• WHO?The conference welcomes anyone interested in marriage and family education:
counselors, therapists, clergy, family life educators, lay leaders,
teachers, nurses, attorneys, policy makers, community activists, journalists AND the PUBLIC.
People attend from every state in the U.S and from around the world.
We expect more than 2,000 attendees.

• WHAT?The conferenceexplores practical
approaches to strengthening marriage
and preventing family breakdown.

• WHY ATTEND? Learn how to teach skills for building smart,
satisfying marriages and families.
The pre and post conference training institutes qualify
you to teach the programs.
You will return home as a certified instructor
with the materials you need to get started.
80% of conference attendees attend the
pre- and post-conference training institutes.
Choose from 36 training institutes and from dozens of programs.
Attend over 140 sessions and hear 20 keynote presenters.

• You don't have to be a mental health
professionalto take the training
and to teach the courses. Research shows
trained lay educators do
just as well - or better - than
mental health professionals at
teaching the courses. Or, use the
skills in your clinical practice.

• If you don't plan to teach, attend to learn the skills
to strengthen your own marriage
or relationship. All sessions are open
to the public.

People have attended the conference from around the
world -- from Japan, Norway,
Switzerland, Argentina, South Korea, Netherlands,
Egypt, Spain, Israel, Canada, Bermuda, Nigeria, Cayman Islands,
Sweden, New Zealand, South Africa, Finland, Trinidad, Russia, Malaysia,
Singapore, Kuwait, Pakistan, Austria, France, Italy, United Arab Emirates,
China, Jordan, Germany, Ireland, Bahamas, Wales, Taiwan,
Scotland, Cyprus, Panama, England, Guam,
Brazil, Puerto Rico, N. Mariana Islands, Australia, Virgin Islands...from
more than 40 countries and from all across the U. S.
We expect the same great mix in this year.

Attendee comments:

My "ex-boyfriend" (we'd been apart since April) attended the conference, too.
We did not attend together, but by the end of it, we began talking about
making a fresh start. We both learned so much while there.

Thanks again for the great contirbution you make to smart marriage and smart relationships
Adele
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I have attended 5 out of the 6 past Smart Marriages Conference and I consider this,
without a doubt the best conference I have ever had the pleasure of being a part of.
It is an excellent mixture of theory and practice.  It is attended by a wide consortium
of practitioners representing all different kinds of fields and types of
organizations.  It is the motherload of information networking.  I heartily endorse attending!
Tom Rinkoski, MEd
Diocese of Green Bay
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This was my first conference -- in fact, up until a few months ago I
had no idea SmartMarriages existed.  My friend
recommended the conference when she heard about my
transition from a therapy orientation to a coaching and education
orientation - with particular focus on relationships.  To be frank, since
I'd never heard of the organization before, I didn't expect much.  But I
followed my friend's advice, and my intuition, and registered.

From day one I was truly blown away by the expertise, substantive content,
diversity of topics and perspectives (oh how much I appreciated the
collegial and respectful disagreements) and the generosity (in terms of
preparation time and sharing of materials) of the presenters.  I also found
the community of participants to be tremendously energizing and affirming.
In fact, when I called home my husband commented on my obvious enthusiasm
and I told him, "It's great to be with so many people talking about things I
really care about.  I feel like I'm home."

So, my hat's off to you for your dedication, time commitment and management
skills that made this such an enjoyable and valuable conference.  I was blown-away
by the deep content, professional presentations and generosity of sharing concepts
and materials.  Wow!
Ruth Donahue, MSW, Chicago
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I have attended conferences for 26 years and this was the best. Second to none, and that is no joke.
Roger Thompson, Executive Director
Christian Counseling Center
Paducah, KY
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Thank you all for a wonderful experience!  It has already improved my own marriage.
Keep up the good work.  You are touching lives.
Kathy Gomez
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Rita DeMaria's "Now What?" workshop gave me what I never learned in grad school - how to sell
yourself and manage a business. More courses in this area would be great!
Phillip Johnson, PhD
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I love the way the conference is set up where I can get a new certification, hear great
speakers, get the latest research, and choose from so many seminars to take things of
particular interest to me and in my career.  Thank you!
Kathleen Mary Wilson, MEd, Newport News, VA
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The best and most stimulating conference I've ever attended - and that's in 30 years of
attending conferences! Thanks.
Lee Raffel, MSW, MFT, Wisconsin
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This is the first time I have done pre and post cofnerence training institutes.  I believe this
was a fantastic use of my time.  Keep including these!
Ed Gray, Memphis
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I was excited and overwhelmed by the amount of expertise gathered.  I count it a privilege
to be here and to have the opportunity to talk with these giants outside the sessions.
I also very much enjoyed networking with other attendees.
Pamela Adams, MSW
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  I greatly appreciated hearing directly from the many pioneers
and innovators in the field instead of hearing from someone who has read their books!  Especially
helpful was the use of videos, role-plays, and demonstrations instead of straight lecture - kept
my interest and provided examples of practical applications - very helpful.  I also appreciated
the common ground of strengthening marriages and families that brings together such diverse
groups.  I find that to be quite stunning!
Barbara Shaffer, PhD
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The plenary sessions were excellent.  Both of the pre and post conference institutes
I attended were great! The will be directly applied to my practice.
Michael Borders, PhD, ABPP
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For me, this was the greatest conference ever.  I always think you can't top the one from
the year before, but you always do. We had a great
audience at our session - I always say, the best people in America come to Smart Marriages!
Thank you so much for this great movement you are building. I feel we are all really
gaining momentum, and the annual conference is a great "push"!
June Saunders
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The best aspect for me is the atmosphere of respect for a variety
of ideas, approaches, professional backgrounds and chosen modes
of involvement in marriage education.
- Richard Kindred, PhD
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Some of the best social scientists & clinicians in one place at one time -
very impressive and educational!
- Mary McGinnis, LMHC
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"I've found more answers in two days than I have in two years of therapy"
- Kristen Lee Mead, stepmother
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The conference absolutely exceeded my expectations - and my client work has
been transformed by this conf.  I will be back!!!
Chris Pekary, LPC, NCC, MDiv, MAt
Memphis, TN
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• DVD, CD, & MP3 formats: All conference sessions are recorded. 
• Workshops & Keynotes on audio CD or MP3  - $15 a session.

• Keynote sessions and Master Workshops also available on video DVD ($25.)
  

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