Developing Integrity and Mastery in Coaching Practice: Why Teaching Coaching Theory Matters
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GSAEC is kicking off a series of Campfires focusing directly on Graduate Level Coaching Education, in which we do deep dives on some of GSAEC's Academic Standards for Excellence in Coach Education!
Drs. Penny Potter and Gordon Medlock, university coach educators and members of the GSAEC research committee, will briefly present on the theoretical foundations of the coaching profession and why GSAEC Standard 7, Theory and Knowledge, is foundational for any quality academic coach education program.
In this session, you will learn about the various “territories” of knowledge and theory that now inform coach education and practice. Join colleagues for a lively discussion on the importance of theory, knowledge, and ongoing research in establishing the integrity of coaching and coaching education as disciplines. This dialogue will explore how the foundations shape a wide range of related practices, including management, human resource and leadership development, consulting, counseling psychology, training, education, and more.
We encourage anyone who gets as excited as we do about this topic to attend. The content will be directed at coach educators and program directors but current coaches and graduate students can benefit as well.
Dr. Penny Potter is currently the director of coach education and faculty in George Mason University’s scholar-practitioner Master’s program in Organization Development. She has served on the GSAEC board and co-chaired the research committee for a number of years, and currently co-chairs the new Integrated Standards committee. Penny’s research focus is on the learning and development that occurs in the process of becoming a coach. As part of her research, she integrated several existing adult learning theories and developed the Coaching Dialectic Model, a learning model that illustrates the complexity of a single coaching conversation. Her 2023 publication on the state of coach education, co-authored with Dr. Erek Ostrowski, can be accessed via the GSAEC Research and Scholarship webpage.
Penny has been a coach-practitioner since 2006. Her coaching clients work in organizations grappling with meaty global issues such as poverty, economic justice, democracy, and creating a sustainable planet. Penny’s Ph.D. is in human and organizational systems. She holds a M.S. in organizational development and knowledge management, and a B.S. in psychology. She is an accredited Senior Practitioner with EMCC Global.
Gordon Medlock, Ph.D., MA, PCC, is a longstanding member of the GSAEC research committee and co-founder and facilitator of the Coach Educator Community of Practice. He reviews coaching education research and supports ongoing dialogue regarding current challenges and best practices in graduate level coaching education.
He is a co-creator and faculty member in the EDD program in Transformational Leadership and Coaching at Maharishi International University (MIU). He works with colleagues in developing coaches and supervising students in completing dissertation projects that expand their influence as scholar practitioners, leaders, and coaches in their chosen fields.
Gordon received his PhD degree from Yale university with a research focus on theoretical foundations of existential and experiential-humanistic psychology. He earned an MA degree in clinical social work from the University of Chicago and has over 30 years of ongoing personal and professional experience as a practitioner-researcher specializing in integrative approaches to psychotherapy and coaching. He is currently pursuing research interests related to the conceptual foundations of coaching education and related coaching practice.
This session will be recorded, and available to GSAEC Members after the meeting.
