ACT Mission Statement

The APAGS Advocacy Coordinating Team (ACT) is composed of psychology graduate students who primarily engage in legislative advocacy work on behalf of the science and profession of psychology, in the interest of individuals studying, researching, and practicing psychology, and on behalf of individuals who are the recipients of psychological services. ACT members promote the welfare of graduate students and the vigor of the profession by their participation in legislative lobbying efforts. APAGS-ACT represents all sub-fields of psychology equally in its legislative and advocacy efforts. Members and designees of the ACT committee assist with the recruitment, organization, and administration of the Campus Representative network to help facilitate the flow of communication between the APAGS Board and its constituents

Facilitator of APAGS Communication and Student Advocacy

APAGS-ACT is the branch of APAGS involved in federal and state legislative advocacy. It is the broad mission of ACT to empower the profession and students through advocacy work. ACT serves to facilitate the following activities:

1. Advocating for student needs on their campuses and within their programs by developing mechanisms to ensure that student voices are heard at the grassroots level.

2. Promoting the highest quality of graduate student training coupled with opportunities for professional development through the network of Regional Advocacy Coordinators, State Advocacy Coordinators, and Campus Representatives.

3. Educating students about professional issues.

4. Facilitating the exchange of information between graduate students and APAGS.

5. Advocating for active student involvement within local and state psychological organizations.

6. Developing and promoting mentoring relationships.

7. Teaching graduate students how to lobby for the profession at the local, state, and national levels, and incorporating political activism into their emerging professional identity.

8. Soliciting, collecting, and representing the diverse and collective voices of graduate students and bringing that voice to APAGS and ultimately APA policy makers.

ACT structure

The ACT Chair is appointed by the APAGS Executive Committee with the approving vote of the full APAGS Board. The ACT Sub-Committee consists of six Regional Advocacy Coordinators who manage and recruit the State Advocacy Coordinators, and through hierarchy, the APAGS Campus Representatives.

Regional Advocacy Coordinators are assigned to three geographic regions in the United States (Western, Central, and Eastern), with two Regional Advocacy Coordinators per region. Regional Advocacy Coordinators are responsible for recruiting and contacting State Advocacy Coordinators to rally the support of Campus Representatives in their state and lobby for specific pieces of federal or state legislation. Regional Advocacy Coordinators also facilitate information exchange between students and the APAGS Board through State Advocacy Coordinators and Campus Representatives.

In turn, it is the responsibility of State Advocacy Coordinators to recruit, inform, and manage the Campus Representatives in their particular states in a similar manner. State Advocacy Coordinators are encouraged to work closely with State Psychological Associations and to help organize forums and workshops at graduate psychological programs.

At any given time, there are approximately 300 Campus Representatives throughout the nation. Campus Representatives compose ACT’s grassroots legislative advocacy network. Campus Representatives mobilize efforts on their campuses to respond to legislative advocacy alerts. They disseminate and collect information from students to help APAGS address student needs. The opportunity to serve as an APAGS Campus Representative is a position of honor and importance because Campus Representatives ensure that each psychology program has a voice within APAGS and APA, and a strong mechanism in place whereby students can receive timely, accurate and important information from APAGS.

As a campus rep, you would be added to the Campus Rep listserv, through which we send Action Alerts and information about APAGS and APA. Typically, when congress is in session, we send out Action Alerts urging phone calls and letters to be sent.