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About Adler University

Graduating Socially Responsible Practitioners.

Founded in 1952, Adler University builds on Alfred Adler’s foundation of community psychology by focusing on the interconnectedness of individual and community well-being and systemic interventions to drive positive change. The University educates practitioners who are equipped to engage with communities and contribute to sustainable, impactful solutions through programs in Chicago, Vancouver, and online.

The World Can Change in a Moment

There are moments in our lives that shape not just who we are, but who we are destined to become. They do not come by chance. They are born of passion.

If you are reading this now, you have shown your commitment to social justice and a desire to be a positive force in the world. The moment you decide to join us here at Adler University and deepen your resolve to create a more just society, the path to who you are destined to become will be clear.

This is your moment. And the world is waiting.

We welcome you to Adler University with a single word that describes the teachings and practice of Alfred Adler’s groundbreaking concept of social interest: Gemeinschaftsgefühl!

Translated, it means our health resides within our community life and connections. It is an idea that demands action that is needed now, more than ever. To shine a light on injustice and drive the work that leads to much needed change in some of our most challenged communities. Our mission is to prepare practitioners to address the world’s alarming health inequities and social injustices. Adler University puts boots on the ground where they are needed most – as scholars, activists, practitioners, and mentors. Adlerian practitioners bring needed change to the communities they call home.

The faculty and staff at Adler University are instinctive changemakers committed to advancing communal well-being through transformative education. Our commitment manifests globally as our pioneering instructors bridge theory with practice across disciplines that shape health’s social determinants and system outcomes.

Our students come to Adler seeking more than education—they seek the expertise and real-world immersion to challenge the status quo and co-create equitable solutions. Through hands-on, practice-driven learning, they develop the strategic courage and compassionate leadership needed to transform health systems and communities.

If you aspire to lead with empathy and intellect, advocate urgently for health equity, and collaborate in creating meaningful change, Adler University is the place for you. Join us in making health equity a lived reality for all.

Mission

Adler University continues the pioneering work of Alfred Adler by graduating socially responsible practitioners, engaging communities, and advancing social justice.

Outcomes of Our Mission

Alfred Adler began community psychology by articulating the constructs of gemeinschaftsgefühl (social interest or the connection between individual and community well being) and systemic / structural community intervention (such as preventative public health measures). Adler University, as a higher education institution, continues his work today through the production of three outcomes which are specified in the mission:


Socially Responsible Practitioners
Socially responsible practitioners are educated to be effective personal and social change agents in the pursuit of justice.


Community Engagement
Community engagement is collaborative partnership that strengthens communities, provides service, and prepares students.


Social Justice
Social justice refers to equitable distribution of economic, political, civil, cultural, social, and other resources and opportunities in society in order to promote the optimal development of persons and communities.

Our Values Hold True

There are five values that guide expectations and behavior at Adler University:


We are part of and invested in community. We act and collaborate with compassion and social responsibility.


We respect and celebrate human diversity and difference, and we actively enact anti-racism, indigenization, equity, inclusion, and belonging inside and outside the University.


We champion leadership, innovation and creativity, act on principle, and challenge the status quo.


We embrace the highest level of quality, rigor, and integrity for education, scholarship, performance, and outcomes.


We are outcome-oriented and evidence-based, and we pursue real-world solutions and measurable results.

Vision

The leading academic institution advancing socially responsible practice, healthy communities, and a more just society.

Our Vision is Clear.
Our Path is Determined.

The Vision is for Adler University to be the “leading” or premier higher education organization addressing socially responsible practice and its concomitants – locally, regionally, and globally – a unique resource for broadening relevant practice, effecting social justice, understanding policy, initiating advocacy, promoting academic reflection, and producing social action and change.

Graduate Spotlight

History

Adler University is named for Alfred Adler (1870-1937), a physician, psychotherapist, and founder of Adlerian psychology, sometimes called individual psychology. He is considered the first community psychologist, because his work pioneered attention to community life, prevention, and population health. Adler held equality, civil rights, mutual respect, and the advancement of democracy as core values. He was one of the first practitioners to provide family and group counseling and to use public education as a way to address community health. He was among the first to write about the social determinants of health and of mental health.

In 1952, Rudolf Dreikurs (1897-1972), one of Adler’s advocates and followers, founded the Institute of Adlerian Psychology that, in 1954, changed its name to the Alfred Adler Institute of Chicago (later the Adler School of Professional Psychology, in 1991, and Adler University today). Early instructors and founders of the Institute were Bernard Shulman, Harold Mosak, Bina Rosenberg, and Robert Powers.

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Trustees

Our Strategic Plan

Adler University’s strategic plan charts a clear and dynamic direction for realizing our mission and our vision to be the leading academic institution advancing socially responsible practice, healthy communities, and a more just society.

The current environment for graduate education requires new approaches while staying the course for social justice – all of which is encompassed in Building Community for Social Justice, the University’s strategic plan for 2023-2026. The plan responds to social and economic conditions in the world while achieving congruent responses to emerging needs within the institution and fostering a healthy place to learn and work.

 

1,814
students attend Adler University across all three campuses
87%
graduation rate for the 2019-2020 academic year, including 86% of ethnic minority students

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Adler University President Lisa Coleman to give keynote address at NASAP’s 73rd Annual Conference

The conference, taking place May 29–June 1, 2025 in Portland, Oregon, brings together professionals in education, psychology, psychiatry, counseling, social work, and community leadership to connect, learn, and explore new ideas through the lens of Adlerian Psychology.

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Unlocking creativity and community: Registration open for the 2025 Adlerian Summit

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