KPA Talk

The pace of change...

noreply@blogger.com (Nancy Moore) — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 15:41:00 +0000

Although we talk a lot about technology and the pace of change in the world, this little video really brings home how very fast the world is changing, and how, if we hope to remain relevant in an increasingly connected world, we need to prepare for and embrace those changes.

If you are interested in learning more eye-opening information about the future of technology and the human race, check out Ray Kurzweil's talk on TED.com
Enjoy.
Nancy

KPA Sept Board Meeting Wrap Up

noreply@blogger.com (Nancy Moore) — Sat, 13 Sep 2008 14:46:00 +0000

The KPA Board met yesterday in Frankfort. Topics of discussion included ways to improve communication with members (including the KPA blog), the "60 new members in 60 days campaign, and the planned "Swearing in Ceremony" for newly licensed psychologists. There was also discussion about the transition planning team that will lead the search for a new Executive Director after I leave next May. The Board reviewed a variety of options for structuring the position and discussed whether the position would be best served by a psychologist with administrative experience or an individual with professional credentials in association management. The transition team is interested in input from the membership on this process.

The Board voted to hold the 2009 Convention in Lexington, following a member survey that indicated there would be considerable interest in a change in venue. In a breakout session, Steve Katsikas, the new Education & Training Interest Section Rep gathered ideas on how to provide additional services and content to its members, and we look forward to increased activity within each of the Interest Sections.

The 2009 legislative agenda was also reviewed. KPA plans to move forward with legislation to change the Sequence of Training, retaining the requirement of two years of supervised experience for licensure at the doctoral level, but eliminating the requirement that one year be done as a post-doctoral year. KPA is proposing an increase in the number of CE hours, with several options to be explored, including a gradual phase-in of the increased requirement over several renewal cycles. KPA will work with the KY Board of Examiners in Psychology (KBEP) to advocate for improved flexibility of options for meeting CE requirements.

Finally, the Board opted to change the terms of office so that they are aligned with the fiscal and calendar years. If adopted by the members in a Bylaws change, the terms would begin in January rather than July.

KPA hosts a National Conference on Work Life Balance

noreply@blogger.com (Nancy Moore) — Thu, 21 Aug 2008 21:13:00 +0000

Work- Family- Community: Shared Responsibilities is an important national conference to be held at the Kentucky International Convention Center this November 12th under the sponsorship of the Kentucky Psychological Association. The conference will bring together the top experts in the field including:

Jessica DeGrout, founding Director The ThirdPath Institute who has developed a new approach to sharing care that helps parents negotiate the roles and responsibilities of parenting while balancing commitment to careers and community
Attorney Joan Williams, Founding Director of WorkLife Law and a prize-winning author whose current work focuses on how work/family conflict affects families across the social spectrum, with a particular focus on how caregiving issues arise in union arbitrations;
Rosalind Chait Barnett, Director of the Community, Families & Work Program at Brandeis University, who writes extensively about the dramatic changes that have occurred in the lives of men and women and their work over the past 50 years
Jennifer Swanberg, Director of the UK Institute for Workplace Innovation, who brings expertise in the effects of job conditions on working families, and development of innovative workplaces.
They will be joined by local experts Adewale Troutman on a model for community engagement, Lyle Sussman on the employer-employee contract, and futurist Nat Irvin on trends in work-family issues through the year 2050.

Why psychologists should attend...

At first glance, psychologists may find the topics interesting but not see the relevance to their daily practice. Regardless of your professional interest areas, in essence we all work with members of families - and because of massive technological, social and economic changes on the horizon, the structure and function of those families will be far different from what we now know. These changes will be accompanied, as change always is, by confusion, stress, anxiety, anger and feelings of loss. Psychologists have an obligation to be prepared to help their clients understand, cope and eventually attain a new balance in response to these changes. In addition, from a perspective of personal growth, all of us could benefit from a fresh view on the issues of balancing work, life and community responsibilities.

This one-day conference is a rare opportunity to hear from the most respected thinkers in this area, and once again, KPA is taking the lead in what is fast becoming a national concern. We hope that you will accept this invitation to attain the knowledge that will help Kentucky Psychologists and other providers be truly superior practitioners in the 21st century.

Summary of Executive Committee Meeting

noreply@blogger.com (Nancy Moore) — Wed, 20 Aug 2008 16:20:00 +0000

Abrief recap of topics covered at the Executive Committee included:

Development of educational materials on self care for psychologists as the first phase in building Colleague Assistance resources
Discussion of the survey about Convention 2009, where there was overwhelming support for a move to Lexington. Although the Fayette Region folks were obviously in favor, a number of others commented that they liked the variety and it only seemed fair to move it now and then. The Executive Committee approved the change in venue for 2009 if possible, and for 2010 if the hotels do not have space still available. (Yes they really do book that far in advance!) It is important to note that because of our size (250+ per day) there are few hotels that can both accommodate our meeting space needs AND have additional space for a sit-down lunch.
A review of the transition plans for hiring the next Executive Director (I have given notice that I will leave after I complete my MBA degree in May 2009). The discussion covered the makeup of the transition committee (representative of KPA's members) and possible models for how to structure the position. Although the Board has expressed a strong preference to hire a psychologist, there was discussion related to information from APA that the majority (80%) of other state psych associations execs are not psychologists. In fact, the majority of professional associations are led by individuals who are CAE's (Certified Association Executives) instead of members of the profession - a very different model than the one we are used to. No doubt, the transition team will have much work to do to help select the best person for the position and the association.
We also reviewed a proposal to change the KPA election cycle to start in January rather than July. This would align our elections with our fiscal year, allow the President-Elect to take better advantage of the leadership training offered each March by APA, and make the Convention the capstone of the Presidential year.
Other topics looked at strategic planning for our legislative agenda in 2009 related to the Sequence of Training bill; crafting clearer and more comprehensive policies for our listservs, now that they are becoming more active; promoting the KPA mentoring program; development of an "Induction Ceremony" to more formally acknowledge the successful transition to the profession of newly licensed psychologists; plans to engage KPA ethnic minority members in discussions to help us be more strategic in our diversity efforts; development of information to assist members who want to include KPA in their estate planning; and additional ways to market the innovative 2008 Conference on Work, Family, Community: Shared Responsibilities to psychologists and other decision makers in our communities.

KPA starts to blog

noreply@blogger.com (Nancy Moore) — Fri, 08 Aug 2008 20:18:00 +0000

Today's Blog Entry by Nancy Gordon Moore, PhD
Executive Director, Kentucky Psychological Association

For those of you familiar with blogging, we hope you will find this a useful communication tool. If this is the first time you've read a blog, you may want to know that blog is short for weblog, or a collection of journal entries stored on the web in reverse chronological order.

The concept for having a blog arose in a recent Executive Committee meeting, as we discussed how to improve communication with members about KPA Board activities, plans and goals. Although we post the minutes of the Board meeting, our Google analytics show that they have been acccesed only three times in the last 2 months (and we guessed that was a function of our student interns working on updating the website.) We do send out the newsletter 3 times per year (too infrequent) and blast emails (blocked by unknown numbers of servers as spam.)

I hope that you will find this blog to be helpful in keeping all of our members "in the loop" and providing a more detailed look at the issues, actions and aims of the Board of your association!