Steven Sandage

Steve grew up in Iowa as the son of two former teachers and was confirmed in the United Methodist Church. He studied psychology at Iowa State University where he developed an interest in connections between mental health, spirituality, and ministry, which he also pursued in seminary. This led to working as a chaplain in prisons, a geriatric facility, and a group home for boys, which further shaped his desire to integrate psychology and theology in understanding human development and healing. He and his wife Danielle ventured out to Virginia for his doctoral program in counseling psychology and her graduate studies in social work, and this was the context where he started to focus on marriage and family therapy as a clinical specialization. He completed his clinical internship at the Federal Corrections Institute (Petersburg, Virginia) where he did specialty rotations in HIV services and forensic assessment. Following completion of their graduate degrees, they moved to Minnesota where Steve joined the faculty in marriage and family therapy at Bethel Seminary and started a clinical practice. In 2013 and after sixteen years at Bethel, Steve accepted the Danielsen Chair position at Boston University School of Theology and the Danielsen Institute, where he also serves as Research Director and Senior Staff Psychologist. He holds a joint appointment at BU in the Department of Psychological and Brain Sciences.

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