June 25, 2022

Meet Dr. Steven Ceresnie!

 

Steven J. Ceresnie, Ph.D., may not quite be the quintessential Renaissance Man,

but if he is not then he will do until one comes along.

 

Consider these items on his resume: Staff Psychologist at Hawthorn Center, a

psychiatric hospital for children and adolescents in Northville, Michigan; former

President of the Michigan Psychological Association; Michigan Representative to

the Council of Representatives of the American Psychological Association; faculty

member in Behavioral Science at the University of Detroit-Mercy, School of

Dentistry; Independent practice of psychology with children, adolescents, and

adults for more than 40 years; Fellow of the Michigan Psychological Association;

Beth Clark Service Award winner with MPA; Distinguished Psychologist Award by

MPA; Editorial Board member for The Michigan Psychologist.

 

In addition, Dr. Ceresnie is a voracious reader, who frequently comments on

books he’s read for The Michigan Psychologist, writes a blog called “Notes of a

Psychology Watcher,” is considered to be the resident humorous for the MPA

newsletter, maintains his long-time interest in jazz, and finds time to be a

husband, father and grandfather to two young children.

 

He earned his Ph.D. in Developmental Psychology from Wayne State University

1976, and then went on to do a Post-Doctoral Internship at Hawthorn Center.

Following his internship, he became a staff member at Hawthorn Center for 10

years working with children and adolescents. He started his private practice in

Plymouth in 1979 and still sees patients.

 

Dr. Ceresnie met his future wife, Patty, during the summer of 1968 at a resort in

South Haven, Michigan. Patty, a singer, was booked in from Chicago as the

vocalist for the band at the resort.  As he recalls, “I was attracted to Patty

because she was small, like me, was physically very attractive, had a beautiful

smile, liked to laugh, she was a terrific singer – and she liked my jokes.”  After a

summer together, Patty lived with her parents in Livonia, then went back to Los

Angeles where she lived for a while after attending one year of college in her

home town of Des Moines. “She returned to live with her parents in Livonia in

1971 because of a major earthquake in L.A. and hoping to renew our

relationship,” Ceresnie says. “Within weeks after returning Patty joined a popular

wedding band as their singer and we renewed our relationship and married in

1973.” 

 

After they were married, Patty was the leader of a local wedding and party band

for many years. She recently wrote a book (“Bobby Had Game”) about her

famous father who managed African-American barnstorming basketball teams.

She and Steve have two daughters, Sharon, a lawyer, and Barb, who works as a

supervisor staffing sports arenas. Sharon, who lives in Ann Arbor and is married

to a psychologist, has two children – Charlie, age 10, and Mia, age 8.

 

Dr. Ceresnie began teaching at the University of Detroit - Mercy School of

Dentistry in the late 1970s. He says that he was asked to teach adolescent

psychology to the five students in the two-year Orthodontics graduate program.

“Then I taught behavioral issues to students in dental school,” he recalls. “My

course content included teaching communication skills, dealing with anxious

patients, understanding psychopathology and more.” After 40 years, he retired

from UD-M in 2019.

 

He says that he loved teaching for the reasons noted in a quote from Joseph

Epstein: 

 

“A few years after I began teaching, it occurred to me that being a teacher - not

being a student - provides the best education. ‘To teach is to learn twice,’ wrote

Joubert, in a simple-sounding maxim that could have several different meanings.

It could mean that one first learns when getting up the material one is about to

teach and then tests and relearns it in the actual teaching. It could mean that

being a teacher offers one a fine chance of a second draft of one's inevitable

inadequate initial education. It could mean that learning, like certain kinds of

love, is better the second time around. It could mean that we are not ready for

education, at any rate of the kind that leads to wisdom, until we are sixty, or

seventy, or beyond. I favor this last interpretation, for it accounts for the strange

feeling that I have had every year of my adult life, which is that only twelve

months ago I was really quite stupid.”

 

As a decades-long member of MPA, he still enjoys being involved with the

organization. When asked what he likes about MPA,” he replied: “Meeting

psychologists across the state, participating on committees, and keeping up with

legislative activities.” He adds that over the years, he has learned much from his

MPA peers. And he recalls, “In the 1990s, I was chair of the Program Committee,

and our committee invited well-known psychologists to present at conferences. I

particularly enjoyed picking up our guest speakers at the airport and getting to

talk to them.”

 

One particular encounter stands out for him. “I had the privilege of picking up

Martin Seligman at the airport, and the next evening have a gathering of MPA

members at my house to meet Dr. Seligman, who I now called Marty.”

           

But, before taking Seligman to his hotel, Dr. Ceresnie took Marty to a local

delicatessen for dinner. “Back then, Marty was a serious fellow, and we were

soon embroiled in a discussion on the topic of sexuality,” Ceresnie recalls. “I had

worked in a child psychiatric hospital for many years and treated many

adolescent males brought in for inpatient treatment because of a history of

sexual perversions – a label not used now.  As we waited for our dinner in the

crowded deli, Marty shared some of his experiences treating this sample of

youngsters and stressed the importance of classical and operant conditioning

models of etiology and the benefits of cognitive therapy. 

 

“I had found the work of psychoanalyst Robert Stoller, M.D. most helpful in

treating these trouble youngsters. Stoller had written the book, “Perversion:  The

Erotic Form of Hatred,” emphasizing the role of unconscious learning. The part of

our dinner I will never forget is this:  Marty said in so many words that my views

were not up with the current research and then he gently raised his voice and

said, ‘Let’s take masturbation for an example.’ I noticed several restaurant

patrons turn their heads our way, and then I said to Marty, ‘Maybe we should

discuss masturbation another time. You’re leaving town tomorrow, and I’m a

regular customer at this deli.’ We both smiled.”  

 

As for hobbies, Steve Ceresnie says his hobbies include, in addition to reading,

listening to music, listening to podcasts and watching movies. He enjoys his

family and his grandchildren. And he says that he still enjoys the challenge of

doing evaluations and psychotherapy. “especially enjoy the privilege of helping

people.” And he adds: “The human condition is so varied even after so many

years of work, that surprises still occur.” 

As previously mentioned, he is an avid reader. Books currently on his nightstand

include Healing. Our Path from Mental Illness to Mental Health by Thomas Insel;

When Ideology Meets Reality by Helen Joyce; ADHD 2.0 New Science and

Essential Strategies for Thriving with Distraction --- from Childhood Through

Adulthood by Edward M. Hallowell, and John J. Ratey; Happiness. The Science

Behind Your Smile by Daniel Nettle; and Code Breaker: Jennifer Doudna, Gene

Editing, and the Future of the Human Race by Walter Isaacson.

 

Don’t even ask the number of books he has read in the last year.

 

He comments that he reads so many books because “I enjoy learning from so

many intelligent and wise people and using my imagination in delightful ways.”

 

How did he become hooked on books? “That happened in elementary school,

and was strongly encouraged by my maternal grandfather,” he says. “I would tell

my grandfather about the books I read. I had a close, warm relationship with

him. He was born in Russia and came here in his early 20’s. Some of his

motivation to get me to read and do well in school was because he started

college as an engineering student but had to drop out because he did not have

enough money to pay for his education. He hoped I would value education. He

then opened up a barber shop in downtown Detroit, a trade he practiced in

Russia. Because of his politics and sense of humor, I’ve thought my grandfather

was an equal combination of Karl and Groucho Marx.”