In this first month of my term as your Division 20 president, I have been struck by the importance of continuity—continuity of the field of adult development and aging and continuity in service and leadership—and how this continuity works to carry us forward as a division and to make progress. Even in the midst of change, continuity of information and sharing information about traditions serve our division well as we all continue our division’s vital work of understanding the many facets of adult development and aging. Past-president Rowena Gomez, PhD, set the stage at APA for the key role that mentorship plays in our successes, and I have greatly appreciated her mentorship in my new role. I intend to pass that mentorship along to our President-elect Wally Boot, PhD,—ensuring continuity of the division’s operations. Gomez showcased the importance of mentorship by co-organizing (along with Division 12-2) our very first “Munching with the Mentors” lunch event at APA 2023. This event was well-attended by both mentees and mentors, and I hope even more of you can join in on future events.
Mentoring and supporting the new generation of gerontologists is an area on which I similarly intend to focus during my year as Division 20 president. This work will continue the efforts of many prior Division 20 presidents and, in particular, the Mentor Match program is a key activity that Division 20 undertakes in this area. If you haven’t yet participated in the Mentor Match program, I strongly encourage you to do! It takes a minimum of one hour of your time, either as a mentee or mentor, and can have far-reaching benefits. In both of my experiences as a mentor to date, I think I may have learned even more than my mentees! They were so insightful and a pleasure to get to know. I believe Division 20 has a bright future ahead of it. One other tangible way that you can strengthen our division’s mentoring activities is to donate to the newly renamed K. Warner Schaie Memorial Fund for Adult Development and Agingopens in new window. We have a little over a year left to raise the money for this fund, after which it will be used to support students and early career professionals associated with our division. Here again, I see the importance of continuity—Warner Schaie, PhD was a mentor of mine, and I would not be doing what I am today without him hiring me and bringing me into the field of gerontology. Passing along this mentorship is particularly meaningful to me. I encourage all Division 20 members to donate NOW if you have not done so before and consider another donation if you have given before to help us reach our fundraising goal.
Another strategic initiative of my presidential term is to support work that will build the pipeline to careers in aging. I was trained as a quantitative psychologist and was subsequently adopted during my post-doc years by the warm community of Division 20 and the larger community of gerontologists. “Gerontologist” became my second identity! As my own experience demonstrates, personal contact with individuals in our field is a key pathway by which new folks enter the field of aging (see Hoge et al., 2015; Merz et al., 2017). In addition to mentoring graduate students and early career professionals, we can do a better job as a division in letting the larger world know about our field and the many opportunities it presents. Students have expressed that it can be difficult to find information on graduate training and careers in adult development and aging; continuity plays a role in our work here, too, in being sure that we disseminate the resources that Division 20 as well as APA has compiled to guide individuals toward a career in aging. Division 20’s Education Committee co-chairs, Gloria Luong, PhD, and Alissa Dark-Freudeman, PhD, are in the process of updating our directory of graduate programs in adult development and aging. Please let them know if your program is not included!
In closing, I am excited for the opportunity to serve Division 20 and for the work that lies ahead of me. If you are interested in getting more involved in any aspect of what our division is doing, please reach out to me, and I will put your talents to use in continuing to strengthen and build the future of our division.
References
Hoge, M. A., Karel, M. J., Zeiss, A. M., Alegria, M., & Moye, J. (2015). Strengthening psychology’s workforce for older adults: Implications of the Institute of Medicines’ report to Congress. American Psychologist, 70(3), 265-278. https://doi.org/10.1037/a0038927opens in new window
Merz, C. C., Koh, D., Sakai, E. Y., Molinari, V., Karel, M. J., Moye, J., & Carpenter, B. D. (2017). The big shortage: Geropsychologists discuss facilitators and barriers to working in the field of aging. Translational Issues in Psychological Science, 3(4), 388-399. https://doi.org/10.1037/tps0000137opens in new window
