Testimonials

“I used Debra Manchester decades ago to work through my own family problem and she was excellent then. What could a couple of more decades of experience do to add to that skill?”-Matthew J. Long, Attorney and Mediator “Debra does outstanding work!”-Wendy Allen, PhD MFT “FTI is THE place in Santa Barbara for individual, couple […]

Institute Overview

Integrative Systems Therapeutic Foundation Founded in 1979, the Family Therapy Institute has been at the forefront of transforming therapy through pioneering work with an integrative systems-based model as our therapeutic foundation. Since then, we have become known for the quality of staff and services, for our warm and welcoming setting, and for leadership in promoting […]

How We’re Unique

What It’s Like to Work With Us When the Institute was founded in 1979, the staff envisioned family therapy becoming the rule of treatment rather than the exception—especially with children and teens. Unfortunately, this has not turned out to be the case. We are unique in our specialty with couples and families. When you work […]

Our Story

The Founding and History of FTI Our Founder, Debra Manchester After graduating from Stanford in 1974, Debra Manchester was hired as the Executive Director for Social Advocates for Youth (SAY), a non-profit agency in Mountain View, California with ten other centers including one in SB. The 1960’s brought thousands of runaway teens to the Bay […]