The PEACE Project

The PEACE Project is a therapist training program. Our goal is to create a sustainable coalition of mental health providers to provide treatment to individuals in Philadelphia who have experienced or witnessed trauma, community, or gun violence.

As part of this innovative collaborative, therapists receive FREE training and consultation, PLUS get paid for completing training goals!

How it works

To be eligible to apply, you must be a mental health clinician in Philadelphia who treats individuals who have experienced trauma and/or community violence. Licensure is not required, but unlicensed clinicians must be working under a licensed supervisor in order to be considered. 

While participation in the PEACE Project will be open to mental health professionals providing services to anyone residing in Philadelphia, we plan to prioritize recruitment of clinicians who provide services to community members in high crime areas. This includes Philadelphia’s most violence‑impacted neighborhoods, specifically Kensington, Fairhill, Allegheny West, Strawberry Mansion, Nicetown‑Tioga, Hunting Park, and Frankford/Juniata. The PEACE Project is dedicated to building a sustainable, community‑based workforce of trained clinicians who are equipped to deliver effective, evidence‑based PTSD treatment to individuals most affected by chronic community violence.

Click here to apply: https://redcap.link/PeaceProject2026

Overview of the project:

Application Deadline is August 31, 2026!

Applicants will be notified of acceptance by September 14, 2026

• We will select 25 clinicians to participate in the PEACE Project as primary trainees and 25 clinicians to participate as alternate trainees. (If you are selected to participate as an alternate trainee, you are agreeing to participate in all workshop activities described below, but will only be eligible to participate in consultation activities if a primary trainee is unable to complete consultation for any reason.)
• If you are selected to participate, you are agreeing to participate in the following workshop training activities:
  • 5 days of workshop training online via Zoom (October 5-9, 2026)
    • 1-day PTSD assessment training (definition of a traumatic event, diagnostic criteria for PTSD, differential diagnosis, prevalence, comorbidity, and risk factor data). Participants will also be introduced to the Posttraumatic Stress Scale for DSM-5 (Interview version –PSSI-5) as well as the PTSD Diagnostic Scale for DSM-5 (PDS-5), a self-report measure of PTSD symptoms. Administration of these assessments will be covered in detail and participants will rate a sample interview and discuss the scoring rationale for the sample administration. 
    • 4-day Intensive Workshop in Prolonged Exposure Therapy for PTSD (intensive instruction in the use of Prolonged Exposure Therapy for survivors of trauma, covering the basics of all components of PE and how to modify PE procedures in order to tailor the treatment to the client’s response to exposure). Maintaining focus on treatment of PTSD while maintaining flexibility in following the manual will be emphasized. Lecture, discussion, videotaped therapy sessions, and participant role-plays with feedback from faculty trainers are used to accomplish the goals of the workshop.
• In addition, if you are selected to participate as a primary trainee, you are also agreeing to participate in the following consultation activities:
  • Weekly PE Group Consultation
    • Group Consultation will occur for one year.
    • Group Consultation consists of weekly 90-minute Zoom meetings with CTSA's PE Consultant and 4-6 primary trainees for consultation on PE cases. Participants will present information about cases and appropriateness for PE as well as present individual PE cases through case discussion or review of PE sessions.
    • Trainees who attend at least 26 group consultation sessions and complete two full cases of PE will be eligible for certification as a PE Therapist.
• For trainees who have been certified as PE therapists, 15 clinicians will be chosen and invited to attend our 5-day PE Consultant Workshop in November, 2027. Once complete, these PE Consultants will be able to provide PE consultation and certify PE clinicians who attend CTSA's foundational training.
• Stipends of up to $2,700 will be distributed throughout the life of the project, with funds distributed to newly trained clinicians at various milestones of the training process as follows:
  • All clinicians will be required to submit monthly data that includes number of unique PE cases served and number of PE sessions completed. If data is submitted for each month, the clinician they will become eligible for the stipends outlined below.
    • For attendance and participation in at least 26 group consultation sessions over the course of the year, clinicians will receive a stipend of $500
    • When clinicians become certified as PE therapists, they will receive a stipend of $1,000.
    • For clinicians chosen to participate in the PE Consultant workshop, they will receive a stipend of $1,200 upon completion of that training.

 *Please note that the PEACE Project will not be supplying you with referrals. All clients treated as part of consultation must come from your own agency or practice.