Biography
I am professor and chair of the department of counseling psychology and guidance services at Ball State University in Muncie, Indiana. I am also a psychologist in private practice. I earned a bachelor's degree in psychology from The Ohio State University, a master's in counseling psychology from the University of Akron, and a doctorate in counseling psychology from Southern Illinois University–Carbondale. I completed my internship at the University of Delaware's student counseling center.
I have been an educator for 26 years, the last 19 of them as a department chair. This elected position is often characterized as one of the hardest leadership positions because the chair must answer to competing (and sometimes conflicting) constituent groups. I directed the APA-accredited doctoral program in counseling psychology prior to becoming department chair. I chaired more than 20 doctoral dissertations and at least eight master's theses, provided countless hours of clinical, teaching and research supervision, and mentored numerous graduate students during my career. My research has focused on issues of diversity (e.g., race and ethnicity, gender, sexual identity); vocational development; and disaster mental health. In addition, I am a disaster mental health volunteer and instructor for the American Red Cross. I have assisted teams for national, regional and local disasters, including Hurricane Katrina. Since 1999, I have been a member of the Indiana State Psychology Board, the licensure body for psychologists in Indiana. Over the years, I have served as either chair or vice chair of the board.
I have been involved with APA as a member since 1989. I am a fellow of Divs. 17 (Society of Counseling Psychology) and 45 (Society for the Psychological Study of Culture, Ethnicity and Race), and a member of Div. 35 (Society for the Psychology of Women). I am the immediate past president of Div. 17. My primary initiative during my presidency was organizing the national Counseling Psychology Conference, held in Atlanta in March 2014. This was only the sixth such conference since the creation of Div. 17; more than 900 people attended, including a large number of students attending one of their first conferences. I have been appointed to various committees within Div. 17, including the Counseling Psychology Competencies Task Force, Convention Program Review and the Fellowship Committee. I am the first person to be appointed as the division's disaster response coordinator. I have also been the director of the APA and External Interface Board for Div. 17. I am also in my first year of a three-year term as a member of the Committee on Division/APA Relations.
Bowman's candidate statement
It is an honor to be invited to join this strong group of candidates on the ballot for APA president-elect. I did not seek this nomination, which probably makes my selection even more surprising.
Some of you know me through my work in Div. 17 (Society of Counseling Psychology). Others, however, probably have little idea about who I am at this stage in the process. In the coming weeks and months, as I share my philosophy, personality and views on the association after 26 years of professional membership, I hope more of you will come to know me. And once you do, I hope that you like what you hear.
I am an academic (26 years and counting), an administrator (19 years and counting as department chair) and a private practitioner (20 years and counting). I am known for listening first and weighing the options before acting. I am rarely the loudest voice in the room, but when I do speak you can be assured I have something to say. I prefer to lead by example in collaboration with the team, as long as that approach remains productive. I am not afraid to take chances and accept the consequences, however, if the team is having trouble moving forward.
There are two other points that strongly reflect my philosophy on the world. First, I operate from a foundation of diversity and social justice. Second, my end goal is to lay the path for those coming behind me. I want to grow the next generation of leaders, and being president-elect would certainly allow me to facilitate the path for others.
I look forward to further dialogue in the coming months!