At the December 2018 APA Board of Directors meeting, APA President Jessica Henderson Daniel awarded two Citizen Psychologist Citations to recognize the important contributions of two visionary leaders in psychology: Lee Gurel, PhD and Garth Neufeld, MA. Information about the award recipients follows below.
Lee Gurel, PhD
Lee Gurel earned his PhD in clinical psychology from Purdue University in 1952. With the exception of 11 years (1972-83) when he worked with the American Psychiatric Association, the majority of his career was spent working at the Veterans Administration in various capacities. Since 1987, he has also worked as a private practice consultant. He is a former president of APA Division 18 (Psychologists in Public Service) and of the District of Columbia Psychological Association.
Citizen Psychologist Citation
Lee Gurel, PhD is recognized with this APA Citizen Psychologist Presidential Citation for his sustained advocacy for psychology at the secondary level and high school psychology teachers nationwide.
Gurel has donated generously to the American Psychological Foundation (APF) to support his steadfast vision of increasing high-quality resources and professional development opportunities for high school teachers of psychology. In 2004, Gurel initiated the APA/TOPSS/APF Clark University Workshop for Teachers of High School Psychology with combined donations to APF and Clark. With his generosity, participants are able to attend for free. Held each summer since 2005, this workshop brings together 25 high school psychology teachers to learn from master teachers and psychology faculty to enhance their teaching and understanding of psychological science. In fourteen years, over 300 teachers have attended this workshop, and thousands of students have benefited from their teacher’s growth. In 2010, Gurel further donated funding to allow the development of APA Teachers of Psychology in Secondary Schools’ (TOPSS) lesson plans and other forms of professional development for teachers. For example, networking grants allow teachers to collaborate at a grassroots level and regional groups have formed nationwide. In 2013, Gurel donated additional funding to APF to continue championing high school psychology. In explaining his reasoning behind another donation for an Endowed Education Fund to Clark University, Dr. Gurel stated: “I feel that I –as we all do – owe a debt to the teachers and institutions that equipped us for fuller, more satisfying lives.”
But Gurel’s support is more than financial. He thrives on encouraging teachers and generously sharing his time with them. His nominator and endorsers credit Gurel’s personal involvement and their participation in the Clark workshop for connecting them to a rich network of passionate professionals in the field. In addition to strengthening relationships and teachers’ expertise, the Clark workshop has inspired new leadership. For example, many of the participants have become elected members of the APA TOPSS committee and/or have returned to Clark as master teachers.
Gurel also went to Xian, China, as a volunteer teacher of English. This experience galvanized numerous donations to individuals and organizations. For example, he enhanced funding for the 2nd and 3rd prize recipients in the Chinese-Americans Citizen Alliance essay contest “What Being An American Means to Me.”
Gurel has supported several programs at Northern Virginia Community College where he took seniors-tuition-free courses. His endowments included a student emergency financial assistance fund; enhanced support of selected staff and curriculum; and support of the Great Expectations program for foster youth. He also made donations to enhance the grounds and the library, and a donation so a previously homeless student was able to enroll.
Garth Neufeld, MA
Garth Neufeld earned an MA in marriage and family therapy from Fresno Pacific University in 2004. His bachelor’s degree is in psychology from the University of Saskatchewan (2002). Since 2016, he has taught at Cascadia College, and has previously taught at other community colleges. Neufeld is one of the co-hosts responsible for creating PsychSessions: Conversations about Teaching N’ Stuff—a podcast focusing on the teaching of psychology, which has over 13,000 downloads.
Neufeld is also the founder of Teaching Introductory Psychology-Northwest (TIP-NW), which is an annual, day-long teaching conference devoted to supporting teachers of the introductory psychology course in the Pacific Northwest. The fifth annual conference is scheduled for 2019.
Neufeld is active in the Society for the Teaching of Psychology (APA Div. 2). He is currently the co-chair of the APA Introductory Psychology Initiative (IPI) steering committee, which is taking a focused look at introductory psychology course learning outcomes, assessment and design which can have ramifications for learning, general education, the major and the public face of psychology.
Citizen Psychology Citation
Garth Neufeld is recognized with this APA Citizen Psychology Presidential Citation for a Community College Teacher Affiliate for his leadership in social justice and human rights by providing at-risk children with the tools to avoid a life of extreme poverty and work within the sex trade in Thailand.
Neufeld and his wife co-founded Shared Space For All (SSFA) in 2016. SSFA is a non-profit non-governmental organization (NGO), located in Thailand, designed to meet the educational needs of at-risk children. In Thailand, sex tourism thrives and sex work discriminates. Girls from poor families are at risk of dropping out of school to help with family finances. SSFA aims to stop sex work before it begins by providing a safe educational and mentoring space.
SSFA exists to provide education to those who live in Isaan, Thailand, regardless of gender, age or class. They gifted a shared-space facility to the community in order to provide education and opportunity that would not otherwise be available to children in Isaan. SSFA invests in education by providing a physical space for children to learn, and qualified teachers to teach and mentor.
SSFA has served 160 children since its inception, through an after-school tutoring and mentoring program. The program runs five days a week and serves children ages 6-18. SSFA is guided and led by a Thai team. SSFA continues to grow its vision for prevention work in Isaan, with plans to support children who complete high school by offering university scholarships, vocational training and micro-financing. In this way, children from Isaan will be equipped to take care of their families without putting themselves at risk.
Neufeld is the president of the Board of Directors for SSFA and oversees the work with its domestic and international operations. His efforts involve everything from fundraising to public speaking, to working with individual and organizational partners such as lawyers, accountants, graphic designers, non-profit organizations, NGOs and school districts.