November 7, 2017
Couple and family therapy program introduces new K-State Family Center staff
Submitted by College of Human Ecology
The couple and family therapy program in the School of Family Studies and Human Services within the College of Human Ecology welcomed two new staff members in fall 2017.
Alison Boyles is the new program assistant for the couple and family therapy program. In her position, she provides administrative support not only to the program and clinical directors but also to students within the program and clients receiving services in the Family Center. With a Bachelor of Science and a Master of Public Health, she has spent the last few years in a capacity building/program development role as an AmeriCorps VISTA at a food pantry in Lawrence. She was successful there in helping refine the program, allowing it to expand and successfully provide services for more than 1800 visits to the food pantry a year. Through this work, she has seen how collaborative approaches to physical and behavioral/mental health can be successful in achieving positive long term health outcomes.
In her free time, you can catch her spending time with her family or running the many hilly roads around Manhattan.
Marcie Lechtenberg, a licensed marital and family therapist, is the new clinic director at the K-State Family Center. Lechtenberg, a clinical assistant professor, received her Master of Arts in communication, Master of Science in marriage and family therapy and her Doctor of Philosophy in marriage and family therapy from K-State.
Lechtenberg began her career as a high school English teacher. After earning a master's degree in counseling, she worked as an individual and family counselor within the school setting. She also served on the Nebraska Task Force for Child Abuse for 12 years. In 2003, she was named to the Nebraska Commission on the Status of Women, serving as its chair for two years. She worked as a family counselor/educator at the Mercy Cancer Clinic for eight years before returning to Kansas State University. After earning her doctorate in 2014, she served as an instructor and a clinical supervisor at the Family Center. Lechtenberg served as co-chair of the committee for the graduate certificate in education at K-Sate. In June 2017, she was named the clinic director for the K-State Family Center in the couple and therapy program. She continues to teach, supervise, and see clients. Her research interests include court-mandated therapy, mindfulness based interventions and chronic illness.
Outside of work, Lechtenberg and her husband, Kelly, are members of the K-State Board of Trustees and serve as co-chairs of the Innovation and Inspiration campaign for the College of Veterinary Medicine. The couple loves all things purple and have been season ticket holders to multiple K-State sports for more than 30 years.