WORKING WITH TEAMS AND GROUPS

 A Gestalt Approach to Working with Teams and groups

Registration is now open for 2026

Modules 1, 2, and 3 are offered in sequence.
Participants may register for one or more modules, with bundled registration discounts available.

Quick Registration:

Module 1 — February 2026
Module 2 — April 2026
Module 3 — November 2026

Program Overview

Groups and teams that become highly effective do not do so by accident. Their effectiveness is built through the intentional integration of knowledge, skill, awareness, and intervention. Working With Teams & Groups is a professional development program designed to support leaders, facilitators, coaches, consultants, and therapists in working with groups and teams in ways that generate meaningful, sustainable impact.

Grounded in a Gestalt approach to human behavior, this program emphasizes awareness, use of self, and intervention at multiple levels of system. Participants learn to recognize and work with individual dynamics, subgroup processes, and whole-group patterns as they emerge in real time.

Across the three modules, participants deepen their capacity to facilitate groups that are effective, results-producing, and affirming of individual difference—whether in organizational, clinical, community, or leadership contexts.

How the Modules Work Together

Working With Teams & Groups is offered as three sequential, in-person modules.

Module 1 establishes foundational Gestalt concepts and frameworks for working with groups and teams.

Module 2 builds on this foundation with a deeper focus on conflict, differentiation, power, and middle-phase group work.

Module 3 is an advanced capstone practicum focused on integration, mastery, and real-time facilitation.

Sequencing & Prerequisites

  • Module 1 is required before enrolling in Module 2.

  • Modules 1 and 2 are required before enrolling in Module 3.

  • Participants may register for multiple modules at once.

  • Bundled registrations automatically receive discounted tuition.

Module 1:

Foundations
of Working With Teams & Groups

February 2–6, 2026
Registration is Open

Module 1 introduces participants to core Gestalt concepts and principles as they apply to working with groups and teams. This module is designed for those seeking a strong conceptual and experiential foundation for facilitating groups in a wide range of settings.

Participants develop the capacity to observe and intervene at multiple levels of system while learning to establish effective agreements, manage resistance and persistence, and track group development over time.

  • Key Learning Objectives

    • Understand and apply Gestalt concepts and principles in group and team settings

    • Develop the ability to assess and intervene with individuals, subgroups, and the whole group

    • Establish and maintain effective agreements and shared focus

    • Understand the role of resistance and persistence in group process

    • Track the impact of interventions over time

    • Create and manage experiments as tools for awareness and growth

    • Model ethical practice in working with groups

    • Explore and develop one’s unique voice as a facilitator

Module 2:

Deepening Practice in Teams & Groups

April 13–17, 2026
Registration is Open

Module 2 is designed to deepen participants’ effectiveness in working with complex group dynamics. Building on the foundations of Module 1, this module focuses on differentiation, conflict, power, polarity management, rupture and repair, and intervening in the middle phases of group development.

Through intensive practice and real-time application, participants refine their use of self while expanding their capacity to work with difference and complexity in groups and teams.

* Prerequisite: Module 1

  • Key Learning Objectives

    • Deepen application of Gestalt concepts and frameworks in group and team interventions

    • Increase effectiveness in working with conflict, differentiation, and power

    • Expand capacity to intervene during middle phases of group development

    • Work skillfully with rupture, repair, resistance, and persistence

    • Increase awareness of how facilitator presence impacts group process

    • Use embodiment to support deeper learning and development

    • Create and manage Gestalt experiments in group contexts

Module 3:

Advanced Practicum in Group & Team Facilitation

November 4–7, 2026
Registration is Open

Module 3 is an advanced, experiential capstone designed for participants who have completed Modules 1 and 2 (or have equivalent training and experience). This practicum emphasizes integration, mastery, and the development of each participant’s unique facilitation style.

Participants work in co-facilitator pairs to lead groups or teams, engaging with real-time dynamics, multiple perspectives, and emergent process. Faculty consultants provide live observation, feedback, and support throughout the module.

* Prerequisites: Modules 1 and 2

  • Key Learning Objectives

    • Integrate Gestalt concepts and principles in advanced group facilitation

    • Demonstrate effective work with resistance and persistence at individual and group levels

    • Recognize and respond to developmental phases of group process

    • Apply embodiment to support learning and transformation

    • Develop interventions that emerge from strengths and multiple perspectives

    • Make skillful choices among interventions to support connection and development

What Past Participants Say

Past participants consistently report increased effectiveness, awareness, and confidence in their work with groups and teams.

“I’m keenly aware of the joys of working in groups that work well together; where there is great alignment of purpose, mutual awareness, empathy and shared values; where all group member—regardless of race, ethnicity, gender, or sexual preference feel safe to take risks, to voice different views, feel respected and heard. The Gestalt Institute of Cleveland is a world leader in group intervention and group participation training and the Groups faculty at GIC is truly extraordinary. No question—my Groups training at GIC has helped me to become a better group leader, member, and contributor.”

— Alan Brenner

“I have worked in the public sector for nearly 15 years, navigating complex bureaucracies and systems. I have managed and been part of groups from a team of baristas at Starbucks to a group of academic advisors, to serving as co-chair of a professional association, to being part of a tight-knit, ethnic family. This curriculum helped me see dynamics in groups that I had never considered. In designing interventions as part of the week’s work, I got to put my skills to the test and practice in real- time with other practitioners and extraordinary faculty members. I left the week wanting more weeks to learn and practice! And ever since, I’ve found that I am attuned to members of groups that I am in—both personal and professional—and have used skills in this workshop to help those groups “hum.”
— Jessica Colombi

“Every detail was thoughtfully executed. We're thrilled with the outcome—it’s been such a worthwhile investment to work with a team of genuinely passionate people who not only care about the results, but also care about their clients as people.”“I was amazed by the skills I was quickly able to put into practice at work and in my personal life. I was able to simultaneously track what was happening within the group, between individuals, and within myself. My awareness became super-charged and it enabled me to help make business meetings much more enjoyable and productive. My time with my family and friend groups also became immensely richer.
Faculty for this program are incredibly skilled and every cohort of GIC programs is filled with curious and talented people who seem to become fast friends. If you work in teams or within groups, as a facilitator or participant, you will greatly benefit from these programs. They receive my highest endorsement.”

— John Noell

Meet Our Faculty

This program is led by experienced Gestalt practitioners with deep expertise in group and team facilitation.

  • J. Rick Day

    MBA, PhD, PsyD, ABPP

  • Mary Ann Kraus

    PsyD, GPCC™, BCC

  • Jacquie McLemore

    PhD

  • Andy Powell

    MA, PCC, GPCC™

  • Shareefah Sabur

    MA, MNO, CDP, GPCC™, BCC

Tuition, Discounts & Registration

Each module may be taken individually or as part of a bundled registration.

  • Bundled registrations receive automatic tuition discounts

  • Early-bird discounts may be available for a limited time

  • Module sequencing and prerequisites apply

Detailed pricing and available discounts are shown during registration.

Register Now

Logistics & Contact Information

Location
Gestalt Institute of Cleveland
1 Berea Commons, Suite 216
Cleveland, OH 44017-2534

Questions or Limited-Means Inquiries
If you are interested in this program and have limited means, please contact us to inquire about available seats.

Contact
Email: registrar@gestaltcleveland.org
Phone: 216-421-0468