Tina Athanasopoulos, MA, CAS, is presented with this Presidential Citation for her leadership as chair of the American Psychological Association National Standards for High Psychology Curricula Working Group as well as her dedication and commitment to the teaching of psychology as a science.
As chair of the working group, Athanasopoulos shepherded the development and ultimate approval of a revised policy document that provides a streamlined and concise set of learning targets for the high school psychology course. Recognizing the role that high school courses play in preparing students for higher education, Athanasopoulos led the working group in aligning the high school standards to a set of Integrated themes from the APA Introductory Psychology Initiative. Drawing on her knowledge of psychology as an evolving discipline and your expertise in teaching high school psychology, Athanasopoulos led the working group through a careful review and consideration of multiple rounds of comments received from various stakeholders. Athanasopoulos demonstrated thoughtfulness and excellent communication and negotiation skills as you weighed submitted feedback with the realities of the high school classroom. Her leadership resulted in the development of a document that will help teachers design and deliver accurate, comprehensive, and developmentally appropriate psychology courses that reflect the breadth and depth of psychology as a scientific discipline. In line with APA’s strategic plan, the revised National Standards have the potential to elevate the public’s understanding of the broad applications of psychology as a science and to attract and diversify the next generation of psychology professionals.
For her role in shaping the revisions to this important document, it is our honor to present Athanasopoulos with this Presidential Citation.