Gov. Rick Snyder appoints Gary Bischof to Michigan board

Contact: Jeanne Baron

Bischof

KALAMAZOO—Gov. Rick Snyder has announced the appointment of a Western Michigan University faculty member to the Michigan Board of Marriage and Family Therapy.

Dr. Gary Bischof, interim chair of the Department of Family and Consumer Sciences, and two other professionals were named to the nine-member board subject to the advice and consent of the Michigan Senate. The board assists the Michigan Department of Licensing and Regulatory Affairs in overseeing the practice of more than 800 marriage and family therapists.

Bischof, a WMU professor of counselor education and counseling psychology, will represent licensed marriage and family therapists on the board and serve a four-year term expiring June 30, 2016. He coordinates WMU's marriage, couple and family counseling master's program and has been a lecturer and teaching team member for the Kalamazoo Center for Medical Studies, which is now part of the WMU School of Medicine.

Gary Bischof

The Portage, Mich., resident is a past president of the Michigan Association for Marriage and Family Therapy. His professional interests are in marriage and family therapy, collaborative family-oriented health care, brief solution-oriented therapy, couple therapy, and preventive and relationship education programs for couples.

Bischof earned a bachelor's degree in philosophy from Bethany College and master's and doctoral degrees in marriage and family therapy from Virginia Tech and Purdue University, respectively.