Division 31 Resources

Your Role in Influencing APA and the Future of the Profession of Psychology

By Jeffrey E. Barnett, Psy.D.

Two recent events have occurred that will have a significant impact on State and Provincial Psychological Associations (SPTAs) and their influence at APA. First, the membership of APA overwhelmingly approved the Modified Wildcard Plan bylaws amendment that will help ensure that all SPTAs have a seat (and a voice) at APA's Council of Representatives. Second, the results of the recent APA apportionment balloting were announced and for the first time in APA's history all SPTAs did in fact obtain a seat on APA Council.

The passage of the Modified Wildcard Plan is indeed a landmark event and the fact that all SPTAs now have a seat on APA Council for the first time is indeed noteworthy. To understand its importance of these events some historical perspective may be of help. The Council of Representatives is the governing body of APA. It sets all APA policy, monitors how staff carry out these policies, and it determines and controls APA's annual budget. APA's resources are finite and the Council of Representatives makes the crucial decisions about how to allocate them, to include APA's annual budget of $91 million. Setting APA policy and controlling how APA's resources are allocated is up to Council. The APA Council is comprised of representatives from each authorized APA constituency (Divisions and SPTAs). Specific numbers of seats are determined by the outcome of the annual apportionment balloting. Each APA member allocates 10 votes to one or more Divisions or SPTAs. The outcome determines the number of seats on Council each group has and clearly has a significant impact on the balance of power at APA.

In years past, most APA Divisions were guaranteed at least one seat on Council. SPTA's, however, were not so fortunate. Historically the smaller SPTAs were unable to garner enough votes in the apportionment balloting and mathematically had no chance of ever earning a seat on Council. Then in 1999 for the first time the "Wildcard" plan went into effect and an additional 48 seats were added to Council. These extra seats were allocated based on the total number of apportionment votes Divisions and SPTAs received. This has typically been 60% for Divisions and 40% for SPTAs. So, SPTAs obtained approximately an additional 18 seats on Council; an improvement, but still not sufficient to seat every SPTA. Then, with additional hard work by a number of very dedicated SPTA advocates on Council including Pat DeLeon, Ron Levant, Ruth Paige, Lynn Pantano, Mark Peterson, Sandra Tars, Ron Fox, and David Pilon, the Modified Wildcard Plan was approved this year. The efforts of this dedicated group enabled this to happen.

With the new Modified Wildcard Plan there was great hope among SPTA advocates and leaders that now the States and Provinces would be fully and fairly represented on Council and be able to more adequately influence APA's agenda. Without APA Council hearing about SPTA issues and concerns APA can set policy in ways that overlook many issues of great importance to us. How APA addresses managed care, health care reform, insurance issues, public policy initiatives, prescriptive authority, specialization, practice guidelines; legal, regulatory, legislative, and licensure issues; and related areas of concern will have a tremendous impact on the States and Provinces and SPTA members. As in any organization there is always competition for resources among the various constituencies. We need our voice heard and listened to on Council through the broadest representation possible to be sure that issues of importance to us are addressed to the fullest extent possible by APA.

With 17 additional SPTAs obtaining their own seat, all 60 SPTAs now do have at least one seat on APA Council for the first time ever. This is indeed a tremendous victory for us all. Yet, a totally separate and unrelated circumstance has adversely impacted on the level of representation some SPTAs have on Council. Because of low turnout and balloting by SPTA members we have not made the most of the opportunity provided to us by the Modified Wildcard Plan. SPTAs now have 11 more seats on Council than last year, but 7 of the larger State Associations that previously held several seats on Council have each lost one of their seats. The remainder stayed at the same number. Unfortunately, because of the low SPTA voter turnout these larger states suffered. Data indicate that if the same numbers of psychologists from these larger states had voted the same way they did a year before, two of these states would have actually gained an additional seat, two would have stayed the same, and only one state would have lost one of its seats. So what does all this mean for SPTA members and advocates?

It means that SPTA members must get out and vote. We must each give as many of our 10 apportionment votes as possible to our SPTA. This is because of how the apportionment balloting works. The percentage of votes overall being allocated to SPTAs directly impacts on the number of seats SPTAs have on APA Council. The number of SPTA votes cast determines this. If the percentage of all votes cast falls below 35% for SPTAs states and provinces begin losing their seat on Council, even with the Modified Wildcard Plan. We must have the percentage of votes cast overall go beyond 44% for SPTAs so our total number of seats on APA Council will begin increasing. Unfortunately, in this most recent balloting SPTA votes were down dramatically. Perhaps SPTA members thought that all SPTAs are guaranteed representation on Council, so why put our votes there? Maybe State and Provincial psychologists used this rationale to give more of their 10 votes to Divisions than they did in past years. Perhaps many just didn't even think to vote this year. Regardless of the reason the outcome is indicated in the results above.

We must get the word out this coming year. All State and Provincial APA members must participate in the apportionment balloting process and they must give as many of their 10 votes as possible to their SPTA, if not all 10. It is crucial that we increase both the number of votes cast for SPTAs and the SPTAs' overall percentage of all votes cast in the balloting. This is our goal for next year. All of this might seem very political to some readers; well, you're right! That's how APA works and we need to make it work for us. Psychologists need to see how important APA Council is to each of our professional lives and to the profession of psychology overall. If our collective voices are not heard at APA Council, the issues that concern us will not be adequately addressed. Apathy is our greatest enemy. We must educate our colleagues. Each SPTA needs to actively get the word out to its APA members. Through our collective efforts we can increase our collective representation on APA Council without any SPTAs needing to lose any of their seats. This costs us nothing, but the payoff likely will be tremendous. If you have questions about any of the issues addressed in this article please contact the author at drjbarnett1@comcast.net.

Acknowledgement: The author extends his thanks to Drs. Ron Levant, Ruth Paige, Michael Sullivan, Sandra Tars, and Pat DeLeon for their very helpful comments on earlier versions of this article.

*Please submit nominations for the following two awards to Division 31's Past President by e-mail before January 15 of each year.

APA Division 31 Award for Outstanding State, Provincial, or Territorial Psychological Association

The award for Outstanding State , Provincial, or Territorial Psychological Association honors a psychological association that provides a model for other associations to emulate, by achievements and outstanding accomplishments, such as:

Initiating innovative programming and services
Advancing the profession through advocacy and significant legislative accomplishments
Increasing membership growth and retention
Demonstrating strategies for promoting financial stability of the Association
A proven history of producing leaders in organized psychology
Promoting diversity within the Association
Contributing significantly to the public good

APA Division 31 Award for Outstanding Psychological Association Staff Member

The award for Outstanding Psychological Association Staff Member honors a person whose outstanding achievements may include:

Demonstrating excellent leadership skills
Advancing psychology through innovative or significant accomplishments
Inspiring greater involvement of members
Serving as an outstanding role model and mentor for other staff members
Providing community service of significant value to his/her psychological association and psychology

*Please submit nominations for the following two awards to Division 31’s Past President by e-mail before June 15 of each year.

Outstanding Psychologist Award

The award for Outstanding Psychologist honors a psychologist whose distinguished contributions may include:

Demonstrating outstanding leadership in state, provincial, or territorial psychological association(s) (SPPA)
Advocating for psychology through state, provincial, or territorial psychological association(s)
Impacting psychology and our clients through distinguished service
Serving as a role model for active participation in organized psychology.
Being a volunteer SPPA member (Required)

SPTA Diversity Award

This award will recognize innovative, creative and significant contributions by a State and Provincial Psychological Association to advance diversity for its members, in its leadership, and for the public. Such contributions may include:

Sponsoring C.E. workshops to enhance multi-cultural competencies and awareness.
Planning community forums to address issues of diversity.
Recruiting new members into the Association and increasing the diversity of the Association's membership, to include students and early career psychologists.
Increasing representation of diverse groups in the Association's leadership.
Mentoring programs for Psychologists of diverse backgrounds.
Educating members through newsletters and other publications on topics of diversity.
Developing new and innovative programs contributing to increased knowledge of issues of diversity.

This award recognizes innovation, accomplishment, and ongoing activities related to diversity in membership, governance and leadership, and programming.

*Please submit nominations for the following award to Jeffrey E. Barnett, PsyD, via email only by March 15, 2006..

Karl F. Heiser APA Presidential Award for Advocacy
Coordinated and Administered by APA Division 31

Advocacy on behalf of psychology is a critical element in the growth and development of our discipline. To honor individuals who have been in the forefront of advocacy, Presidential Awards are given each year at the APA Convention to some of those who have worked so hard and to whom we owe so much. The Award is named for Karl F. Heiser, the person who succeeded in having the first state statute defining psychology adopted. Nominations are sought that identify people in the states/provinces or APA Practice Divisions who should receive recognition for their work in advocacy.

The Karl F. Heiser Award honors those psychologists who have given voluntarily of their time to define the discipline of psychology statutorily by state and federal laws through advocacy. Such laws include, but are not limited to, licensure, freedom of choice, Medicare, Medicaid, Workers Compensation, disability determination, mandatory mental health/substance abuse coverage, civil commitment, hospital practice, prescriptive authority, child protection and elder protection, etc. Advocacy efforts that have stopped the passage of laws inimical to psychology may also be recognized.

Since the award was established in 1992, many deserving psychologists have been recognized. The 1992 recipients of the award were honored primarily because of work they did before 1975. The 1993 recipients were those who worked to ensure passage of legislation in the later 1970s through the early 1980s. The recipients from 1994 on have been recognized for legislative advocacy benefiting the profession and the public in more recent years.

Nominations are sought from state and provincial psychological associations based on the criterion above. Individuals may be nominated regardless of dates/years when their contributions were made. The awardees will be chosen from the nomination pool by a distinguished panel of psychologists who have already been recipients of the award. If you are nominating more than one person, please submit a separate nomination for each nominee.

A commemorative pin and certificate is presented to each winner by the APA President at a special convention event at the APA Convention. Please nominate individuals who have a significant history of advocacy efforts as defined above and provide a statement that clearly documents the specific pieces of legislation passed and signed into law which their advocacy made possible. Send nominations and a descriptive paragraph with specific details for each nominee by March 15 to:

Jeffrey E. Barnett, PsyD
Karl F. Heiser Award Coordinator

Electronic submissions only will be accepted. Please forward all nominations to Dr. Barnett at: drjbarnett1@comcast.net.

For photos of recent Karl F. Heiser Award winners and descriptions of their accomplishments click here

*Please submit nominations for the following award to:
APAGS Outstanding SPPA Award, 750 First Street NE , Washington , DC 20002-4242 .
All applications must be postmarked by January 31, 2006.

APAGS Award for Outstanding State, or Provincial Psychological Association of the Year

This $1500 cash award recognizes a State or Provincial Psychological Association for superior performance in promoting graduate student development, involvement, and joint APAGS/SPPA membership. This award is funded jointly by the American Psychological Association of Graduates Students (APAGS) and the Committee for the Advancement of Professional Practice (CAPP) with support and contribution by Division 31, State Psychological Association Affairs.

Eligibility
To be considered for this award, a State or Provincial Psychological Association must have an active doctoral student membership from regionally accredited universities. SPPA’s that are previous recipients of this award are not eligible to apply again for a period of five years.

Deadline
Applications for the 2006 award must be postmarked by January 31, 2006 .

How to apply
To apply for this prestigious award, at least one APAGS member and one SPPA member or staff person must collaborate on the required application materials (see below) that describe the SPPA’s proposal to meet the needs of graduate students and offer enhanced opportunities for professional development within the SPPA.

The APAGS Award Selection Committee will review all applications and select the recipient. The APAGS Award Selection Committee will take into account both past and current activities. Funds must be used to develop new programs and opportunities for graduate students or to build upon and enhance existing student activities.

Award Criteria
This award is intended to promote continued development of programs and activities that meet the needs and interests of students in their states/provinces, and to enhance collaboration with APAGS that promotes joint APAGS/SPPA membership.

A qualified SPPA must demonstrate an exemplary level of commitment to providing opportunities for graduate student development. Applications will be evaluated based upon how well the SPPA actively incorporates students and student issues into the governance and activities of the association, develops and implements innovative programs that target the needs of students, promotes joint APAGS/SPPA membership, encourages socialization of students into the profession, and helps students to shape their own professional identity.

In addition to recognition as the “APAGS Outstanding State or Provincial Psychological Association of the Year” and a monetary award of $1500 that must be used to support future student activities, the winning SPPA will be presented with a plaque during the annual awards ceremony at the APA Practice Organization’s State Leadership Conference and acknowledged in APAGS publications and at the APAGS Open Meeting and Awards Ceremony at the annual APA Convention.

Required Application Materials

· A cover letter (2 pages max.) that includes the name of the award for which you are applying, a brief summary of the nominated SPPA’s membership data (i.e., number of members, student members, APA members, APAGS members), and a brief statement describing how the SPPA is committed to student development and values the contributions of graduate students.

· A descriptive list (2 pages max.) of recent/ongoing student programming activities and student involvement in the SPPA’s governance, activities, and advocacy efforts.

· A formal proposal (3 pages max.) that includes a description of association goals with regard to enhancing graduate student development, a discussion of anticipated student initiatives, and a statement indicating how award funds would be used to support future student activities.

Five copies of these materials should be sent to: APAGS Outstanding SPPA Award, 750 First Street NE , Washington , DC 20002-4242

All applications must be postmarked by January 31, 2006.