Greetings SASP Members!

As the 2013 SASP president, I want to take time to thank the 2012 SASP Executive Board. This past year has brought about many successful ventures including our transition to Div. 16's website, the launch of our new diversity mentorship program, and the SASP/Div. 16 membership merger. I was honored and humbled to work with such an outstanding group of individuals. Without each of you, our current board would not be continuing into such a robust student organization. The entire SASP board contributed to the evolving success of SASP, and I cannot speak highly enough to each of your abilities. On behalf of the current board, we wish you the best in your future endeavors and know all of you will continue to flourish as professionals and leaders in the field of school psychology.

I would also like to thank everyone who participated in the 2013 SASP Executive Board elections this year. The 2013 elections proved to be one of the best turnouts for SASP nominations in recent years. There were many qualified individuals who submitted nominations from across the country. SASP was eager to see the potential leadership that our field has to offer in the years to come. We were also happy to see how many of you participated by voting for your favorite candidate. Our overall poll numbers were great, and made for an exciting election. To get to know your 2013 SASP executive board better, visit our Website to read their full biographies.
 
In 2013, SASP will be focused on building upon the successful initiatives of 2012 including, but not limited to, the following:

1. strengthening our relationship with our supporting organization, Div. 16, who makes all of SASP’s efforts possible;

2. developing the website into a viable resource for our Division 16 student affiliate members;

3. contributing to diversity efforts within school psychology through our Diversity Mentoring Program; and

4. representing the voices of graduate students as three of SASP’s current/former leaders serve as representatives for the Futures development teams (an outgrowth of the 2012 Futures Conference).

In addition to these exciting efforts, the 2013 board has eagerly started new initiatives and is off to a remarkable start!

Currently, SASP is working with Div. 16 convention leaders to plan the 2013 Student Research Forum (SRF) at the Annual APA Convention to be held in Honolulu July 31–Aug 4, 2013. Please be sure to check out our website and Listserv announcements to stay up-to-date on the day/time for the SRF, how to submit a poster proposal, and information about the notable keynote speaker and other program details. In addition, a diversity committee was created in early 2013 to assist in our efforts to expand the diversity mentoring program, reach out to diverse school psychology graduate students, and improve diversity programming at convention.

To foster the professional development of our members, SASP is also working to evolve our From Science to Practice (FSTP) newsletter into a premier student-edited publication outlet. We plan to do so by featuring several new sections intended to expand the scope of FSTP. Included will be offerings from early-career and seasoned faculty members, as well as interviews with notable researchers in the field. As an additional professional development outlet, SASP is working with Div. 16 to provide training opportunities for our members on various topics, the first of which will focus on preparing students for careers in academia.

Finally, this year, SASP will introduce two new student awards as a means of increasing our student recognition efforts and contributing to the professional growth and development of school psychology student leaders from across the United States. The Student Research Article Award will be given to one student who authors an outstanding FSTP research article in 2013. The Diversity Mentoring Mentee Award will be conferred on one student who makes lasting contributions to diversity within the field of school psychology through participation in the diversity mentoring program for 2013.

To advocate for our members, by addressing the imbalance of school psychology internship opportunities, SASP will continue to share resources including those reprinted in this issue. Thus, be on the lookout for an article authored by SASP leaders that will address this critical topic in an upcoming issue of Div. 16’s The School Psychologist. 
 
As president, my goal is to represent and address the diverse needs of graduate students from across the country and promote opportunities for student participation, advocacy efforts, professional development and leadership roles as we work together toward shaping the future of school psychology. I encourage SASP members to email me at any time throughout the year with input regarding how we can better serve our members and make lasting student contributions to the field of school psychology. I am honored to continue my service to SASP and Div. 16, and I look forward to hearing from you!

Jennifer Cooper
2013 SASP president