Article archive / April 1, 2010
Originally published: . Volume 1, No. 8. Source pages: 17, 18, 19.
Thank you for the opportunity to outline my background and qualifications for the position of APA Executive Council Representative. I now offer the following information for your readership’s consideration:
1.The primary responsibility of Louisiana’s Delegate to the American Psychological Association’s (APA) Executive Council is to represent the best interest of Louisiana Psychologists, specifically to represent the membership of the Louisiana Psychological Association (LPA). Representing the best interests of all Louisiana psychologists is, however, also important.
In order to do this effectively, besides attending APA’s Executive Council meetings, our APA delegate must attend all regularly scheduled meetings of LPA’s Executive Council and must be available/accountable to our membership. Personal professional interests must be set aside. The will of the majority must prevail. The concerns of those who do not adhere to LPA’s majority positions must also be acknowledged and addressed. Our APA Council Representative must first and foremost, however, represent LPA.
2. LPA members need to come together as a group to be heard and to heal. Those who were wounded by the Act 251 process need to express their concerns and have their feelings validated. Some of this directly or indirectly occurred during the Bylaws Revision Meetings. But, more direct efforts
are needed. For many, this was a very traumatic experience. We will soon be approaching the one year anniversary of the passage of Act 251. During LPA’s forthcoming convention, I am presenting an all day workshop on anniversary reactions. The focus will be on the Anniversary Wellness Workshop I presented in Louisiana one year post Hurricanes Katrina and Rita and in China one year post Sichuan Earthquake. Both were experiential learning workshops designed to train/help others to deal with the traumas they experienced.
Traumas come in many forms, some via natural disasters and some via human-induced disasters. Resiliency is the key to recovery. In the afternoon section of the workshop, the techniques that helped so many heal from environmental trauma can be used to help us. Whether via Katrina, China, or Act 251, anniversary reactions must be addressed so that we can move forward. Remember, traumas that happen to a group must be healed within a group. Join us on Saturday, April 24, 2010, to continue the healing journey.
3. Professional Involvement – My first and foremost commitment has been to the Louisiana
Psychological Association (LPA), where I have held every office except for Treasurer. (Anyone who knows me well understands that being Treasurer would not have been a good idea.) I recognized, early on, the need for LPA to develop a strong political arm. Therefore, I founded the Century Club. I also served several terms as Legislative and Social Issues Chair, rewrote the LPA Bylaws many years ago, and most recently, served on the LPA Bylaws Revision Committee. I have remained active in LPA throughout the last 35 years. As President, I was fortunate to be included in the APA Leadership Training Conferences where I learned to lobby members of Congress. I also hired Bud Mapes and Associates to represent LPA in the Louisiana Legislature and worked with subsequent lobbyists to pursue and protect the best interests of psychology. Being involved with the legislature was, and continues to be, an amazing process.
At the national level, I served for six years as American Psychological Association (APA) Division 40’s Archivist and set up the Division 40 Archives at the Louisiana State University (LSU) Hill Memorial Library. Clinical Neuropsychology is the only APA Division to house its archives outside of the University of Akron. For my efforts, my colleagues, Drs. Linas Bielauskas, Ken Adams, and Stanley Berent, asked me to place my name in Nomination for Fellow. When chosen, I became one of only nine women Division 40 fellows. Being in the company of Drs. Muriel Lezak, Eileen Fennell and Edith Kaplan was very humbling. My involvement in the International Neuropsychological Society (INS) has been an amazing journey as well. IN 1986, I served as the local arrangements chair for the international meeting in New Orleans. This lead to years of presentations at INS, National Academy of Neuropsychology (NAN), APA, and the World Council Psychotherapy (WCP)…a tradition I continue to this day.
In some ways, APA’s Executive Council may be likened to Louisiana’s legislature. The best qualifications I can bring to the table are my many Legislative experiences while serving LPA and the Louisiana State Board of Examiners of Psychologists (LSBEP), interacting with various Louisiana governors in an attempt to represent the best interests of our profession, and serving as an LSPEB delegate to the American Association of State and Provincial Licensing Boards (AASPB). The latter represents a close parallel to APA’s Executive Council. Also, while serving for six years on APA Division 40’s (Clinical Neuropsychology) Executive Committee, I learned a great deal about the inner workings of APA’s Executive Council.
At the international level, as Vice President of the United States Chapter of the World Council for Psychotherapy (WCP), I am one of two US WCP delegates to the United Nations. The other delegate is Dr. Judy Kuriansky from New York City. WCP, as a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO), has many opportunities to remind this international body of the importance of addressing human suffering on all levels. This has been a wonderful opportunity for me to understand and respect cultural diversity, political differences, and to overcome existing barriers. Being psychologically astute and open to new ideas has served me well. Thus, I bring this wealth of experience to my candidacy for the position of LPA’s representative to APA’s Executive Council.
4. I bring to the table 35 years of service to our profession. During that time I have served LPA and LSBEP to the best of my ability. I have mentored many along the way. I have been involved in the science and practice of our profession.
I have served my community – locally, nationally, and internationally. And I have good social and political skills. Hopefully, these experiences and traits will allow me to continue to serve LPA and psychology well.
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