Registration for the March 4, 2023 event is in Knoxville, TN and opens January 1, 2023
Speakers include survivors and esteemed experts on coercive control to discuss approaches to counseling survivors of human trafficking, domestic abuse, and cultic involvement. The conference is free; however, registration is required. Registration opens on January 1, 2023. Participants range from area social workers and psychologists to insurance providers to criminal justice professionals and crisis responders. The conference is meant to educate professionals whose work supports our healthy communities—counselors, social workers, attorneys, law enforcement, educators, and clergy/church leaders—on the presence and influence of coercive control in our communities, and how to properly handle the aid of their victims. The event is sponsored by Keys to Me nonprofit organization in association with The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, College of Social Work. Jackie Johnson, Doctor of Social Work, LCSW; Lorna Goldberg, LCSW, PsyA; Bill Goldberg, Master of Social Work; and Ragan Schriver, Doctor of Psychology will each speak about coercive control and the ways it appears in our communities. The conference will feature a panel discussion of survivors in conversation about their experiences. The panel will be moderated by Debby Schriver and Ragan Schriver. Please save the date and join us!
Participants will be eligible to receive 6 CE credits. Continuing education clock hours certificates will be issued for Social Workers and Counselors at the end of the program. NOTE: This event will be in person only.
The event will be held in Knoxville, TN • Registration Opens January 1, 2023
Speakers include survivors and esteemed experts on coercive control to discuss approaches to counseling survivors of human trafficking, domestic abuse, and cultic involvement. The conference is free; however, registration is required. Registration opens on January 1, 2023. Participants range from area social workers and psychologists to insurance providers to criminal justice professionals and crisis responders. The conference is meant to educate professionals whose work supports our healthy communities—counselors, social workers, attorneys, law enforcement, educators, and clergy/church leaders—on the presence and influence of coercive control in our communities, and how to properly handle the aid of their victims. The event is sponsored by Keys to Me nonprofit organization in association with The University of Tennessee, Knoxville, College of Social Work. Jackie Johnson, Doctor of Social Work, LCSW; Lorna Goldberg, LCSW, PsyA; Bill Goldberg, Master of Social Work; and Ragan Schriver, Doctor of Psychology will each speak about coercive control and the ways it appears in our communities. The conference will feature a panel discussion of survivors in conversation about their experiences. The panel will be moderated by Debby Schriver and Ragan Schriver. Please save the date and join us!
Participants will be eligible to receive 6 CE credits. Continuing education clock hours certificates will be issued for Social Workers and Counselors at the end of the program. NOTE: This event will be in person only.
ABOUT OUR SPEAKERS
Lorna Goldberg, LCSW, PsyA, Board member and past president of International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA), is a clinical social worker and psychoanalyst in private practice and Director, Institute for Psychoanalytic Studies. In 1976, she and her husband, Bill Goldberg, began facilitating a support group for former cult members that continues to meet on a monthly basis in their home in Englewood, New Jersey. In 2009, Lorna received the Margaret T. Singer Award from ICSA. Lorna joined ICSA’s Board of Directors in November 2003. Lorna has published numerous articles about her therapeutic work with former cult members in professional journals, most recently: Goldberg, L. (2012). Influence of a Charismatic Antisocial Cult Leader: Psychotherapy with an Ex-Cultist Prosecuted for Criminal Behavior. International Journal of Cultic Studies, Vol. 2, 15-24. Goldberg, L. (2011). Diana, Leaving the Cult: Play Therapy in Childhood and Talk Therapy in Adolescence. International Journal of Cultic Studies, Vol.2, 33-43. She also wrote a chapter on guidelines for therapists in the book, Recovery from Cults, edited by Michael Langone. Lorna has co-written with Bill Goldberg, a chapter on psychotherapy with targeted parents in the book, Working with Alienated Children and Families (2012), edited by Amy J.L. Baker & S. Richard Sauber. She also wrote a chapter on psychotherapy with a former member of a destructive cult, New Religious Movements and Counseling: Academic, Professional and Personal Perspectives, edited by Sarah Harvey, Silke Steidinger, & James Beckford (2017). Lorna was a co-editor of ICSA’s Cult Recovery: A Clinician’s Guide to Working with Former Members and Their Families, published in 2017.
In addition to his work with families of cult members, Bill works for the Rockland County (New York) Department of Mental Health, where he directs three out-patient programs. He received his Bachelor’s Degree from Rutgers in 1968 and his Master’s in Social Work from NYU in 1970. Bill has written articles on therapeutic programs for chronically mentally ill young adults and the tricks employed by so-called “psychics,” and has contributed chapters to several books on cults. He has appeared on The ABC Nightly News, The Sally Jesse Raphael Show, The John McLaughlin Show, MSNBC and The Geraldo Rivera Show. He has been invited to testify before several state legislatures on regulations affecting residents of Adult Homes as well as on cult-related matters. He’s testified before The New York State Assembly Committee on Child Care, The New York State Social Service Committee, The New Jersey State Assembly Judiciary Committee and the Connecticut State Judiciary Committee. Along with his wife Lorna, Bill is the recipient of the Hall of Fame Award from the Authentic Cult Awareness Network and the Leo J. Ryan Award from the Leo J. Ryan Foundation. Bill meets with families of cult members for a two-hour session and together they plan a strategy for dealing with the situation. For the first hour, the family does most of the talking. Factors discussed include developmental history and milestones, how the individual has reacted to losses and embarrassment in the past, which family members and friends they’ve been closest to, how they’ve handled mistakes in the past, how they’ve dealt with authority figures in the past, etc. Bill then explains what he sees as the primary factors attracting the individual to the cult, suggests different forms of intervention and discusses the chances of success for each form of intervention. He then suggests ways of phrasing questions and discussions that could be employed to help the cult member rethink the situation. Bill’s goals in meeting with families are to help them to better understand the dynamics of cult membership for their family member and to devise a practical strategy for how the family can intervene.
Jackie Johnson holds a Master’s Degree from Columbia University School of Social Work and a Doctoral Degree from the University of Tennessee College of Social Work. Her professional career spans over 20 years in the areas of psychotherapy, social work research, clinical supervision, training and consultation, administration, program development, program evaluation, and public policy.
She is certified in forensic social work and has over 20 years experience working with victims and perpetrators of physical, sexual, relationship, and spiritual abuse. She is a speaker and presenter at the annual conferences of the National Organization of Forensic Social Workers (NOFSW).
In addition to the work of her practice, Johnson serves as the director of the International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA).
Debby Schriver is a cult expert, author, and human rights activist. A native of Chicago, Schriver earned undergraduate and graduate degrees at the University of Tennessee. Her focus on child development began in her work with the Foster Care Review Board. There she worked with the community that serves at-risk youth: lawyers, social workers, and foster parents. A similar group of caring professionals have been essential in informing Debby’s work on her book Whispering in the Daylight, The Children of Tony Alamo Christian Ministries and their Journey to Freedom. Alamo’s story is chronicled in the Sundance TV docuseries “Ministry of Evil: The Twisted Cult of Tony Alamo,” in which Schriver appears as their cult expert (NBC Peacock Productions and World of Wonder Productions, February 2019). Presently, Debby serves as the Executive Director of Keys to Me.
Ragan Schriver is an Associate Professor of Practice at the University of Tennessee College of Social Work as well as the Director of the MSSW Program, Knoxville Campus and chair of the Forensic Social Work Certificate Program. He teaches clinical and leadership courses in the MSSW program. He also serves as the Special Assistant to the President of Catholic Charities USA. In this role he takes part in a team process to develop integrated health programs within the network. He previously served as Executive Director of Catholic Charities of East Tennessee for fifteen years. He earned his MSW from Washington University in St. Louis, MO and became a licensed social worker in 2001. He earned his Doctor of Psychology degree in 2016, and his capstone project was on Trauma Informed Care.
Lorna Goldberg, LCSW, PsyA, Board member and past president of International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA), is a clinical social worker and psychoanalyst in private practice and Director, Institute for Psychoanalytic Studies. In 1976, she and her husband, Bill Goldberg, began facilitating a support group for former cult members that continues to meet on a monthly basis in their home in Englewood, New Jersey. In 2009, Lorna received the Margaret T. Singer Award from ICSA. Lorna joined ICSA’s Board of Directors in November 2003. Lorna has published numerous articles about her therapeutic work with former cult members in professional journals, most recently: Goldberg, L. (2012). Influence of a Charismatic Antisocial Cult Leader: Psychotherapy with an Ex-Cultist Prosecuted for Criminal Behavior. International Journal of Cultic Studies, Vol. 2, 15-24. Goldberg, L. (2011). Diana, Leaving the Cult: Play Therapy in Childhood and Talk Therapy in Adolescence. International Journal of Cultic Studies, Vol.2, 33-43. She also wrote a chapter on guidelines for therapists in the book, Recovery from Cults, edited by Michael Langone. Lorna has co-written with Bill Goldberg, a chapter on psychotherapy with targeted parents in the book, Working with Alienated Children and Families (2012), edited by Amy J.L. Baker & S. Richard Sauber. She also wrote a chapter on psychotherapy with a former member of a destructive cult, New Religious Movements and Counseling: Academic, Professional and Personal Perspectives, edited by Sarah Harvey, Silke Steidinger, & James Beckford (2017). Lorna was a co-editor of ICSA’s Cult Recovery: A Clinician’s Guide to Working with Former Members and Their Families, published in 2017.
In addition to his work with families of cult members, Bill works for the Rockland County (New York) Department of Mental Health, where he directs three out-patient programs. He received his Bachelor’s Degree from Rutgers in 1968 and his Master’s in Social Work from NYU in 1970.
Bill has written articles on therapeutic programs for chronically mentally ill young adults and the tricks employed by so-called “psychics,” and has contributed chapters to several books on cults. He has appeared on The ABC Nightly News, The Sally Jesse Raphael Show, The John McLaughlin Show, MSNBC and The Geraldo Rivera Show. He has been invited to testify before several state legislatures on regulations affecting residents of Adult Homes as well as on cult-related matters. He’s testified before The New York State Assembly Committee on Child Care, The New York State Social Service Committee, The New Jersey State Assembly Judiciary Committee and the Connecticut State Judiciary Committee. Along with his wife Lorna, Bill is the recipient of the Hall of Fame Award from the Authentic Cult Awareness Network and the Leo J. Ryan Award from the Leo J. Ryan Foundation.
Bill meets with families of cult members for a two-hour session and together they plan a strategy for dealing with the situation. For the first hour, the family does most of the talking. Factors discussed include developmental history and milestones, how the individual has reacted to losses and embarrassment in the past, which family members and friends they’ve been closest to, how they’ve handled mistakes in the past, how they’ve dealt with authority figures in the past, etc. Bill then explains what he sees as the primary factors attracting the individual to the cult, suggests different forms of intervention and discusses the chances of success for each form of intervention. He then suggests ways of phrasing questions and discussions that could be employed to help the cult member rethink the situation. Bill’s goals in meeting with families are to help them to better understand the dynamics of cult membership for their family member and to devise a practical strategy for how the family can intervene.
Jackie Johnson holds a Master’s Degree from Columbia University School of Social Work and a Doctoral Degree from the University of Tennessee College of Social Work. Her professional career spans over 20 years in the areas of psychotherapy, social work research, clinical supervision, training and consultation, administration, program development, program evaluation, and public policy.
She is certified in forensic social work and has over 20 years experience working with victims and perpetrators of physical, sexual, relationship, and spiritual abuse. She is a speaker and presenter at the annual conferences of the National Organization of Forensic Social Workers (NOFSW).
In addition to the work of her practice, Johnson serves as the director of the International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA).
Debby Schriver is a cult expert, author, and human rights activist. A native of Chicago, Schriver earned undergraduate and graduate degrees at the University of Tennessee. Her focus on child development began in her work with the Foster Care Review Board. There she worked with the community that serves at-risk youth: lawyers, social workers, and foster parents. A similar group of caring professionals have been essential in informing Debby’s work on her book Whispering in the Daylight, The Children of Tony Alamo Christian Ministries and their Journey to Freedom. Alamo’s story is chronicled in the Sundance TV docuseries “Ministry of Evil: The Twisted Cult of Tony Alamo,” in which Schriver appears as their cult expert (NBC Peacock Productions and World of Wonder Productions, February 2019). Presently, Debby serves as the Executive Director of Keys to Me.
Ragan Schriver is an Associate Professor of Practice at the University of Tennessee College of Social Work as well as the Director of the MSSW Program, Knoxville Campus and chair of the Forensic Social Work Certificate Program. He teaches clinical and leadership courses in the MSSW program. He also serves as the Special Assistant to the President of Catholic Charities USA. In this role he takes part in a team process to develop integrated health programs within the network. He previously served as Executive Director of Catholic Charities of East Tennessee for fifteen years. He earned his MSW from Washington University in St. Louis, MO and became a licensed social worker in 2001. He earned his Doctor of Psychology degree in 2016, and his capstone project was on Trauma Informed Care.