 |
President's Message |
||||
|
Editorial |
Jean Carter, Ph.D. |
||||
 |
|
||||
|
As I assume the position of President of our great Division, I am honored and awed by the responsibility you have entrusted to me. We have many tasks ahead of us this year, and I look forward to helping guide the Board, the committees and the members through them. We have spent several years developing a longer range plan for the Division based on clarifying priorities and goals and identifying strategies for accomplishing those goals. Of course, long range plans entail several years of commitment, and I appreciate following presidents Elaine Rodino, Judith Steward and Lenore Walker, who have all provided the foundation for the steps we are undertaking this year. In the Independent Practitioner, you have seen reports of the Division priorities as identified by the Board, and in Fall of 2002 you were asked to vote on a number of ByLaws changes that were developed to assist in implementing the priorities. A major change for the Division is a revision of the committee structure, creating a more coherent and responsive structure, with those committees that are required for the operation of the Division being specified in the ByLaws and with the option of additional committees and task forces to be developed by the Board to respond to the changing needs of our members and the practice of psychology. Although we have had excellent continuity and been well-served by experienced members of the Division in our committee structure, the committees also provide an excellent way to involve additional members in the governance of the Division. To enhance the opportunities for participation, we are increasing the number of members of several committees and developing regular rotation of chairs and membership. Arthur Kovacs has chaired the ByLaws Revision Task Force and will continue to provide leadership as we make necessary revisions to the Policy and Procedures Manual, which archives Board policy decisions and provides guidance on implementation of the policies. A major initiative for our Division over the last several years, and continuing in 2003, has been the commitment to increase attention to diversity (including race, ethnicity and culture, sexual orientation, and disability) among both the leadership and the membership of the Division, in the resources available to members and in the Division’s representation within the APA. Last year (2002) you elected Rita Dudley-Grant as the Division’s first representative of a diversity slate for one of our seats on APA Council. This year you will elect a representative who will hold a member-at-large position on our Board of Directors, also representing a diversity slate. In addition, the Division will be represented at the National Multicultural Conference and Summit III and serves as a Donor Division to the Summit. The APA Convention program currently under development under the guidance of program chair Lillian Comas-Diaz will include training in effective intervention with gay, lesbian and bisexual clients and with people of diverse racial/ethnic background. The Division continues to be very invested in students and early career psychologists whose career goals include independent practice. Miguel Gallardo, who began as a student representative to the Board, is now serving as the first Division Board representative of the student/early career members. To assist our newer members, we will provide APA convention programming focusing on nuts and bolts of beginning a practice. As president of this Division, one of the opportunities is to develop a presidential initiative which will promote your goals and visions for the Division. I have two main goals. The first is to complete the ByLaws and Policies and Procedures revisions and accomplish the necessary transition of committees and task forces to facilitate the best operation of the Division. The second is to enhance the available resources for the Division (including financial, communications and human resources) to enable us to accomplish even more in the future. I have appointed a Resource Development Task Force to develop plans for increasing revenue and for better use of our other resources. The Task Force is chaired by Jeffrey Barnett; members include Doug Haldeman, Lisa Grossman, Hilda Besner, and Miguel Gallardo, with Bonnie Markham (Treasurer) and myself as ex officio members. I look forward to the year ahead and to serving our Division and our members. If you have ideas, suggestions, or concerns, or if you are interested in serving the Division through participation on a committee, please contact me by email at jcarterphd@aol.com, by mail at 3 Washington Circle, Suite 205, Washington, DC 20037, or by phone at 202 955-6182. |
||||