Andy Stubblefield: National ACPE Faculty

“I am proud to have met this milestone as an educator and feel the sense of responsibility that I now carry. ACPE’s legacy is built on the relationships developed between student and educator.”

Andy Stubblefield

ACPE Certified Educator

The unique work of Clinical Pastoral Education (CPE) is rooted in the vision of Anton Boisen, known as the “father of CPE.” Over a century ago, Boisen saw a critical gap in theological training: students were gaining head knowledge but not practicing their theology. He believed ministry students needed field experience—learning to read and relate to “the living human documents.” Each person, he taught, is a living text filled with stories that reveal the whole self. By slowing down and listening deeply, we find empathy and connection at the heart of another’s story and our own.

Since Boisen’s time, CPE has evolved into a rigorous model of adult education. Within the Association for Clinical Pastoral Education (ACPE), those called to carry on his legacy pursue certification as educators through an intensive, multi-year process. To become a Certified Educator, each student—called a Certified Educator Candidate (CEC)—must demonstrate skill in facilitating group and individual learning and develop integrated theories in Personality Development, Educational Theory, and Orienting System Grounding.

To ensure high standards in educator training, ACPE created a separate credential known as National Faculty. Certified Educators who wish to teach CECs must have completed the educator certification process, served at least two years as educators, and written to a series of competencies reviewed by a National Faculty committee. This rigorous process ensures that National Faculty members are fully prepared to mentor new educators and uphold ACPE’s educational integrity.

In spring 2025, ECS Certified Educator Rev. Andy Stubblefield completed the National Faculty process, joining this distinguished group of mentors. Reflecting on the milestone, he shared, “I am proud to have met this milestone as an educator and feel the sense of responsibility that I now carry. ACPE’s legacy is built on the relationships developed between student and educator. I am now part of the team of educators across the country seeking to identify, educate and train the next generation of ACPE educators.”

Over the past year, Episcopal Community Services (ECS) has developed a cohort of four Certified Educator Candidates, each at a different stage of their certification journey. Under the supervision of Stubblefield and Rev. Dr. Mari Chollet, the first of these candidates achieved certification last month. Having two National Faculty members at ECS allows for deeper investment in CEC development and strengthens ECS’s already robust CPE program.

This fall, two of the CECs are leading extended unit cohorts under Stubblefield and Chollet’s guidance. As Stubblefield notes, “CPE is experiential learning at every level, from first unit student to Phase 2 CECs. Having the opportunity to get CECs in the room with students and engage in the dynamic learning that is only possible in that space is one of the greatest gifts ECS can bring to this cohort.”

Through this layered, relational learning process, today’s CECs carry forward Boisen’s legacy—continuing to study and serve the “living human documents” they encounter, just as he envisioned more than a century ago.