Advocacy Corner
Welcome to the inaugural Advocacy Corner of the Progress Notes! It is new, as my role as Division Advocacy Partner with APA is also new. Since 2018-2019, APA has made significant changes to how they conduct advocacy work, and this 3-year position is a progression of that. The primary goals of this position are to liaise with APA for the following purposes:
- To disseminate policy updates and advocacy action alerts to the Division and to mobilize members to act on federal legislative needs
- To serve as the contact for APA to access Division-specific expertise
- To advise APA about advocacy needs and priorities for the Division
Otherwise, APA has allowed this position to be flexible to best serve each specific Division. Notably, only about 10 Divisions have moved forward with this new role (so we are ahead of the curve!). In Division 54, this position operates within the Communications Committee.
In response to the APA Advocacy Coordinating Committee’s biennial survey of advocacy priorities last year, Division 54 members identified these as our top three priorities:
- Health equity for underserved and vulnerable populations
- Discrimination
- Psychology education and training financing
I am excited to serve SPP in this new role. Over the past year, I have served as the Division 54 liaison to the APA Advocacy Coordinating Committee and on the APA Grassroots Advocacy Leaders Network. From attending these meetings, I know that Division 54 has garnered respect for our recently enhanced efforts in diversity and anti-racism. The natural progression of these efforts is increased advocacy, which also happens to be part of SPP’s current strategic plan.
I would love to hear your thoughts on advocacy in Division 54. There will be an advocacy table at SPPAC 2023, so please stop by, or email me at arbeck@cmh.edu! Please also email me if you would like to volunteer at the table!
Amy R. Beck, PhD, RYT 200