I am delighted to accept the nomination for Division 16 Vice President of Professional Affairs. As former Associate Editor and, currently, Editor, of The School Psychologist (TSP), I have been closely involved in Division activities for the past 5 years. The experience of contributing to Division 16 has been a very rewarding one and one that I would like to continue in the role of Vice President of Professional Affairs.

As Vice President of Professional Affairs, I will monitor, coordinate, represent and promote professional practice issues. I will further work to advance school psychology as a distinct profession within the broader context of the field of psychology. My participation in an editorial role for the Division 16 TSP Newsletter has given me insight into the importance of strong leadership in the office of Vice President of Professional Affairs and an understanding of the responsibilities attached to the office. For this reason, I feel particularly well prepared to actively assume the role of Vice President of Professional Affairs. In order to promote the mandate of the office of Vice President of Professional Affairs, I plan to engage in the following activities:

First, I will advocate on behalf of school psychology as a profession and school psychologists as professionals. I will achieve this by engaging in the continued development of professional standards for the practice of school psychology. In this way, I will help ensure that the assessment, intervention, and prevention services provided by school psychologists in a variety of contexts continue to be of utmost excellence. Second, I will work closely with professional organizations, training programs, and related specialties in psychology, mental and physical health with the goal of establishing professional practice standards for school psychology. Third, I will be involved in key issues related to school psychologists, such as training and preparation, licensure and credentialing, and accreditation and scope of practice.

Specifically, I will represent Division 16 as their Vice President of Professional Affairs in the following ways:

1) Work closely with the APA Practice Directorate, the Committee for the Advancement of Professional Psychology (CAPP), and the Board of Professional Affairs (BPA);

2) Actively facilitate relationships between Division 16 and other divisions in APA that are relevant to the practice of school psychology;

3) Interact and collaborate with professional groups and organizations to further the goals of Division 16;

4) Collaborate with the VP for Education, Training, and Scientific Affairs in regards to monitoring developments related to training issues;

5) Contribute to the continued evolution of standards and guidelines on training and service delivery for future school psychologists;

6) Monitor developments in the professional practice of health care delivery as it relates to school psychology, specifically treatment guidelines;

7) Disseminate information about the aformentioned goals and other activities of the Vice President for Professional Affairs to members of Division 16.

I am an Assistant Professor of Psychology in the emerging School Psychology graduate program at the University of Puerto Rico. I have experience working in public schools, teaching in graduate programs, and conducting research and instructional activities across the U.S. and in Latin America. During the past 5 years, I have actively contributed to Division 16 as Associate Editor and, currently, Editor of The School Psychologist.

I plan to represent Division 16 members as their Vice President of Professional Affairs actively and to the best of my ability. Thank you for your consideration of my nomination.