Greetings, APA Division 37 members, from the Section on Child Maltreatment. It is my pleasure to provide an update on the section activities and share a few highlights since our last newsletter.
2023 election results and appointments
The section completed its elections in the spring of 2022 and will welcome several new officers in January 2023: President-elect will be Kristin Valentino (University of Notre Dame), Secretary will be Elisa Vele-Tebbador (Brazelton Touchpoints Center, Harvard University), and MAL for Diversity will be Cynthia Najdowski (University at Albany). We look forward to working with these esteemed colleagues.
Additionally, several positions will be appointed prior to the end of the year, including: APA Program co-chair (2-year term), Graduate student co-representative (2-year term), Membership chair (3-year term), Early Career Psychologist co-chair (3-year term), and Newsletter editor (3-year term). Nominations (including self-nominations) should be sent to current president-elect Maggie Stevenson by email.
Connecting with the section
Section board members met several times this spring to determine a theme of focus for our work for the coming years. Our goal with this theme is to engage our members to advance the work of the section. We will be developing specific projects and activities related to the theme each year. Activities may include: an annual signature project (e.g., webinar with practice and policy implications, with a related set of policy briefs published following the event); “meet the scientist” activities highlighting the work of early career professionals and students; as well as ongoing content for dissemination and sharing (e.g., website and social media content, curriculum guides, videos/lectures, newsletter articles). We are pleased to announce that the theme for 2022 and 2023 will be: COVID-Related Professional Challenges and Innovations and Implications for Child Maltreatment Victims. Section leaders are working to develop a journal special issue submission and other activities on this topic this year. Stay tuned for more details! As a reminder—here are our social media contacts—connect with us to stay engaged:
Website: https://childmaltreatment.clubexpress.comopens in new window
LinkedIn: APA Division 37, Section on Child Maltreatment
Twitter: @Div37ChildMaltxopens in new window
Convention 2022 and awards
Section members are thrilled to be attending and presenting at APA Convention in Minneapolis in August—we hope you’ll join us (in-person or online). Section program co-chair Taylor Petty is working closely with Division Program Chair Doris Pu to plan for exciting opportunities for networking and engagement. We cordially invite you to attend our section business meeting and presidential address to learn more about the work of the section. This year, Invited speaker Dr. Ernestine-Briggs-King, associate professor of psychiatry and behavioral sciences and associate director for network relations and diversity, equity, and inclusion at the National Center for Child Traumatic Stress, will present on recent work and recommendations from the National Child Traumatic Stress Network on intersections among child maltreatment, interpersonal violence, and the COVID-19 pandemic. See the division schedule for more details and timing of events!
In preparation for convention, we have selected our award winners for 2022. We will formally present the winners with their awards at convention. The awardees are:
Dissertation Grant Award
Camie Tomlinson, MSW
Virginia Commonwealth University
“Comparing Theoretical Models of Childhood Adversity to Understand Psychological Adjustment of Child Welfare-Involved Adolescents”
Dissertation Award honorable mention
Rebecca Griffith, MA
University of Kansas
"The Role of Hostile Attribution Bias and Working Memory in the Link between Trauma Exposure and Violence in Justice-Involved Youth"
Karen Saywitz Early Career Award for Outstanding Research/Practice
Deborah Goldfarb, PhD
Florida International University
Mid-Career Award for Outstanding Work in Child Maltreatment
Annika Melinder, PhD
University of Oslo, Norway
We are grateful to all who applied or were nominated for these awards—we were highly impressed by the quality of work being conducted in the field of maltreatment by all the candidates. Congratulations to all our winners.
Closing
In closing, 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.