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New Implementing Regulations

In addition to program review, the CoA regularly reviews policies and procedures.  Specifically, the Committee reviews and develops implementing regulations, which provide references as appropriate to language in the Guidelines and Principles (G&P) and the Accreditation Operating Procedures.  The implementing regulation document (available at http://www.apa.org/ed/implementingregs.html) is designed as a companion piece to the G&P/Operating Procedures.

At the June 2003 meeting, the CoA developed one new implementing regulation related to core faculty in doctoral programs:

C-18 Core Faculty in Doctoral Programs
(Committee on Accreditation, June 2003)

(Note:  Effective for all programs undergoing review in 2004).
 

The Guidelines and Principles for Accreditation of Programs in Professional Psychology (G&P) for doctoral programs (C.1.) articulate the need for accredited programs to have core faculty, as follows:

1.      The program has an identifiable core faculty responsible for its leadership who:

(a)     Function as an integral part of the academic unit of which the program is an element;

(b)     Are sufficient in number for their academic and professional responsibilities;

(c)    Have theoretical perspectives and academic and applied experiences appropriate to the program’s goals and objectives;

(d)     Demonstrate substantial competence and have recognized credentials in those areas which are at the core of the program’s objectives and goals; and>

(e)    Are available to and function as appropriate role models for students in their learning and socialization into the discipline and profession.

In addition to the core faculty, other individuals who hold faculty appointments at the institution may be used to augment and expand students’ educational experiences. These adjunct faculty should be held to standards of competence appropriate to their role/contribution within the program (see 1c, d, & e above).

To clarify the term “core faculty” and to provide the basis for a fair, reliable, and valid measurement process to determine the core faculty time available for the program, the following guidelines are provided.

1. Core faculty must be consistent with the G&P, C.1., as quoted above.

2. Core faculty must be composed of individuals whose education, training, and/or experience is consistent with his/her role in the program in light of the substantive area in which the program seeks accreditation.

3. Core faculty must be composed of individuals whose primary professional employment (50% or more) is at the institution in which the program is housed, and to whom the institution has demonstrated a multi-year commitment (as supported by an examination of the history of appointments in the program or by contracts).

4.  Core faculty must be identified with the program and centrally involved in program development, decision-making, and student training.  “Identified with the program” means that each faculty person is included in public and departmental documents as such, views himself or herself as core faculty, and is seen as core faculty by the students.

5.  At least 50% of core faculty professional time must be devoted to program-related activities.  That means, for example, that a faculty person who is 50% at the institution would need to have 100% of that time spent as a core faculty.  (The day per week institutions often allow for professional development activities such as research, consultation, or practice is not intended to be added to or subtracted from this calculation.  That is, a 100% core faculty person in an institution with a consultation policy should be thought of as a 100% person, not 125% or 80%, regardless of the activities done on that day.)  A full time 9-month or 11-month core faculty person are both seen as 100%.  Core faculty activities directly related to the doctoral program include program-related teaching, research, scholarship, and/or professional activities; supervision of students’ research, students’ dissertations, and students’ teaching activities; mentoring students’ professional development; providing clinical supervision; monitoring of student outcomes; teaching in a masters program that is an integral part of the doctoral program; and developing, evaluating, and maintaining the program.  Core faculty activities not directly related to the doctoral program and not seen as aspects of the core faculty role include undergraduate teaching in general and related activities; teaching and related activities in terminal masters or other graduate programs; and clinical work or independent practice not directly associated with training such as at a counseling center.

In addition to core faculty, programs may also have associated program faculty, contributing faculty, and adjunct (visiting, auxiliary, or “other”) faculty.  The associated program faculty formerly contributing faculty, category would be reserved for faculty who do not meet the criteria for core faculty but make a substantial contribution to the program and take on some of the tasks often associated with core faculty, but are not centrally involved in program development and decision-making.  Adjunct faculty are faculty hired on an ad hoc basis to teach a course or two, supervise, etc.

Consistent with the program’s model, the psychology doctoral program faculty, and in particular, the core faculty, needs to be large enough to advise and supervise students’ research and practice, conduct research and/or engage in scholarly activity, attend to administrative duties, serve on institutional or program committees, provide a sense of program continuity, be assured of appropriate class sizes, provide sufficient course offerings to meet program goals and objectives, and monitor and evaluate practicum facilities, internship settings, and student progress.

The Committee will make available, online information regarding the number of core faculty in programs receiving the maximum term of accreditation.

 


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