The APAGS Committee | Overview | Specific
Procedures | Position Descriptions | Executive Committee | Members
at Large | Specific Duties -
Member at Large | Appointed Subcommittee Chairs | Specific
Duties - Each Subcommittee Chair Role
I. The APAGS Committee
The APAGS Committee serves as an advisory committee composed of nine elected officers. Four appointed subcommittee chairs work closely with the APAGS Committee by participating in the business meetings and discussions of the committee. As an advisory group, the APAGS Committee offers comments on APA policies and procedures, and provides recommendations to APAGS Central Office regarding activities, initiatives, and select areas of the budget.
The nine elected APAGS officers include a Chair, Past-Chair and Chair-Elect, as well as six Members-at-Large representing practice, research/academics, education/training, communications, diversity, and membership recruitment/retention. The APAGS' subcommittees include the Committee on Ethnic Minority Affairs (CEMA), the Advocacy Coordinating Team (ACT), the Committee for Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, and Transgender Concerns (CLGBTC), and the Convention Committee.
Time Commitment and Responsibilities
Members of the APAGS Committee and appointed subcommittee chairs are required to attend the Fall and Spring Consolidated Business meetings during their term (held in the Washington, DC area). Members must be willing to dedicate the necessary time to sufficiently prepare for these meetings and provide follow-up. Members are also expected to liaison to other boards and committees as assigned, submit monthly reports related to activities within their position, participate on frequent (often monthly) conference calls, and communicate regularly over a closed committee listserv. Committee members are expected to spearhead projects and plans related to their position, as approved by the APAGS Committee, and as assigned by the APAGS Committee Chair. They are accountable throughout the year for making progress and for meeting goals.
All applicants should consult with an advisor/faculty mentor to confirm their support and willingness to allow time away to attend meetings and meet your obligations to APAGS. This support should be explicitly addressed within the recommendation letter from your department chair.
Things to Consider
As a continuing committee of APA, participation in APAGS leadership is voluntary. Those elected/appointed to APAGS positions must be willing to dedicate a significant amount of time to this service-oriented role. Students wishing to apply for a position on the Committee should consider the personal commitment involved. Think about where you will be in your academic career during the term you intend to serve. Will future responsibilities impede your ability to dedicate a sufficient amount of time to serve effectively? Will this commitment, coupled with additional stressors (e.g. internship, dissertation), allow you to maintain an appropriate balance between your personal and professional life? While participation on the APAGS Committee is a fantastic professional development experience, we recognize the demands of graduate school and ask that students carefully consider the level of commitment required prior to application.
II. An Overview of APAGS Election and
Appointment Procedures
Elections
Elections are held annually for the chair-elect position and
vacant member at large positions. A call for applications is released each Fall. APAGS members vote online for these positions at the APAGS website in late Winter/Spring.
Subcommittee Chair Application and Appointment Procedures
Subcommittee chairs are appointed because the work of each APAGS
subcommittee requires particular experience and expertise in specific areas for
which regular members of APAGS are unlikely to have. For this reason,
subcommittee chairs are not selected by the general APAGS membership through a nomination
and election process. Steps are taken to ensure that qualified applications
for open subcommittee chair roles can be considered in a fair and equitable
manner. Checks and balances are in place, which include the review of
applications by the current subcommittee chair, the Executive Committee, and
eventually the full committee. A call for subcommittee chair applications is released each Fall.
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III. Specific Procedures
Elected Positions:
Each Fall the projected openings for elected positions are
broadly advertised via gradPSYCH, on the APAGS Web site, on relevant APAGS
listservs, and other avenues as appropriate.
Applicant criteria: Applicants must be: 1) actively enrolled as
a student in good standing in a graduate psychology program; and 2) an APAGS member. APAGS prefers applicants that are at least 2 years from graduation, but this is not required.
Application instructions: Applicants must read and sign the APAGS Committee Application Agreement [PDF] and submit an abbreviated
2 page CV, a candidate statement describing their qualifications and/or
potential for the particular position (300 words or less), a brief letter from
their department chair verifying their status as a graduate student in good
standing and the chair’s support of the student running for an APAGS office;
and at least 20 nominations from APAGS members submitted by mail or email by the
designated deadline.
After the applications are received, qualified candidates will be asked to participate on a 30 minute telephone interview to help the APAGS Committee determine the final slate. A slate of candidates for
each position is determined by an elections committee consisting of the
Past-Chair, AED, and two additional APAGS committee members appointed by the
APAGS Chair.
Elections take place in the late Winter/early Spring of each
year. Candidate statements are made available online and APAGS members are encouraged to visit the website to vote for their student leaders. Newly elected officers begin their terms in August (with the APAGS
Convention as the transition marker).
Appointed Subcommittee (Standing Committee) Chairs:
Each Fall the projected openings for appointed
subcommittee chair positions are broadly advertised via gradPSYCH,
on the APAGS Web site, on relevant APAGS listservs, and other avenues as appropriate.
Applicant criteria: Applicants must be: 1) actively enrolled as
a student in good standing in a graduate psychology program; 2) an APAGS member; and 3) able to demonstrate that they
have specific knowledge, expertise, and/or experience in the substantive area of
the respective sub-committee to which they are applying to lead as chair. APAGS prefers applicants that are at least 2 years from graduation, but this is not required.
Application instructions: Applicants must read and sign the APAGS Committee Application Agreement [PDF] and submit an abbreviated
2 page CV, a candidate statement describing their qualifications and/or
potential for the particular position (750 words or less), and a brief letter
from their department chair verifying their status as a graduate student in good
standing and the chair’s support of the student being involved in APAGS in
this way.
The outgoing subcommittee chair and the Executive Committee
review the applications and recommend a candidate to the full APAGS Committee.
The incoming subcommittee chair is selected by January/February and begins
officially serving their two-year term in their new role in August (with the APA
Convention as the transition marker).
Between January/February and August the incoming subcommittee
chair works closely with the outgoing chair for mentoring and training purposes.
The incoming chair participates in conference calls and other activities of the
subcommittee, with the exception of traveling to meetings. The incoming chair
is not an official member of APAGS governance until he/she assumes the chair
role in August and begins his/her two-year term.
Task Force Chairs and Members:
Task Force proposals to the APAGS committee must include a
statement indicating the mission of the proposed task force, relevant research,
tangible goals of the task force, how the task force addresses an important or
emerging student issue or need, a proposed chair for the task force (with
accompanying CV and a letter of eligibility from his/her department chair), a
list of proposed task force members, and a proposed (time-limited; usually 2
years) budget.
The APAGS committee reviews task force proposals at their Fall
and Spring business meetings and votes to approve, approve with amendments, or
decline the request for the formation of a task force, its budget, and members.
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IV. APAGS Position Descriptions
Introduction to APAGS Elected and Appointed Position
Descriptions
We have provided general descriptions of
the scope of responsibilities associated with each position. The roles and
responsibilities listed are to serve as a guide in directing the Committee
members’ work. However, the descriptions are not exhaustive. They are
purposefully general, in recognition that each member will develop his/her own
projects, proposals and interests as they become more acclimated to the
structure and function of the Committee and more aware of pressing constituency
issues.
The descriptions are used for the advertisement, recruitment and
selection of Committee members, allowing potential candidates to make more
informed choices about running for an office (Chair-Elect or Member at Large) or
applying for an appointed position (Subcommittee Chair or Task Force
Chair). It also serves to provide the new Committee members with a focus for
their beginning contributions. Because accountability is vitally important to
the on-going success of APAGS, having delineated expectations allows for such
responsibility.
The position descriptions will probably transform over time to
reflect Committee values and priorities. It is important for the position
descriptions to be updated accordingly to permit streamlined work. Thank you, in
advance, for the contributions you will make to this document to further its
intended purpose.
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The Executive Committee (Chair, Past-Chair, and Chair-Elect)
The Executive Committee (EC) works as a unit to advise, guide
and consult with the full APAGS Committee, with one member (the Chair) taking
the lead during his/her tenure. The EC acts as a steering committee for APAGS
and is responsible for developing priorities and charges to Committee members
consistent with the goals of APAGS. The Executive Committee presides over the full APAGS Committee
and acts on behalf of the full Committee.
Chair Tasks
-
Takes the primary lead in the EC presiding over the APAGS
Committee
-
Oversees and prioritizes issues for all business meetings
-
Conducts the fall and spring APAGS business meeting (held
during the consolidated meetings) and Committee conference calls
-
Sets the agenda for EC bi-weekly conference calls
-
Primary APAGS point of contact for other APA and affiliated
groups, fielding questions and requests and representing the collective
voice of APAGS to these other APA and affiliated entities
-
Serves as ex-officio member of all APAGS Subcommittees, Task Forces, and Work Groups (may participate in related
conference calls and other meetings at the Chair’s discretion)
-
Makes official charges to the Committee for priorities based
on consensus, constituency needs/interests, and from larger charges made by
the Association
-
Fields requests for other APA student groups to establish
linkages to APAGS and assigns these students to existing Committee members
based on reciprocal needs, interests and concerns
-
Makes preliminary appointments for Subcommittee, Task
Force and Work Group Chairs, in consultation with the EC, followed by full
Committee approval
-
Makes preliminary appointment for Official Liaisonships, in
consultation with the EC, followed by full Committee approval
-
Serves as the EC liaison (for more direct
mentoring/oversight) for 1/3rd of the APAGS Committee members,
Subcommittee Chairs, Task Force Chairs, and Work Group Chairs
-
Serves in prescribed liaison roles reserved for the APAGS
Chair (for example, APA Council and the Agenda Planning Group)
-
Serves as an Official Liaison for some of the established
APAGS Liaisonships
-
Reports on EC, Chair and Official Liaison activities to the
full APAGS Committee via the Committee listserv and at APAGS business
meetings
-
Writes articles for a periodic APAGS Chair column in gradPSYCH
Past-Chair Tasks
-
Serves as a consultant to the Chair in performing the above
duties
-
Serves as the “Treasurer” with primary responsibility
for working with the APAGS Associate Executive Director (AED) to enable the
Past-Chair to understand more detailed budget information
-
Oversees and coordinates the annual elections process
-
Serves as the EC liaison (for more direct
mentoring/oversight) for 1/3rd of the APAGS Committee members, Subcommittee Chairs, Task Force Chairs, and Work Group Chairs
-
Serves in prescribed liaison roles reserved for the APAGS
Past-Chair
-
Serves as an Official Liaison for some of the established
APAGS Liaisonships
-
Reports on Past-Chair and Official Liaison activities to the
full APAGS Committee via the Committee listserv and at APAGS business
meetings
Chair-Elect Tasks
-
Participates in all EC activity to prepare for Chair year
-
Serves as the EC liaison (for more direct
mentoring/oversight) for 1/3rd of the APAGS Committee members, Subcommittee Chairs, Task Force Chairs, and Work Group Chairs
-
Serves in prescribed liaison roles reserved for the APAGS
Chair-Elect
-
Serves as an Official Liaison for some of the established
APAGS Liaisonships; sometimes the Chair-Elect will take on relatively more
of these liaison roles to help acclimate him/her to the work of the Subcommittees, Task Forces, and Working Groups
-
Reports on Chair-Elect and Official Liaison activities to
the full APAGS Committee via the Committee listserv and at APAGS business
meeting
-
Will prepare to serve during chair or past-chair year as the
APAGS voting member on the APA Council of Representatives and non-voting
member on the APA Board of Directors. This requires travel to approximately
4 meetings per year, often in Washington D.C.
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Members at Large
Members at Large are elected to represent a broad focus area.
However, there are some general tasks for each person in a Member at Large
position. They are as follows:
-
Prepare for and attend fall and spring APAGS business meetings
-
Prepare (at minimum) bi-annual reports and evaluations of
work for business meetings; report on special projects as well as official
liaisonship activities
-
Submit brief monthly listserv reports of Member at Large
activities as well as reports for the official liaisonships held
Submit a report/paragraph of quarterly activities for inclusion in the APAGS Campus Bulletin
-
Contribute substantive articles of interest for the APAGS
Web site
-
Participate on working groups and scholarship/award review
committees for selecting recipients
-
Members at Large should begin mentoring their replacement
into their position as soon as the results from elections are verified. This
mentoring piece is critical to the continued smooth and effective
functioning of the APAGS Committee.
-
Each member at large works very closely and collaboratively
with the APAGS central office staff, particularly the Associate Executive
Director, who serves as an advisor and guides the entire APAGS Committee.
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Specific
Duties Associated with the Focus of the Member at Large
Member at Large - Education Focus
-
Establish relationships and joint projects with staff
members of the Education Directorate
-
Represent internship and training needs of students to
relevant boards and committees
-
Monitor the climate of training environments and advocate
for advances in the quality of education and experience for graduate
students
Member at Large - Research/Academic Focus
-
Liaison to the Science Student Council
-
Liaison to the Board of Scientific Affairs
-
Establish relationships and joint projects with staff
members of the Science Directorate
-
Promote and support activities, projects and programs that
foster increased support of and participation by research oriented graduate
students
-
Oversee the APAGS scholarship nomination, selection and
award process
Member at Large - Practice Focus
-
Establish relationships and joint projects with staff
members of the Practice Directorate
-
Serve in various official Liaison roles that focus on
practitioner oriented issues
-
Develop initiatives and programs within APAGS that support
the Practice Directorate’s public education campaigns, as appropriate
-
Monitor training environments to advocate for high quality,
timely and relevant preparation for practice in the current and shifting
marketplace
-
Promote and support activities, projects and programs that
foster increased support of and participation by practice-oriented graduate
students in APAGS
-
Attend the annual State Leadership Conference (held in
March) which focuses on advocacy and the legislative agenda for practitioner
psychologists
Member at Large - Communications Focus
-
Assist the APAGS Central Office staff with APAGS
publications and publicity in a variety of ways that may include: recruiting
and training students to write articles for the APAGS Web site; identifying
topics for the APAGS magazine, gradPSYCH, as well as APA Monitor articles,
and communicating these topics and ideas to the Associate Executive Director
-
Develop and implement various marketing and publicity
initiatives to promote APAGS and to recruit new APA student affiliates
-
Assist with compiling information for the quarterly Campus Representative Bulletin
-
Establish relationships and joint projects with the APA
Public Affairs Office to promote graduate student publicity
-
Develop outreach programs to strengthen the link between
APAGS and allied student and professional groups, to facilitate effective
information exchange and updating
-
Assist with facilitating the APAGS Division Student
Representative Network (APAGS-DSRN) that brings together the student leaders
of divisions to help them develop new student leaders within divisions,
connect to APAGS and support APAGS initiatives
Member at Large - Diversity Focus
-
Guide working groups and ad hoc committees that address
specific issues of diversity
-
Establish relationships and joint projects with staff
members in the APA Public Interest Directorate
-
Serve in various official Liaison roles that focus on issues
related to diversity, including ethnic heritage, women’s issues, ageism,
sexual orientation, disability issues, etc.
-
Develop initiatives, programs and resources within APAGS
that support diverse students, as appropriate
-
Advocate for the needs of diverse students within and
outside of APA
Member at Large - Membership Recruitment and Retention Focus
-
Recruit and retain a graduate student membership that reflects the diversity in psychology and promotes unity within the field, with a special emphasis on recruiting and retaining students from under-represented groups
-
Facilitate and maintain open lines of communication between APAGS, the APA Membership Office, and the APA Membership Committee
-
Educate the larger association about the products, services, and resources that APAGS provides for reaching students
-
Set in place initiatives to increase graduate student membership through the effective use of current resources and coordinated recruitment activities through APA offices and directorates
-
Design and implement innovative programs and practices that will generate new graduate student members
-
Work to expand unique services to APAGS members
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Appointed
Subcommittee Chairs
New subcommittee chairs will be mentored by their predecessor as soon as appointments are announced.
Mentoring is especially important for the APAGS subcommittee chairs
because their roles require particular expertise in the specified areas. This is
critical to the continued smooth and effective functioning of the APAGS
Committee.
Each subcommittee chair is responsible for gathering applications and appointing his/her own subcommittee members, with the approval of subcommittee members by his/her Executive Committee liaison. In special situations, appointment of subcommittee members may require the approval of the full APAGS committee, but this occurs infrequently. Each Spring the projected openings will be advertised via gradPSYCH, the website, and relevant APAGS listservs.
Subcommittee member application and appointment procedures.
Universal responsibilities for all subcommittee chairs are
as follows:
-
Prepare for and attend fall and spring APAGS business meetings
-
Prepare (at minimum) bi-annual reports and evaluations of
work for business meetings; report on special projects as well as official
liaisonship activities
-
Submit brief monthly listserv reports of Subcommittee
Chair activities as well as reports for the official liaisonships held
Submit a report/paragraph of quarterly activities for inclusion in the APAGS Campus Bulletin
-
Contribute substantive articles of interest for the APAGS
Web site
-
Participate on working groups and scholarship/award review
committees for selecting recipients
-
Subcommittee Chairs should begin mentoring their
replacement into their position as soon as their replacement is identified.
This mentoring piece is critical to the continued smooth and effective
functioning of the APAGS Committee.
-
Manage the allocated subcommittee budget and develop new
budgets in consultation with the Associate Executive Director
-
Each subcommittee chair works very closely and collaboratively
with the APAGS central office staff, particularly the Associate Executive
Director, who serves as an advisor and guides the entire APAGS Committee.
Mission Statements of APAGS' Specialized Subcommittees
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Specific
Duties Associated With Each Subcommittee Chair Role
APAGS - Advocacy Coordinating Team (ACT), Chair
-
Solicit, recruit and evaluate applicants for Regional
Advocacy Coordinator positions
-
Participate in selection process of next APAGS-ACT Chair and
provide mentoring
-
Train new committee members and revise or create training
materials as appropriate
-
Monitor federal legislative issues through the Practice
Directorate and Public Policy Office and disseminate alerts for student
action on these issues
-
Guide committee members in the recruitment, selection and
training of State Advocacy Coordinators and APAGS Campus Representatives
-
Participate in the Practice Directorate’s annual State
Leadership Conference
-
Conduct committee conference calls as needed
-
Serve as APAGS’ point of contact for relationships with
State Psychological Associations
Mission Statement for ACT
APAGS - Committee on Ethnic Minority
Affairs (CEMA), Chair
-
Solicit, recruit and evaluate applicants for Regional
Diversity Coordinator positions
-
Participate in selection process of next APAGS-CEMA Chair
and provide mentoring
-
Train new committee members and develop relevant training
resources
-
Promote and oversee grant allocation program within
APAGS-CEMA for regional multicultural events
-
Conduct committee conference calls as needed
-
Develop special programs and initiatives to promote the
interests and needs of ethnic minority students, as well as training in
competencies related to research and practice with ethnic minority
individuals
-
Establish relationships and joint projects with APA staff
members in the Office of Ethnic Minority Affairs and work with APA Boards
and Committees that address ethnic minority issues
Mission Statement for CEMA
APAGS - Convention Committee,
Chair
-
Solicit, recruit and evaluate applicants for the APAGS
Convention Committee member positions
-
Participate in selection process of next APAGS Convention
Committee Chair and provide mentoring
-
Train new committee members and develop relevant training
resources
-
Assist APAGS Central Office staff in the creation of
convention promotional materials for: student proposal submissions, student
attendance at convention, student social/networking opportunities at
convention, and special activities
-
Work with the Associate Executive Director and APAGS
Committee to develop annual program themes and topics; Develop annual
advertising materials for these topics
-
Work with the Associate Executive Director and Convention
Committee to review proposals and make program selections and
modifications/recommendations as appropriate
Attend the annual APA Convention
Attend annual Convention Committee meeting to select convention programming/activities
-
Develop, conduct and analyze annual convention program
evaluation process and report results to the full APAGS Committee
Mission Statement for Convention Committee
APAGS - Committee for Lesbian, Gay,
Bisexual, and Transgender Concerns (CLGBTC), Chair
-
Solicit, recruit and evaluate applicants for APAGS-CLGBTC
member positions
-
Participate in selection process of next APAGS-CLGBTC Chair
and provide mentoring
-
Train new committee members and develop relevant training
resources
-
Identify and advocate for the needs of LGBT students in
training and professional settings
-
Identify issues of importance for LGBT students and educate
the APAGS Committee about special needs and issues for LGBT students
-
Develop APAGS resources, programs and initiatives to promote
the interests and needs of LGBT students, as well as training in
competencies related to research and practice with LGBT individuals
-
Establish relationships and joint projects with APA staff
member in the Public Interest Directorate and work with APA Boards and
Committees that address LGBT issues
Mission Statement for CLGBTC
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