LGBT Institute For Family Therapy (LIFT)

Welcome
Thank you for your interest in the LGBTQ Institute for Family Therapy (LIFT) Certification Program. This certification program is designed for clinicians, program administrators, and professionals working directly with families involved with New York City’s Administration for Children’s Services (ACS). After getting certified as a LIFT clinician, you will have additional knowledge, skills, and confidence to help reduce rejecting behaviors of families struggling to accept their LGBTQ children.

This application is being administered by The Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual & Transgender Community Center, the organization responsible for the LIFT Certification Program, and is made possible by generous private funding.

LIFT is committed to building a network of diverse clinicians by offering ongoing professional development opportunities. LIFT is open to people of all sexual orientations and gender identities (both those who identify as LGBTQ+ and those who do not), people of color, people with disabilities, women, and LGBTQ+ candidates are strongly encouraged to apply.

A letter of approval from your supervisor and a current resume are required to submit this application (read below for more context).

The next LIFT Cohort runs from January 2026 - April 2026, and the following runs from April 2026 - June 2026.

Cohort AB:  (Jan - April) 

Wednesday, January 28th, 2026 / 10 AM - 4 PM
Wednesday, February 4th, 2026 / 10 AM - 1 PM

Wednesday, February 25th, 2026 / 10 AM - 4 PM
Wednesday, March 4th, 2026 / 10 AM - 1 PM

Wednesday, March 25th, 2026 / 10 AM - 4 PM
Wednesday, April 1st, 2026 / 10 AM - 1 PM


Cohort AC:  (April - June) 

Wednesday, April 22nd, 2026 / 10 AM - 4 PM
Wednesday, April 29th, 2026 / 10 AM - 1 PM

Wednesday, May 20th, 2026 / 10 AM - 4 PM
Wednesday, May 27th, 2026 / 10 AM - 1 PM

Wednesday, June 3rd, 2026 / 10 AM - 4 PM
Wednesday, June 8th, 2026 / 10 AM - 1 PM

Please provide your application information below:

Contact Information





Professional Information








LIFT Program Discovery





Accessibility and Accommodations
The Center is committed to creating inclusive, accessible, safe, and enjoyable learning spaces. Please respond to the questions below to help us ensure your experience in the LIFT Program meets your needs. 

Demographic Details
Here at The Center, we're committed to training and supporting clinicians from diverse backgrounds. We also want to be able to evaluate how broad an impact we're having, in terms of the clinicians recruited and the communities served. Providing the information below will below will help us do so. All of this information is voluntary and can be skipped.








Open-Ended Application Questions


Required Documents

In order for this application to be considered complete, you must complete all questions included below.
Supervisor's Approval (PDF)
To participate in the LIFT certification program, you must get your supervisor’s approval to commit to LIFT’s time commitment and guidelines. If you have concerns about securing this approval, or wish to speak further before doing so, please email foreverfamilies@gaycenter.org to discuss.


Current Resume (PDF)
You will not be eligible for consideration until you submit this document to The Center.

Acknowledgements and Consents


Consent to Data Sharing
The Center has partnered with an external team of researchers to evaluate the efficacy of the LIFT program. The team will have access to applicant names, agencies of employment, phone numbers, email addresses, and any of the demographic information in the next section you choose to share in this application. The team may choose to contact some LIFT applicants with a request to participate in a survey or interview, which can be ignored or declined without any consequence or further communication.

Contact Information