Allison Whitby appointed Clinical Pastoral Education Program Director

The University of Divinity is pleased to announce the appointment of Ms Allison Whitby as Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) Program Director.

As the University’s CPE Liaison Officer since 2015, Allison has been responsible for the enrolment of students in CPE units, arrangement of placements, and accreditation of CPE instructions and supervisors across all of the University’s Colleges. This newly augmented role is designed to support the University’s vision to grow the recognition and development of CPE and to become the premier provider of accredited CPE programs in Australia and New Zealand.

Allison is one of Australia’s foremost experts in Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE), having trained as consultant, educator, supervisor and practitioner in the field. She is an alumna of the University of Divinity, and holds degrees from La Trobe and Monash Universities, and the Sydney College of Divinity. She was previously Director of the Department of Pastoral Care and Education at Austin Health. She is a Life Member, Fellow, and Past President of both the Association for Supervised Pastoral Education in Australia Inc. (ASACPEV Inc.) and the Australia and New Zealand Association of Clinical Pastoral Education (ANZACPE) and convenor of the Accreditation Reviews for the Professional Standards Committee (ANZACPE)

Speaking about her appointment, Allison said:

I am very pleased to continue to work with the University of Divinity in the ongoing partnership with the CPE Associations across Australia and New Zealand, strengthening and extending the relationships and developing opportunities and pathways for the growing number of accredited CPE staff to engage in the University’s Masters and Doctoral programs. I am looking forward to working with colleagues in the Counselling, Spiritual Care and Supervision programs to explore collaboration between the courses for the benefit of all students engaged in these areas of professional practice.”

The Vice-Chancellor, Professor Peter Sherlock, said:

For several decades, CPE has been a vital part of preparation for the University’s graduates entering into a wide variety of ministries. Allison has been an outstanding figure in the development of CPE, supporting students, graduates, instructors and supervisors to flourish in a wide variety of clinical and pastoral settings. Through her leadership, the University has a unique opportunity to support the renewal and growth of CPE and to partner with churches, agencies and communities to resource the people they serve for many decades to come.”

Allison commences in her new role at the University of Divinity in late January 2023.