How Jed Walsh Supports Community: Couples and Family Therapy at Seattle University

Jed Walsh discovered his passion for supporting families while working in the Seattle Public School system as an instructional assistant. After working with students all day, he began volunteering on nights and weekends to find additional opportunities to work with families. 

“I love playing with kids, hanging out, and having fun,” Walsh explains. “But I realized that some of the highlights of my job in the school were like parent-teacher conferences or collaborating with parents. And I really wanted to bring that more into my work with kids.”

It was through this community work — combined with his background in supporting students’ social-emotional needs — that led Walsh to the Couples and Family Therapy (CFT) Master’s program at Seattle University. Walsh plans to pursue work with kids and families as a community-based practitioner following graduation in June 2026. Walsh commends the CFT program for the social justice focus, queer-affirming environment, and the strong community that is fostered by the cohort model.

Gaining Hands-On Experience

Building on his background as a paraprofessional supporting students’ academic and behavioral needs in the Seattle Public Schools system, Walsh currently interns 20-30 hours per week in a community mental health agency. Here, he provides free clinical services to individuals from low-income communities. 

Reflecting on this experience so far, Walsh says, “I've had an incredible experience there and feel really supported and motivated and connected to the people that I work with and the work we do.” This work supports communities of color and operates out of the public school system, both of which he hopes to continue in a full-time role following graduation. 

Because each second-year student is required to complete an internship, Walsh and his colleagues are able to support each other as they gain real-world experience. The cohort regularly meets in a practicum course where they discuss their internships. To gain feedback on their hands-on skills, they also watch videos of their classmates providing clinical services. The supportive environment of the CFT allows graduate students to improve their therapeutic skills and also develop a strong community of practice.

Establishing a Community of Practice

The graduate cohort model also provided a meaningful community of practice for Walsh as he prepares for the next phase of his career. In the CFT program, students complete all of their coursework with their incoming peers to build a community of practice. The relationships built over the two-year program provide support when students transition to their internships, with the hope that life-long connections are made. 

Walsh explains how important the relationships with his classmates have been: “I'm somebody who's a big fan of groups and a big fan of community and very, it really helps me to have like, collaborative environments and the program both formally and informally, I think really fosters like a sense of community and really strong relationships between students and the cohort.”

The focus on community begins with committed program administrators and faculty. Walsh heralds program staff members — especially Graduate Program Coordinator Deb Smucker and Administration Assistant Sharon Aliza — for supporting students and setting the tone for positive relationship building. 

Faculty are also resources for students both inside and outside of the classroom. Thinking back on his time in the program, Walsh calls out his advisor, Dr. Christie Eppler, for her mentorship and student-centered teaching. 

Eppler teaches a course called “Identity and Ethics,” which focuses on social justice and culture. Walsh finds her focus on “vicarious resilience” especially meaningful to his interest in building strong and supportive communities. In addition, Dr. Rebecca Cobb’s course “Assessment and Conceptualization” provided hands-on skill development that is applicable to daily work in the field. These courses lay the theoretical grounding for students’ clinical practice and set the foundation of the program’s social justice commitments. 

Seattle University’s Social Justice Commitments

Although there are several degree routes to becoming a therapist and a range of options for graduate study in Seattle, the mission and values of Seattle University’s CFT program were the right fit for Walsh. Because Walsh aspires to work with communities of color and queer families, attending a university with social justice commitments was important to him. 

In Walsh’s experience, Seattle University is a campus where social justice is built into the fiber of the classroom and the community. Walsh is quick to note that his program is committed to anti-racism and also committed to creating safe queer and trans spaces. Finding a graduate school with these values was a core decision-making criteria for Walsh when he selected a graduate program. For the CFT students, these values are put into practice each day in the classroom.

“I think that being at a Jesuit Catholic institution has actually given more space for critical conversations around race and other issues in our society,” Walsh reflects. “I felt really fortunate to be at Seattle University, because I think there hasn't been the closure of these conversations and ability to talk about them, bring them into our learning.”

Seeing the social justice approach modeled in the classroom encourages Walsh to continue his work in community mental health and bridge gaps for underserved communities. And through seeing these commitments at Seattle University, Walsh remains committed to the importance of play and community building to family therapy contexts. 

What Sets Seattle University’s Couples and Family Therapy Program Apart

The Seattle University community support, intellectually rigorous courses, and commitment to social justice make Walsh a proud alum of the CFT program. As he looks back at his time as a Seattle University graduate student, Walsh remains active in meeting with prospective students and being an advocate for the CFT program. 

Walsh explains, “I'm really excited for future generations of students to come through the program and get to benefit from the wonderful program and faculty and the experience to be part of the field.” When speaking with future therapists considering Seattle University and the CFT program, Walsh shares this advice: 

1. Get all the information you can about a program before you commit. Make the best decision you can, because this choice impacts your future work and experience through coursework. 
2. Trust your gut and follow your inner guideposts when making a decision about your career. 

Students interested in the CFT program gain a range of experience to build their clinical skills. The program is designed thoughtfully to include the following outcomes:

• The CFT program centers upon trauma-informed care, social justice, and the formation of resilient clinicians. 
• All graduates are given rigorous training to assess, diagnose, consult, and treat clients through a strength-based and systemic approach. 
• Each student completes at least 400 in-person or virtual clinical treatment hours through internships throughout Washington State 
• Following graduation, program alumni can apply to become a Licensed Marriage and Family Therapy Associate (LMFTA) in Washington and several other states

Check out Seattle University’s College of Arts and Sciences, and consider the Couples and Family Therapy program offerings if you are interested in supporting members of your community like Walsh.