Introduction to Deconstructing Individuality

Your Instructor for this Course is Michael Whitaker

With an educational background in Social Psychology, Michael had a 27-year career in social services during which he primarily designed and directed treatment programs for difficult-to-treat children and youth, with special interests in violent juvenile offender, sexually-abused children and their families. Including three national research and demonstration projects, programs under Michael’s direction included:

• Memphis-Metro Youth Diversion Project;
• Vocation Exploration Demonstration Project;
• Multi-County Capacity-Building Project;
• Shelby County Violent Juvenile Offender Project;
• Allegheny Intensive Treatment Program; and,
• Family Living Skills Center.

In addition to his direct-treatment responsibilities, during his first career Michael also:

• Presented keynote speeches and major workshop at over one-hundred state, national and international conferences;
• Made innumerable keynote speeches and presentations for local professional conferences, civic organizations, churches, schools, colleges, government agencies, employees, program participants and families;
• Worked as a paid consultant to thirty-five government and private agencies primarily involved in implementing new programs or restructuring existing programs;
• Provided expert testimony twice before the U. S. House of Representatives, five times before state legislative committees and once before the California Supreme Court;
• Served on seven state and national task forces, six of which involved leadership positions;
• Published six professional/scientific journal articles, legislative testimony, numerous training documents and the proceedings of a national conference; and,
• Directed programs that were acknowledged in a Federal training publication, four journal articles, chapters in two books, three national television specials and two certificates of outstanding achievement.

The majority of Michael’s program were based on a model he created entitled, “The Nature of Being Human.” Since 2015, that model has evolved into “The Nature of Individuality: A Model for Attempting to Understand the Complexities of Individuality.” All of Michael’s current and future programs under the umbrella of “Embracing Individuality” are/will be based on that model.

After retiring from his first career, Michael studied photography for two years at the Pittsburgh Center for the Arts in Pittsburgh, PA, and for one Summer at the School for Photographic Studies in Prague, Czech Republic. Since completing his formal photographic education, Michael’s photography:

• Primarily has focused on capturing “the wonderment of individuality;”
• Has been exhibited in group and individual shows in Arles, France, Chaa Creek, Belize, and in the U.S. in New York, NY, Pittsburgh, PA (3 galleries), Baltimore, MD (6 annual shows), Indianapolis, IN (a gallery and museum), Memphis, TN (3 galleries), Salem, OR, Canby, OR, and Portland, OR (2 galleries);
• Is included in the permanent collection of Christian Brothers University in Memphis, TN;
• Has been exhibited in three internet galleries;
• Is presented in one self-published book;
• Is represented by four on-line fine-art galleries in Paris, London, Berlin and California;
• Is represented by a stock photography agency in Oxfordshire, England; and,
• Includes six major social documentary projects that may be viewed at https://socialdocumentary.net/photographer/MichaelWhitaker

In 2020, Michael has two documentary photo projects planned. The American project will focus on the production of “Shrek The Musical Jr.” by a small, non-metropolitan middle school. The international project will focus on the amazing work of Teatro Intipacha in Lima, Peru. Future projects are being planned in Ecuador and Argentina. In 2020, Michael also will launch “Photographing Individuality,” through which teams of documentary photographers and other documentary projects will be created.

On a personal level, Michael has been married for 50 years, has two children, one of whom died of cancer at age 40 in 2015, a daughter-in-law and three grandchildren, ages 22, 13 and 7. Michael and all members of his immediate family currently reside in the U.S. in northern Colorado. Michael was born in Memphis, TN, but also has resided in Florida, Pennsylvania, New York, Maryland and Oregon. He has traveled to 46 of the 50 U.S. states and to 44 countries but his last eight trips abroad have been to Cuba, where he has on-going love and respect for the people of Cuba.