It is my great honor to serve the section as president for the next two years. I am associate professor of psychology at the University of Massachusetts Lowell, and my work includes a focus on child maltreatment prevention and intervention, memory for trauma, prosecution of child abuse, and children’s experiences in the legal system. I am humbled to join the ranks of my much more esteemed colleagues who have served in this position and am especially grateful to Gail Goodman, Mary Haskett, Jen Kaminski and Karen Saywitz, who all provided advice and guidance about how to navigate this exciting role. I am also thankful to Past-President Jennie Noll for her leadership, energy and wisdom. It has been a privilege to work beside her.
In 2018, while Jennie Noll was president and I served as president-elect, the section focused on Child Abuse Prevention and Treatment Act (CAPTA) policy. Led by Member-at-Large Angelique Day, the section planned and carried out the CAPTA Reauthorization Briefing in the U.S. House and Senate, a briefing that was held in December. Last year, the section also sponsored a tribute to late Past-President Penny Trickett through a special issue that was just published:
Noll, J. G., Susman, E. J., Carmody, K., & Reader, J. M. (2019). The policy and practice implications of child maltreatment research. Springer Briefs in Psychology: Advances in Child and Family Policy and Practice. Cham, Switzerland: Springer International.
In 2019, I was happy to attend the Div. 37 Executive Committee Board meeting held in Detroit: I look forward to strengthening efforts between the section and the division. This year, too, the section is delighted to welcome our newly elected members-at-large: Kristin Valentino and Dan Dodgen. The section also has a new early career professional (ECP) co-chair, Debbie Goldfarb. I have appointed Colleen Cullinan to serve as the section program chair for APA 2020. We are currently electing a new president-elect and treasurer. A volunteer to fill our communications and technology position is needed; if you are interested in joining our board in that capacity, please let me know.
This year we also have an ongoing membership drive, led by Membership Chair Kelly McWilliams. Section membership does not automatically renew with division membership, so we are reaching out to members who may have unintentionally fallen off our list. As we are working on increasing our membership, please contact us if you would like to join our efforts and/or if you have questions about your membership status. We are additionally coordinating efforts to broaden networking opportunities at the various conferences that our members attend. Please follow the section listserv to stay updated on these events, and let me know if you would like to join the listserv.
I want to note that I was elated that APA adopted the resolution against physical discipline of children (see the article by Christina Rodriguez in this newsletter). The resolution is the result of tireless efforts from Divs. 37 and 7 and was championed by Cindy Miller-Perrin, Gail Goodman and Liz Gershoff. Christina Rodriguez and the APA Committee on Children, Youth and Families also played a key role. Our late Past-President Karen Saywitz was a staunch advocate for this resolution, and in these moments of victory we remember the leaders in our field who are no longer with us. In fact, to honor Karen, the section now offers the Karen Saywitz Early Career Award.
I look forward to serving over the next two years. Please feel free to contact me to introduce yourself and/or if you have any questions about the section. As a group and as individuals, we are devoted to children’s well-being and welfare, and we would love to find a way to involve you in our important efforts!