Moab, Utah — November 9-11, 2026
The Poetics of ACT
Kelly G. Wilson, PhD
Co-Founder of Acceptance & Commitment Therapy
In-Person Continuing Education 12 APA & ASWB-Approved CEs
Our Inaugural ACT Continuing Education Workshop
12 APA & ASWB-Approved CE Credits
Moab, Utah
The Poetics of ACT:
Finding Beauty in the Midst of Darkness
Kelly G. Wilson, PhD
Professor Emeritus of Psychology, University of Mississippi Founder, OneLife Education and Training
“Poetry is a close read of experience — which is rarely straightforward, often contradictory, partly known and partly not. You have to sit with it to see what else is there.” ~ Kelly G. Wilson, PhD
In-Person Immersive Clinical Training
For mental health professionals
Led by fellow life traveler and ACT co-founder Dr. Kelly G. Wilson
Join us for much needed connection, reflection, and restoration during this pivotal moment. Grounding in the poetry of ACT, we replenish our capacity to remain present, open, and values-directed while navigating the complexity of our time.
Destination Psych CE participants can expect thoughtfully designed half-day learning sessions at the stunning Red Earth Venue. Beauty, stillness, and wonder create space for reflection, dialogue, and deep engagement with the work.
Our gathering begins with time to connect and settle into the shared experience. Each subsequent day offers space for reflection, learning, and integration. Come early, stay later, and experience the landscape in your own way.
“Traveling to a place like the desert is a place where you can sit in the hollow for a moment and see what rises up.”
~ Kelly G. Wilson, PhD
The Poetics of ACT Schedule and Details
Monday – Foundations: The Case for the Poetic Stance (Click to expand)
Monday –Arrival is a new beginning — afternoon start, easing in, getting oriented to the place and each other, ending with a sunset social. It’s the day of opening and settling. We ask a foundational question: how did we come to do this work the way we do, and is there another way? Participants will be introduced to a process-based, poetic orientation to clinical practice — grounded in both contextual behavioral science and the psychoanalytic tradition — and will begin exploring their own presence and attention as active ingredients in therapeutic change. The day will be experiential throughout.
12:15 – 1:00 PM — Check-In and Welcome – Gathering and settling: Destination Psych CE registration, introductions, and orientation to our beautiful space and our learning journey ahead.
1:00 – 2:45 PM — The Problem with Protocols (1.75 CE) — How medical and pharmacological research models narrowed our assumptions about therapeutic change — and why a process-based, poetic orientation represents a substantive alternative.
2:45 – 3:00 PM — Break
3:00 – 5:00 PM — The Poetic Stance in Practice (2 CE) — Differentiating protocol-driven from process-based approaches. Therapist variables — attention, presence, responsiveness — as active therapeutic ingredients. Experiential introduction to a poetic clinical orientation.
5:00 – 5:15 PM — Reflection and Close (.25 CE) — Brief structured reflection. Questions and close of formal instruction for our first day.
5:15 – 6:30 PM — Social Hour (Optional) — We welcome you for an informal gathering of fellow travelers to Destination Psych CE. Light refreshments provided as we enjoy the high desert sunset together.
Tuesday – Inside the Room: Process, Suffering, and Language (Click to Expand)
On Tuesday, we dig deeper. An optional morning walk to settle in, then the clinical heart of the workshop — psychological suffering, collaborative case formulation, the real-time practice of following what is alive in a session. The work is experiential throughout: we learn by doing, by noticing, by practicing with each other what we are learning to do with clients. Lunch is on-site and unhurried — a full hour on 17 private acres between Arches and Canyonlands. Then we turn to language: the narratives, rules, and self-stories that shape what clients can see and do.
8:00 – 9:00 AM — Morning Gathering (optional) — Enjoy breakfast offerings, with flexibility for optional outdoor explorations. Time for dwelling in the red rocks or sleep in and come ready for the day’s learning to begin.
9:00 – 11:30 AM — Suffering, Formulation, and the Limits of What We Know (2.5 CE) — A process-oriented understanding of psychological suffering applied to collaborative case formulation. How identity and behavior are shaped by experience outside awareness. Clinical decision-making in real time.
11:30 AM – 12:30 — Lunch — A brown bag lunch is provided on-site with views of our stunning red rocks surrounding — time to connect, move in nature, and let the morning settle.
12:30-2:00 PM — Limitation, Possibility, and the Work of Language (1.5 CE) — Noticing and tracking shifts between contexts of limitation and contexts of possibility. ACT-consistent methods for exploring verbal narratives, self-stories, and rule-governed behavior with clients.
2:00 PM — CE portion of the day concluded — Free Time The afternoon and evening are yours. Moab rewards those who wander — the landscape meets you where you are.
2:30-3:15 PM — Sound Bath (optional) — Crystal Blanks — trauma-informed practitioner and Moab’s own — leads an immersive sound bath on the grounds of Red Earth Venue.
Wednesday – Integration: Self, Values, and the Living Practice (Click to Expand)
On Wednesday we move towards closure. We begin the day with an optional morning reflection time — and then start the final stretch of work: integrating self and identity as a living thread through all six ACT processes, finding the pace that serves the work, and practicing the art of collaborative values-based direction with clients. As on every day, the learning is experiential — we stay close to what is alive rather than what is known in advance. We close gently, with time for reflection and goodbye. What you carry out is yours to keep.
8:00 – 8:45 AM — Morning Gathering (optional)–Enjoy breakfast offerings, and optional outdoor reflection time before our practice together begins.
8:45 – 10:30 AM — Self, Identity, and the Six Processes (1.75 CE) –Integrating work with self and identity as a central thread — not an add-on — woven through acceptance, defusion, present-moment awareness, values, and committed action. Shared experiential practice.
10:30 – 10:45 AM — Break with light refreshments
10:45 AM – 12:45 PM — Slow Is Fast — Values, Pacing, and the Living Practice (2 CE) — The principles of slow is fast, small is big, and less is more as guides to therapeutic pacing. Collaborative formulation of values-based directions with clients. Experiential exercises and structured dialogues for building therapist flexibility, presence, and creativity. Closing practice and integration.
12:45 -1:00 PM — Conclusion (.25 CE) — Final reflections and integration, evaluations, and close of our shared learning together. Destination Psych CE sends you off with warm wishes… until we meet again!
What’s Included with Registration – The Practical and the Poetic (Click to Expand)
| The Practical Inclusions | The Poetic Moments |
| 12 APA-approved CE credits* | Three days of inspiration with a luminary in our field — Kelly G. Wilson, co-founder of ACT — actively engaged in workshopping the Poetics of ACT and the art of psychotherapy. |
| Refreshments throughout Monday + hosted sunset social hour with hors d’oeuvres | The first evening ends outside under the new moon — which in Moab’s dark sky country means a night sky densely packed with stars only visible because of the darkness. Arches National Park is 8 minutes away and open through the night. The Windows Section, just 9 miles inside the park, offers a sky full of stars framed by some of the most iconic arches on earth. |
| Light breakfast + brown bag lunch on the private grounds (Tuesday) | An open lunch hour on 17 private acres of red rock formations — time to soak in the vastness and majesty. Yours to spend however you need. |
| Breakfast offerings (Wednesday) | The day closes by 1:00. The possibilities after are nearly endless and entirely yours to choose. |
| Open access to Red Earth Venue’s 17 private acres throughout | Red rock, open sky, and the particular stillness this place holds — before each day begins, following the scheduled workshop, whenever you need it. |
| An optional sound bath with Crystal Blanks of Mindful Movement Moab, following Tuesday’s workshop | Tuesday afternoon finds its close in sound. Crystal Blanks — trauma-informed practitioner and Moab’s own — leads an immersive sound bath on the grounds of Red Earth Venue. Crystal bowls, Tibetan gong, chimes. A different kind of settling after a day of deep work — the perfect negative space between the workshop and the open evening ahead. |
Early bird registration: $1,180 through June 15. Standard registration: $1,380 after June 15.
Lodging and travel are arranged independently by each participant.
*CE Approval Information (Click to Expand)
*12 APA-Approved and ASWB-Approved CE Credits: Many state mental health professional licensing boards accept APA approval for continuing education requirements. However, CE acceptance varies by license type and state, and we strongly recommend that participants verify with their state licensing board that these credits will be accepted toward their license renewal prior to registering.
Current approvals include:
- American Psychological Association (APA)
- New York State Education Department — all licensed mental health professionals
- Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB)
This program offers 12 continuing education credits through the co-sponsorship of CE Learning Systems (CE-Go). CE Learning Systems maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
My State Licensing Board Does Not Automatically Accept APA or ASWB Approval
Not all licensing boards automatically accept APA-approved continuing education — and we don’t want that to stand between you and this experience. If your board requires documentation to approve credits from a non-pre-approved provider, or if you’d like to seek advance approval before registering, we’ve put together everything you are likely to need in one place.
The Board Submission Packet includes a program description, learning objectives, schedule with contact hours, presenter credentials, CE approval documentation, and a ready-to-send cover letter.
Download Program Brochure (Click to Expand)
Moab sits at the convergence of some of the most iconic public lands in the country. Arches National Park, Canyonlands National Park, and Dead Horse Point State Park lie within minutes of one another, creating a rare density of access and possibility.
This is a landscape built for exploration — on foot, by bike, by vehicle, or by climbing route. You can hike, drive, ride, scramble, float, or climb. You can move gently or push yourself hard. Few places offer this range of engagement in such close proximity.
The Freedom to Choose Your Way
Moab meets each of us where we are — whether that means the thrill of an ATV ride or climbing sandstone cliffs, the quiet of a hike beneath ancient arches, or the awe of standing on canyon walls catching the late light. The landscape invites both movement and stillness.
We designed an experience where rigorous professional development and restorative spaciousness coexist. Learning in the high desert, surrounded by red rocks, reinforces the flexibility we seek to cultivate. We deliberately chose a half-day format. The hours after instruction — on a trail, over dinner, in the quiet at the canyon’s edge — are part of the learning. Time in nature, and the awe it can stir, is among the most reliable ways we know to restore depleted attention and replenish our capacity for presence, in both our personal and professional lives.
Lodging Options in Moab
Attendees are responsible for their own lodging, and are welcome to book at the location of their choosing. We are choosing to stay at the Moab Springs Ranch –Here is information for those that are interested in this lodging.
Moab Springs Ranch
Moab Springs Ranch is a historic property located on beautiful grounds near Arches National Park, just north of downtown Moab. The ranch offers modern bungalows and townhomes, the Meadow private park with natural spring-fed waterscape, a hot tub, and fresh roasted coffee in every room. It is 15 driving minutes from Red Earth Venue.
Bungalows and Townhomes are especially well-suited to attendees traveling with a group or with family. You can book online–no deposit is required.
Bring Travel Companions
Moab works well for shared travel. Some continuing education participants arrive with partners, others with children or teens, close friends, or colleagues who are also companions. While learning sessions are underway, companions have access to an unusually wide range of activities—active, exploratory, or restorative—within close reach.
Attend Solo
Moab is one of the most established solo destinations in the country, and a retreat may be the easiest way to travel it alone. The days have structure, the meals are shared, and the free afternoons are yours. The best-known trails — Delicate Arch, the Windows, Park Avenue — carry enough foot traffic that you set your own pace with other hikers in view. Guided rafting, climbing, and 4×4 outings book single travelers routinely. Cell service drops in the canyons, so tell someone your plans before you head out.
Arriving and Departing from Moab
Options For Arrival in Moab–The Arrival is Part of the Adventure!
Option to Fly Out of Las Vegas for an Extended Vacation
Frequently Asked Questions
Destination Psych CE is a continuing education company for psychologists that pairs rigorous, in-depth learning with bucket-list destinations. Our events are designed around the idea that the best professional development happens when it supports your whole life — not just your clinical role. Each program features a prominent speaker, a unique venue in a remarkable natural setting, and a half-day learning format that leaves afternoons and evenings free for exploration, rest, or time with travel companions.
Kelly Wilson describes “Poetics” as a disciplined way of attending. A poetic stance slows down to follow the tone, rhythm, and unfolding of what a client is actually living, rather than mapping experience onto protocol — staying with what is alive long enough for transformation to arrive.
The workshop approaches ACT as a practice of attention the therapist brings into the room — examining acceptance, defusion, present-moment awareness, values, and committed action from the inside out, with work on self and identity woven throughout as a central thread.
No prior background in ACT is required. The workshop is conducted in plain language with an emphasis on lived experience, and is appropriate for both beginners and veteran therapists. For those already familiar with ACT, it will deepen understanding of core principles and expand flexibility in clinical application.
This event is open to licensed mental health professionals. CE credits are approved through APA and ASWB, and many state licensing boards accept one or both of these approvals. See the CE section above for more detail on eligibility.
The program offers 12 continuing education credits, approved by the American Psychological Association (APA) and the Association of Social Work Boards (ASWB). New York State licensed mental health professionals are also covered. CE credits are issued through CE Learning Systems (CE-Go), which maintains responsibility for this program and its content.
CE acceptance varies by license type and state. We strongly recommend verifying with your state licensing board that these credits will count toward your renewal before registering. If your board requires documentation to pre-approve credits from a non-pre-approved provider, our Board Submission Packet includes everything you are likely to need: program description, learning objectives, schedule with contact hours, presenter credentials, CE approval documentation, and a ready-to-send cover letter.
Learning sessions are held at the Red Earth Venue, a privately held property on 17 acres in Moab, Utah, situated between Arches and Canyonlands National Parks. The venue’s open red rock grounds are available to participants throughout the event. Arches National Park is approximately 8 minutes away.
*12 APA-approved CE credits
*All learning sessions with Kelly G. Wilson, PhD
*Refreshments throughout Monday and a hosted sunset social hour with hors d’oeuvres Monday evening
*Light breakfast and a brown bag lunch on-site Tuesday, on the private grounds with red rock views
*Breakfast offerings Wednesday
*Open access to Red Earth Venue’s 17 private acres throughout the event
*An optional sound bath Tuesday afternoon with Crystal Blanks of Mindful Movement Moab
Lodging and travel are arranged independently by each participant.
Monday begins at 12:15 PM with check-in and an afternoon of learning, closing with an optional sunset social.
Tuesday runs from approximately 9:00 AM with CE concluding at 2:00 PM with a 1-hour break for lunch, which is provided.
Wednesday runs from approximately 8:45 AM with CE concluding at 1:00 PM.
Afternoons and evenings are completely free — designed so that travel companions have full flexibility to explore the Moab area independently.
Attendees are responsible for their own lodging and are welcome to book wherever suits them. Destination Psych CE has reserved a block of rooms at Moab Springs Ranch, a historic property with modern bungalows and townhomes located 15 driving minutes from Red Earth Venue, just north of downtown Moab near Arches National Park. To book within the group block, call the Moab Springs Ranch front desk at 435-259-7891 and identify yourself as a Destination Psych CE conference attendee.
Full refund — Cancellations received 60 or more days before the event (by approximately September 10, 2026) receive a full refund of registration fees.
50% refund — Cancellations received 31–59 days before the event receive a 50% refund of registration fees.
No refund — Cancellations received 30 or fewer days before the event are not eligible for a refund. Participants who cancel within this window are welcome to transfer their registration to another eligible attendee at no charge, up to 10 days before the event. To arrange a transfer, email info@destinationpsychce.com with the name and contact information of the person taking your registration. Transfers requested fewer than 10 days before the event will be considered on a case-by-case basis.
No-shows — Participants who do not attend and have not cancelled or arranged a transfer are not eligible for a refund.
Cancellation or postponement by organizer:
In the unlikely event this program must be cancelled or postponed due to circumstances beyond our control — including severe weather, public health emergencies, venue failure, or presenter illness — participants will be notified as soon as possible at the email address provided at registration. If the event is cancelled, participants will receive a full refund processed within 30 days. If the event is postponed, participants may transfer to the rescheduled date or receive a full refund. Destination Psych CE is not responsible for non-refundable travel or lodging expenses.
How to request a refund:
All refund and cancellation requests must be submitted in writing to gretchen@destinationpsychce.com. Requests will be acknowledged within 5 business days and approved refunds processed within 10 business days.
We strongly recommend purchasing travel insurance, particularly “cancel for any reason” coverage, to protect your travel investment. This is a destination event and travel expenses may be significant.
Yes. Enrollment is capped at 70 participants to preserve the intimate, experiential quality of the learning environment.
Reach us at info@destinationpsychce.com — we’re happy to help.
See our event listed on the ACBS website: Association for Contextual Behavioral Science