One of the major ways in which Ackerman serves metropolitan families is through its Treatment Center, the largest such clinic devoted exclusively to helping families. Innovative methods are used for clients with such issues as mourning, divorce, recovery from abuse, marital conflict, parenting problems, gender dilemmas and illness. The Treatment Center has increased Ackerman's renown as an institute where family matters. Ackerman faculty, students and alumni contributed articles that addressed the problems of parenting today such as what to tell your children about divorce, how to reduce stress, how to celebrate holidays when parents have different traditions, how to collaborate with your child's teachers and school-among many crucial topics. Such a response is in the Ackerman tradition.
Ackerman faculty educate through workshops and presentations all over the world.
There is an impressive list of journal publications covering decades of research and treatment, and extensive training workbooks for learning disabilities, families and AIDS, and the treatment of sexual abuse. The Institute's bookcase currently displays twelve books authored or co-authored by Ackerman faculty. Clearly, Ackerman has a mission to share its knowledge with the local and larger communities. As we celebrate our 40th anniversary, therefore, it seems appropriate to gather these essays on family and publish them as a collection. The title of this collection, Family Matters, is the theme of the Institute.