The Psi Alpha International Honor Society for High School Psychology is proud to share several initiatives in progress, including the addition of two new intern staff, increased social media engagements, and new research projects. Psi Alpha currently has over 5,000 members and chapters in five countries. The organization continues on an upward growth trajectory with another promising school year on the horizon, and is excited to charter new chapters on a near weekly basis.
Psi Alpha is beginning a new research project in partnership with Dr. Douglas Bernstein of the University of South Florida to examine the beliefs of high school psychology teachers regarding common misconceptions in the psychology field. The study hopes to identify tools and methods to debunk common misconceptions about psychology, and gain insight about high school psychology educators.
Additionally, Psi Alpha is on the verge of awarding annual scholarships to an outstanding psychology student, an outstanding advisor, and an outstanding service award to members. Psi Alpha continues to bolster its scholarship program and recognize outstanding work at the high school level. Scholarship opportunities are just one example of the benefits students have when they become members.
Finally, Psi Alpha has worked to increase its social media presence, focusing on Facebook and Instagram. Students following the organization on these platforms will find wide ranging shareable content, including posts that highlight famous psychologists’ birthdays, national awareness initiatives, and more. Psi Alpha’s most recent series identifies all APA divisions and benefits associated with division membership. Students can rely on Psi Alpha to utilize proper APA citations to cite research and reliable sources for all posts. Psi Alpha content can be found online on Facebookopens in new window, Instagramopens in new window, or on the Psi Alpha websiteopens in new window. If you are interested in starting a Psi Alpha chapter at your school, please review the chapter charter applicationopens in new window.
Kristen Mitzel is the current director of operations for Psi Alpha. She is a recent graduate of Wright State University, earning a Master of Science in clinical mental health counseling and a Master of Education in school counseling. She is currently involved in private practice individual counseling, focusing on athletic performance, performance anxiety, and adolescent populations. Her research interests include trauma informed care for youth and animal assisted therapy. She has a therapy dog named Eli, who she is currently integrating in programming with her students. She also enjoys working with indoor percussion and color guard ensembles in the Dayton, Ohio area, where she currently resides.
