This year, APA’s 2021 annual convention was again held virtually with a combination of live and pre-recorded sessions and opportunities to interact with presenters during office hours or discussion hours. The pre-recorded content from the convention will remain available on-demand until November 15. Div. 20 participated in collaborative sessions that were prerecorded and still available, including: “Health disparities among older adults during COVID-19: Research, clinical, and training considerations,” “When training models overlap: The intersection of specialty training when working with older adults,” and “Crafting a successful research career for our modern times: An interactive mentoring workshop,” for our graduate and early career members.
In addition to collaborative sessions, Div. 20 held a live skill-building session, “Clinical assessment of older adults who identify as deaf or disabled.” Several pre-recorded/on-demand sessions are also still accessible, including the following: “Advancing age inclusivity through intergenerational teaching and learning,” “The Age-Friendly University (AFU) initiative: Advancing age inclusivity in higher education,” and “Technology reduces distress, challenging behaviors, and PRN medications among complex older veterans.” There were also over 40 research posters that are still available on-demand. The Div. 20 live hour included Lisa Brown’s presidential address, a brief business meeting, and the awards ceremony that highlighted our award recipients. We are working to get the Zoom recording of this live session available to all Div. 20 members.
Highlights of the 2021 program were posted on the Div. 20 Facebook page (APA Division 20) and Twitter handle (@apadiv20). Overall, the programming for Div. 20 at APA 2021 Virtual was successful and reflected innovative findings in the field of adult development and aging. The program chairs look forward to working with Div. 20 members to put together an even better program for APA 2022.
In line with APA's continued reduction of divisional programming to accommodate more cross-divisional programming, we strongly encourage Div. 20 members to work with their interdisciplinary colleagues to develop collaborative submissions for an anticipated October deadline. This past year was very competitive. Thus, please start thinking about collaborative programs that you may be interested in submitting, as that deadline will approach soon. Thanks to the division membership for your support and flexibility for the virtual convention–this helped us to be able to deliver stimulating and interesting programming, some of which is still available.