President-elect’s column

I was thrilled to learn that I had been elected to serve the division for the next three years. I am fortunate to serve during a time when there is quite a bit to be addressed in the field and to serve on the executive committee with people I considered to be friends, colleagues and mentors. I look forward to working closely with the division’s leadership and hope to work with the leadership of other related organizations as we address the issues and concerns relevant to us all.

One of the things in motion that I think will serve the division and its members well is a regular president’s conference call. The intent is to ensure continuity from one president to the next thereby making sure that initiatives are continued and institutional memory is intact. President Trent Petrie, Past-President Gloria Balague and I have had a conference call to identify issues that require attention and follow through from the previous year, and to identify issues new issues that will likely need to be addressed in an ongoing way.

In addition to learning about the division’s active concerns I have been asked to co-chair a new committee designed to ultimately allow members to voice concerns they may have about the division. The “Membership Survey Committee” is co-chaired by me and Secretary/Treasurer Doug Hankes. We have been tasked by our current president to create a survey designed to assess the membership’s opinions about the division. Doug and I are finalizing the members of the committee and will shortly thereafter begin work on the survey itself. If there are particular areas you would like the survey to address and/or you would like to suggest specific questions, please email me as soon as possible so we can consider your suggestions. As soon as the survey is finalized all members will be informed about how to access the survey. We hope you will take advantage of this opportunity to let us know what is going well and what isn’t.

I look forward to serving you, the division’s members, and to being a part of the APA’s organizational structure. Please feel free to contact me with questions, comments or concerns.