About IASGW

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Beverly Brown was a counselor educator who was instrumental in the division and our mission: extending counseling using group process. An award has been created to honor her by recognizing a counselor who has made outstanding contributions to the field of group counseling. The award is presented at the annual ICA conference in November--awards ceremony is Friday night, and all are invited. Make a nomination here, and then come to the ceremony to cheer the winner!

Past winners of the Beverly Brown Counselor of the Year Award:

2025: Autumn DeKoster,  LCPC, LMHC, CAADC, CCMHC, ACS 

2024: Linda Lucatorto, MEd, CPC

2022: Kimberly Thomas, EdD, LCPC

2021: Katie Grant, MS, LCPC

2020: Steve Poland

...(more info to come)...

2014: Kimberly Hart, MSEd, NCC, PEL, LPC 

2013: Anna Marie Yates, 

2012: Dr. Mei-Wei Chen

Gather monthly for an hour of informal, confidential group connection and mutual support on a personal and professional issues! Hosted by IASGW member volunteers, but open to all Illinois Counseling Association members. Always the last Tuesday of the month at 6pm. Group support is a highly effective self-care tool to gain the kind of feedback and support that can help us thrive both in and out of the clinical setting. (Topics need not related to group work)

NEW: A second monthly session has been added on the first Friday of each month at 12 noon.

(Peer Support Group is offered to members of ICA to provide personal and professional support, not supervision or case consultation. Peer Support Group is not a substitute for adequate supervision or appropriate and necessary consultation. Please see your ethical code to determine when formal supervision or consultation are necessary. Providing support does not imply acceptance of any clinical or legal responsibility.)

Our parent division in the American Counseling Association (ACA), the Association for Specialists in Group Work (ASGW), conducts an on-site conference at a different location in the US every other year. 

In 2026, we are fortunate to welcome the conference to Chicago, Illinois! February 5 – February 7, 2026 at the Hyatt Centric Chicago Magnificent Mile, we will explore New Frontiers in Group Work Practice and Research. Look for IASGW members leading sessions! We'll also be hosting a roundtable.

We continue to offer unique and interesting webinars yearly (or more often) on topics related to group work.  See the ICA store for recorded webinar offerings that provide approved continuing education credits.

You won't want to miss our upcoming live webinar on January 9, 2026, with Sonia Albin, LPC and panelists:  "Cultural Competence in Practice: Understanding Jewish Identity and Antisemitism in Clinical Work" from 10am-1pm. If you plan to catch the recording, be aware that it most likely will not include the third hour panel discussion with Chicagoland Jewish Therapists. Includes 2 CEs.

Offerings include 

Starting a Therapy Group: Katie Grant (2022)

•1.5 CE: $20 for members

Trauma-Informed Group Treatment with Specialized Populations: panel discusses Fire fighters and healthcare workers (2022)

•2 CE: $40 for members

Reaching the Heart of Men: the Power of Group Work: panel discusses group trauma-focused treatment with men whohave experienced personal and community grief and loss (2023)

•2 CE: $40 for members

Trauma-Informed Group Treatment with MORE Specialized Populations: panel discusses police, paramedics and military(2024) 

•2 CE: $40 for members

Group Therapy Essentials: Kendra A. Vargas, LCPC, PMH-Cteaches you how to plan, design, and implement therapeutic groups(2025) 

•2.5 CE: $40 for members

OCD: What the DSM Doesn’t Tell You: Madison DiSilvio, MA, NCC, a lived-experience clinician, aims to provide attendees with a foundational understanding of the condition and how it impacts individuals' lives (2025)

•1.5 CE: $30 for members

The service initiative that began with Peer Support Group has expanded to create a pathway for IASGW members to implement groups in their own communities with our support. 

Contact info@iasgw.org to join the Service Committee . Chair Autumn DeKoster has implemented our shiny new Community Based Group Counseling Grant: on April 3, 2025, the first award was presented to Shemiah Derrick for the group "Healing Forward: A Therapeutic Group for Women Navigating Divorce & Separation" to be held at Profound Peace Psychotherapy Collective in Chicago. The second award was won in November 2025 by Lamont Hail for the group "Pathways Forward: A Holistic Mentorship Initiative for Justice-Involved Youth and Young Adults" in Stephenson County. The application period is open again for a spring award, more information to be found here.

At IASGW, we recognize that helping is hard and recovery requires connection. This is your time to catch your breath, tune out from demands, and tune into yourself among others. Self-care socials are held quarterly and are informal gatherings to intentionally step away from work and into self and community.

See EVENTS for upcoming Self-Care Socials. Registrants will receive zoom links and coloring/instruction sheets in advance to print out (if desired) and color during the session. Of course, if you prefer another form of creative expression or engagement like crafting, painting, creative writing, or any other, please do this instead of coloring. Pretty much anything EXCEPT working or doing for others is allowed and encouraged.