) examines the life of an eight to ten- member group as it unfolds. A consultant assists the group with the task.
Large Study Group (LG) consists of all conference members with a team of consultants and meets to study its own behavior in the here-and-now. This simulates processes and dynamics of larger social systems as they struggle with the problems of formation, transition and rapid change.
Institutional Event (IE) Members form their own groups to interact with other member groups and with staff. The primary task of the IE is to study authority, leadership, and overt/covert processes as groups evolve and interact in the here-and-now.
Group Challenge Events (GCE’s) members of the large and small study groups engage in a series of physical problem-solving initiatives. These events offer an opportunity to explore how roles may shift as group members focus on accomplishing concrete tasks. These events will be co-led by an administrative team member and a consultant, to assist the group in addressing physical and intangible aspects of the group’s work.
Review and Application Group (RAG) consists of five to seven members with one or two consultants; provides opportunities for members to further reflect on their experiences and roles in the different conference events and relate them to their work roles in community and institutional settings.
Please note: The conference is designed to provide an integrated experience. Learning occurs not only during individual conference events but also from their sequence and relationship to one another; therefore, membership entails a commitment to attend all events.
Learning from Experience
Effective leadership and the meaningful exercise of authority require more than intellectual and technical understanding. The Group Relations model in the Tavistock tradition provides a well-defined context within which to examine group-level forces and dynamics as they occur in the here-and-now. As people work in groups, families and other social systems, their participation takes on many different meanings — influencing thoughts, feelings and actions. The confluence of individual meanings powerfully affects the identities, roles and authority we take on in groups, schools, organizations, institutions, communities and society.
Members of a group relations conference have the opportunity to directly experience:
How people join and engage in group work, delegate and resist authority, and develop roles and reputations.
How people contribute to and obstruct getting the group’s work accomplished.
How members of a group exercise authority, power and influence in meaningful and appropriate ways — both as leaders and as followers.
Group collusion in the creation and enabling of maladaptive roles.
Group cooperation in the creation and enabling of adaptive roles.
In applying the learning from group relations conferences, having two or more people from the same organization attend the conference together is often useful.
Conference Details
Location
Roosevelt University’s Chicago campus is in the south part of the Loop, in downtown Chicago. Located at 430 South Michigan Avenue, it’s opposite Grant Park, and convenient to public transportation. Known as the “vertical campus,” the building houses classrooms, administrative offices, and dorm rooms, as well as a cafeteria and a gym. The conference will take place on the third floor of the building.
Housing
Three night (Thursday-Sunday) and four-night (Thursday-Monday) options are available. Housing includes single occupancy dorm room, bedding and towels, access to laundry machines, and access to the gym. Two options are available:
Three nights — $330 (Thursday through Sunday)
Four nights — $440 (Thursday through Monday)
Meals & Snacks
Conference registration includes lunch on each day. Snacks and coffee will be available as well. The RU cafeteria will also be open for breakfast and dinner. A list of local restaurants will be provided to conference attendees.
Conference Schedule
Conference Events take place during the following times:
Friday, June 8, 9:00am — 7:00pm
Saturday, June 9, 8:30am — 7:30pm
Sunday, June 10, 8:30am—4:00pm
Parking
There are several parking lots in the area. Discounted parking will be available to conference attendees. Details posted soon.
Conference Staff
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Barney Straus
Conference Director
Barney Straus is an adventure-based therapist in private practice in Chicago, IL, where he works with individuals and groups to treat people recovering from addictions and compulsive behaviors. Barney is a part-time faculty member at Roosevelt University, Dept. of Psychology, Loyola University Chicago, School of Social Work, and New Mexico Highlands University, School of Social Work. Barney is the founder of Adventure Forward Therapy, a practice dedicated to integrating adventure into the therapeutic process. He is the author of Healing in Action: Adventure-Based Counseling with Therapy Groups. He is co-author of the 4th Edition of Group Psychotherapy with Addicted Populations. Fellow, AGPA; Member, and Certified Consultant, AKRI; Board President, CCSGO.
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Diana Castañeda
Associate Director
Diana Castañeda is a Licensed Clinical Professional Counselor in private practice in Chicago, IL. Her practice specializes in trauma recovery and she works with adults, families, and youth. Diana is a Certified Consultant of the A. K. Rice Institute for the study of social systems. She is also a member of the Washington-Baltimore Center for the Study of Group Relations and the Chicago Center for the Study of Groups and Organizations. Diana serves as a clinical consultant for the fellowship program at the Chicago Center for Psychoanalysis and Psychotherapy. She received her degrees from Northwestern University. Diana has served on staff at numerous group relations conferences across the country.
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Kat Harding
Assistant Director for Administration
Dr. Katherine Harding is a Clinical Psychologist in private practice in Chicago, Illinois. She is the founding owner of City Haven Counseling, where she specializes in the treatment of trauma and grief and loss. Dr. Harding is past president and current member of The Chicago Center for the Study of Groups and Organizations (CCSGO). She began her Group Relations work in 2003 while completing her doctorate at the Illinois School of Professional Psychology
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Bob Hsiung
Consultant
Robert "Dr. Bob" Hsiung is a psychiatrist in private practice in Chicago; a Distinguished Life Fellow of the American Psychiatric Association; a Fellow of the American Group Psychotherapy Association; a member of the Board of Directors of the Group Foundation for Advancing Mental Health; a member of the Board of Directors of the Chicago Center for the Study of Groups and Organizations; a former member of the Board of Directors of the A. K. Rice Institute; a co-founder of the Alternative Large Group, a free weekly leaderless international online large group; the founder of Psycho-Babble, a large public online peer support group; the editor of E-therapy: Case Studies, Guiding Principles, and the Clinical Potential of the Internet (Norton, 2002); and a "brilliant and reticent Web mastermind" (NY Times, 2010).
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mak wemuk
Consultant
mak wemuk, JD (he, him); Principal, Luna Consulting & Coaching (health equity, racial equity, executive coaching, organizational development); Fellow, Director Development Mentor, and Conference Committee member, A.K. Rice Institute; Co-Creator, Group Relations International (GRI); Vice President, Washington-Baltimore Center for the Study of Group Relations (WBC); member and current weekend conference director, Center for the Study of Groups and Social Systems (CSGSS, Boston); member, Chicago Center for the Study of Groups and Organizations (CCSGO); practitioner, Insight for Community Impact network (ICI, Toronto); Past-President, National Association of Latino Healthcare Executives (NALHE); member, National Lawyers Guild (NLG).
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Isabelle Reiniger
Consultant
Isabelle Reiniger, LCSW has a full-time psychotherapy and consulting practice in Evanston, IL. She is a Fellow of the A.K. Rice Institute and a Co-Creator of Group Relations International. She was the Chair of the AKRI Reparations Committee from 2021-2024. She is a member of the Chicago Center for the Study of Groups and Organizations and of the New York Center for the Study of Groups, Organizations, and Social Systems. She received her graduate degree from NYU and is a graduate of the Child and Adolescent Psychotherapy program of the William Alanson White Institute, NY. In addition to enjoying rope courses, Isabelle does cold plunging.
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Aschylus Robinson
Consultant
Aschylus Robinson, LCSW is a clinical therapist in her private practice, Kulima Therapy, in Salt Lake City, Utah; where she focuses on inner child work and adults navigating childhood trauma. She also provides contract clinical supervision to associate licensed individuals needing support and psychoeducation toward full licensure. Aschylus received her Masters of Social Work degree from Loyola University Chicago. She has been engaged with group relations work for nearly 10 years. Aschylus is a member of the A.K. Rice Institute, CCSGO, and Grex.
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Tyrome Smith
Consultant
Tyrome ‘Ty’ Smith, has over 25 years as a trusted advisor and coach to senior leaders and their teams helping them to understand human and organizational dynamics. He has conducted many senior-level engagements with the expressed intention of developing and executing strategic value. A certified group relations consultant with over 25 years of experience, he has and continues to use the method to inform his consulting practice with both private and non-profit institutions. Much of his early insight into the human dynamic was developed when he served as a police officer very early in his professional career. He was recently awarded AKRI Fellow status. He also previously served as the vice-president of the AK Rice Institute and is currently a member of the Washington-Baltimore Center.
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Courtney Washington
Consultant
Dr. Courtney Washington is the lead Clinical Psychologist at Park Center/ Parkview Behavioral Health Institute in Fort Wayne Indiana. She serves on the board of CCSGO and the AKRI board. Clinically, she operates from a psychodynamic, feminist, existential, and group relations perspective. She is currently completing a certificate program at the University of Michigan with the goal of becoming a sex therapist. Her clinical interests include sexual health, social justice, LGBTQ+ issues, and gender issues. In her personal life she enjoys building a small sustainable homestead with her partner and their dogs Sigmund and Marco.
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John Fiene
Administrative Team Member
John Fiene, LCSW (he/him) provides psychotherapy and psychoanalysis for adults, group therapy for men, and family therapy through his private practice in Chicago. He is an analyst-in-training at the Chicago Psychoanalytic Institute. He earned his MSW in 2013 at UIC Jane Addams College of Social Work (JACSW). Since 2010, John has facilitated groups in community, medical, educational, and legal settings. He is a member of the A.K. Rice Institute (AKRI) and Chicago Center for the Study of Groups and Organizations (CCSGO).
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Sarah Yi
Administrative Team Member
Sarah Yi, LCPC is a Chicago-based clinician in private practice who works with BIPOC clients on race & ethnicity, family dynamics, and intergenerational trauma using multicultural, feminist, and systems-based approaches. She received her MA in Counseling from the Family Institute at Northwestern University in 2016, where she was first exposed to group relations work. Since then Sarah attended an all-women group relations conference as a member and served on staff at numerous Northwestern Tavistock conferences as an administrative member and consultant.
Registration
Use our online checkout process to register/pay with a credit card.
Contact us to make a Zelle or check payment.
Due to limited space, early registration is encouraged.
Early registration discount ends April 1, 2025.
The conference membership will be capped at 50. After that time, those interested in registering will be placed on a waiting list, and then notified if a spot opens up.
Discounts are available to those affiliated with sponsoring organizations. Please be sure to indicate the name of the sponsoring organization you are affiliated with.
Partial scholarships may be available, based on stated need and conference enrollment. Please send your letter of request to admin@mindbodygrc.com. A $30.00 application fee is required.
Cancellations made before May 1 will be refunded at 100%, less a $30.00 administrative fee. Cancellations made after May 1 will be refunded if the spot can be filled by someone from the waiting list.
Letter of Recommendation
Experiential learning can be stressful. Please provide a letter of recommendation attesting to your ability to engage in a three-day experiential learning event. Those undergoing a particularly stressful time in their lives are discouraged from attending. Please email reference letter to mindbodygrc@gmail.com.
Letters of recommendation should not be sent from parents, partners, and other family members. Suggested recommenders include mental health clinicians, physicians, psychologists, supervisors, mentors, etc.
CEU’s
20 CEU’s will be available for psychologists and social workers.