2018 President's Winter Message

Div. 31 kicked off 2018 with a big victory! The APA bylaws amendment that will ensure each State Provincial and Territorial Psychological Association (SPTA) and division one seat on the Council of Representatives was passed by the membership. Had the amendment failed, ten of our SPTAs would not have representation on Council in 2019: Alaska, Alberta, British Columbia, Guam, Manitoba, Nova Scotia, Quebec, South Carolina, Virgin Islands and West Virginia. Your votes were critical in solidifying representation for all SPTAs and we thank you for your response to our call for action.

Div. 31 has been working tirelessly to represent and advocate for the interests of State Provincial and Territorial Psychological Associations. Last year, three initiatives were created to support SPTAs: ethics listserv, SPTA advocacy coordinators, and the Integrated Care Task Force. These initiatives will be gaining momentum this year and we value your participation and feedback.

This year, Div. 31 will be create new opportunities for members to connect with resources and with each other. Div. 31 will host a quarterly webinar titled, "Ask the Advocates." "Ask the Advocates" is an opportunity for SPTA leaders to share their advocacy victories, provide resources and strategies. The webinar topics will be current trends in SPTA advocacy, e.g., PsyPACT, RxP, omnibus regulatory boards, telepsychology, and predoctoral licensure hours. We are also creating "Hot Topic Tuesday" on our listservs to better communicate the issues that SPTAs are facing. "Hot Topic Tuesday" is designed to create opportunities for dialogue and connection between SPTA leaders. It is also a place for SPTA leaders to gather resources and share best practices.

In addition, Div. 31 is partnering with the Committee on Early Career Psychologists to help advance the counting of predoctoral hours toward licensure. Currently, only 17 states count predoctoral clinical hours toward licensure as a psychologist despite the guidance from the 2010 APA Model Licensure Act. Div. 31 will be sponsoring a session at the Practice Leadership Conference to address the importance of this issues and to assist state leaders in designing advocacy plans for their states. We hope to see you there.

For more information on Div. 31 activities and programming, please visit the Div. 31 website for updated information, read our blogs, and communicate with the Div. 31 community via our listservs. You can also follow us on Twitter at @APADivision31. We look forward to seeing you at the Practice Leadership Conference and APA Convention.

Sincerely,

Lindsey R. Buckman, PsyD