SAVE THE DATES for the 2023 Groves Conference
2023 Groves Conference on Marriage and Family
Amizade Fair Trade Learning - Immersive Ethical Service Learning Experience
● Pine Ridge, SD ● May 30 - June 3, 2023 ●
Contact Groves Chairs Kari Adamson and Heather Bridges to learn more, volunteer, submit conference proposals, and save your spot!
Amizade Fair Trade Learning - Immersive Ethical Service Learning Experience
● Pine Ridge, SD ● May 30 - June 3, 2023 ●
Contact Groves Chairs Kari Adamson and Heather Bridges to learn more, volunteer, submit conference proposals, and save your spot!
Photos from the 2022 Groves Conference
Photos from the 2021 Groves Conference
Photos from the 2019 Groves Conference

"2019 Grove Conference, "Surviving or Thriving: Exploring Adversity, Resilience, and Hope across the Lifespan"
Program Chairs: Deb Berke, Barbara Settles, & Karen Doneker
Location: Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
June 19-21, 2019
Program Chairs: Deb Berke, Barbara Settles, & Karen Doneker
Location: Kennett Square, Pennsylvania
June 19-21, 2019
Photos from the 2018 Groves Conference
Photos from the 2017 Groves Conference
Photos from the 2016 Groves Conference
Photos from the 2015 Groves Conference
Groves Conferences
Conference Format
Unlike the traditional format of professional associations where many formal papers are presented, the Groves Conference seeks to limit the number of presentations and conducts its sessions primarily via seminars and workshops. Consequently, attendees have the opportunity to participate in eight to ten hours of continuous dialogue and exchange within a small group on one of the subtopics of the Groves Conference. This allows for the exploration of issues in depth, as well as free exchange of ideas, information, and experience between scholars and other professionals from the various disciplines concerned with the family. The Conference usually meets once each year in the spring in a location conducive to relaxed intellectual activity and meets outside the United States occasionally to proved the opportunity for the Groves Conference members to exchange ideas with experts from other countries who are concerned with the family.
Unlike the traditional format of professional associations where many formal papers are presented, the Groves Conference seeks to limit the number of presentations and conducts its sessions primarily via seminars and workshops. Consequently, attendees have the opportunity to participate in eight to ten hours of continuous dialogue and exchange within a small group on one of the subtopics of the Groves Conference. This allows for the exploration of issues in depth, as well as free exchange of ideas, information, and experience between scholars and other professionals from the various disciplines concerned with the family. The Conference usually meets once each year in the spring in a location conducive to relaxed intellectual activity and meets outside the United States occasionally to proved the opportunity for the Groves Conference members to exchange ideas with experts from other countries who are concerned with the family.
2021- Virtual Conference Program Chairs: Elizabeth Dolan (University of New Hampshire, retired), Irene Leech (Virginia Tech)
Family Advocacy and Family Policy: Caring for Families in the Exo- and Macro-Spheres
2020- Cancelled due to COVID
2019-Kennett Square, PA Program Chairs: Debra Berke (Wilmington University), Barbara Settles (University of Delaware), Karen L. Doneker (Towson University)
Surviving or Thriving: Exploring Adversity, Resilience, and Hope Across the Lifespan
2018- Portland, ME Program Chairs: Sharon Ballard (North Carolina University) and Coco Readdick-Florida State University (retired)
Caring for Each Other: Family Caregiving Across the Generations
2017 - Charleston, SC Program Chair: Helyne Frederick (Winthrop University)
Post-Racial No More: Race, Realities, and Resources of Ethnic Minority Families and Social Movements
2016- Denver, CO Program Chairs: Judith Fischer (Texas Tech University) and Kevin Lyness (Antioch University New England)
Gender, Sexual Identity, and Families: The Personal is Political
2015- Buffalo, NY Program Chair: Brian Masciadrelli (Fredonia University)
Families at the Intersection of Mental Health and Disabilities
2014- State College, PA Program Chair: Tara Saathoff-Wells (Penn State University)
Fracking and Families
2013- Boston, MA Program Chair: Tessa LeRoux (Lasell College)
And Justice for All: Families and the Criminal Justice System
2012- Copan, Honduras- Cancelled
Families Creating Sustainable Communities
2011- New Orleans, LA
Families, Climate, Environment: Change & Interchange
2010- Seattle, WA
Families: Connections and Communication Within and Across Species
2009- Chapel Hill, NC
Celebrating Groves Conference: 75 Years of Family Research, Theory, & Practice
2008- Galway, Belfast, and Dublin, Ireland
The Impact of Globalization on Ireland's Families: A Positive Model
2007- Detroit, MI
Social, Economic, and Environmental Justice for All Communities: Speaking Out and Standing Up for Families
2006- Tucson, AZ
Families: Borders and Boundaries
2005- Washington D.C.
Native Americans Dealing with Change: Identity, Economics, Environment
2004- Oklahoma City, OK
Integrity and Survival in Families and Communities
2003- Miami, FL
Cuban Families in Cuba and the United States
2002- Chautauqua, NY
Families, Religions and Spirituality in the Postmodern Era
2001- Fairbanks, Barrow, & Anchorage, AK
The American Family We Want to Know: How Alaskan Families are Coping Amid Rapid Social Changes
2000- Asheville, NC
Considering the Past & Contemplating the Future: Family Diversity in the Next Millennium
1999- St. Pete Beach, FL
Creating Aging in Families and Communities
1998- Washington D.C.
Human Genome Project
1997- Digby, Nova Scotia
Economics and Families
1996- San Diego, CA
Intergenerational Relations
1995- Lexington, KY
Besieged Families: Creating Collaborative Communities
...and others, going back to 1934!
Family Advocacy and Family Policy: Caring for Families in the Exo- and Macro-Spheres
2020- Cancelled due to COVID
2019-Kennett Square, PA Program Chairs: Debra Berke (Wilmington University), Barbara Settles (University of Delaware), Karen L. Doneker (Towson University)
Surviving or Thriving: Exploring Adversity, Resilience, and Hope Across the Lifespan
2018- Portland, ME Program Chairs: Sharon Ballard (North Carolina University) and Coco Readdick-Florida State University (retired)
Caring for Each Other: Family Caregiving Across the Generations
2017 - Charleston, SC Program Chair: Helyne Frederick (Winthrop University)
Post-Racial No More: Race, Realities, and Resources of Ethnic Minority Families and Social Movements
2016- Denver, CO Program Chairs: Judith Fischer (Texas Tech University) and Kevin Lyness (Antioch University New England)
Gender, Sexual Identity, and Families: The Personal is Political
2015- Buffalo, NY Program Chair: Brian Masciadrelli (Fredonia University)
Families at the Intersection of Mental Health and Disabilities
2014- State College, PA Program Chair: Tara Saathoff-Wells (Penn State University)
Fracking and Families
2013- Boston, MA Program Chair: Tessa LeRoux (Lasell College)
And Justice for All: Families and the Criminal Justice System
2012- Copan, Honduras- Cancelled
Families Creating Sustainable Communities
2011- New Orleans, LA
Families, Climate, Environment: Change & Interchange
2010- Seattle, WA
Families: Connections and Communication Within and Across Species
2009- Chapel Hill, NC
Celebrating Groves Conference: 75 Years of Family Research, Theory, & Practice
2008- Galway, Belfast, and Dublin, Ireland
The Impact of Globalization on Ireland's Families: A Positive Model
2007- Detroit, MI
Social, Economic, and Environmental Justice for All Communities: Speaking Out and Standing Up for Families
2006- Tucson, AZ
Families: Borders and Boundaries
2005- Washington D.C.
Native Americans Dealing with Change: Identity, Economics, Environment
2004- Oklahoma City, OK
Integrity and Survival in Families and Communities
2003- Miami, FL
Cuban Families in Cuba and the United States
2002- Chautauqua, NY
Families, Religions and Spirituality in the Postmodern Era
2001- Fairbanks, Barrow, & Anchorage, AK
The American Family We Want to Know: How Alaskan Families are Coping Amid Rapid Social Changes
2000- Asheville, NC
Considering the Past & Contemplating the Future: Family Diversity in the Next Millennium
1999- St. Pete Beach, FL
Creating Aging in Families and Communities
1998- Washington D.C.
Human Genome Project
1997- Digby, Nova Scotia
Economics and Families
1996- San Diego, CA
Intergenerational Relations
1995- Lexington, KY
Besieged Families: Creating Collaborative Communities
...and others, going back to 1934!