October 2006
Dear Psi Chi Chapter Officers, Members, and Faculty Advisors,
Welcome back to the 2006-2007 academic year!
The
Southwestern Region of Psi Chi has had an interesting year. Former Psi Chi Southwestern Vice-President John Davis is now the National President of Psi Chi (congratulations!), and I am entering my third year as a Vice-President—wiser and (hopefully!) growing ever more effective.
During April 2006, Psi Chi offered a very interesting program at the Southwestern Psychological Association (SWPA) Convention in Austin, TX to the many Psi Chi faculty advisors and chapters in attendance. The Psi Chi program included two undergraduate research paper and poster sessions in which 12 Psi Chi students won $3,600 of research awards. Other highlights of the program were a variety of distinguished Psi Chi invited speakers, including Charles Spielberger of the University of South Florida. Professor Spielberger was Psi Chi’s 25th President and the 100th president of the American Psychological Association. He delivered Psi Chi's invited Distinguished Lecture, summarizing his study on stress and stress-related activities. An innovation this year, Psi Chi invited Dr. Spielberger to sit down one-on-one with Psi Chi members in the Psi Chi Hospitality Suite after his presentation for a wide-ranging discussion of topics related to his address.
As happenstance, I had invited Elliott Aronson to be a Psi Chi speaker, but unknown to me, last year’s SWPA president (Dr. Paul Nail) had gotten there first! Therefore, I invited Dr. Aronson to do a face-to-face conversation with Psi Chi members in Psi Chi's suite after his SWPA Keynote Address. It was a standing room-only event with questions from personal to pertinent, on-topic and off-topic, as Dr. Aronson covered the intellectual map. To protect Dr. Aronson’s schedule, Psi Chi had to close the session after 75 minutes. A good time was had by all, and a new tradition was created—a one-on-one conversation with Psi Chi's invited speakers. Count on it for this year! Psi Chi was also pleased with the presence of (then President-Elect of Psi Chi)
John M. Davis, Texas State University–San Marcos, and (Psi Chi’s Executive Director)
Virginia Andreoli Mathie. Hopefully, you can join us THIS year for academic and social activities at SWPA similar to this past year’s programs (more in a later posting).
Psi Chi at SWPA, Fort Worth, TX: Psi Chi's 78th Anniversary and SWPA's 53rd—The Papers Could Be Even BIGGER Than 2006!
We are planning a wide range of Psi Chi events for the SWPA meeting in the Renaissance Worthington Hotel, April 5-7, 2007. You’ve got plenty of time to get back to do your taxes after Psi Chi at SWPA! Plan to bring a large group from your campus. Though Fort Worth is not too far from the geologic epicenter of our region, it might be beneficial to partner with another chapter (or two) to provide transportation. Recognizing cost is always a factor for undergraduates. Chapters in the cities near the outer edges of our territory might use the PsiChiSW Listserv (
PsiChiSW@listserv.uh.edu) or check the Psi Chi Chapter Directory at
www.psichi.org/chapters/search.asp for a list of chapters by state or ZIP Code. Clicking on a chapter's name reveals the chapter’s address, office information, and a wealth of detail. You might contact chapters between your school and Fort Worth. By renting a bus at the furthest campus, costs might be shared with other campuses along the route to Fort Worth. Prorated costs could be paid by Psi Chi members hitching a ride on the same bus if chapters coordinated their efforts.
On a related note, despite the cost, there are benefits to staying in the conference hotel. The cost per room is often identical with 2-4 persons in the room; obviously, partnering with someone with similar sleeping habits can generate substantial savings. Moreover, there are
many advantages to staying in the convention hotel.
Psi Chi paper sessions, nationally prominent speakers (TBA), paper and poster sessions, and social events of the SWPA convention will all be available including the infamous Psi Chi Hospitality Suite.
Psi Chi’s FIRST Regional LISTSERV is now active
This listserv is now available for chapter officers, Psi Chi members, and chapter advisors in the Southwestern Region (AR, LA, OK, TX) to exchange information with one another. It is now the primary vehicle of communication (at least for outbound messages) within our region. Instructions will be sent again regarding how to sign on to the listserv. Stay tuned!
Psi Chi Undergraduate Research Competition at SWPA
SWPA provides a remarkable opportunity to present your research. Begin now to prepare your research for presentation during the Psi Chi program at the 53rd SWPA meeting in Fort Worth. All Psi Chi members’ submissions are automatically considered for the Psi Chi competition as long as you follow the guidelines included with this letter and
identify yourself as a member of Psi Chi!
1) Apply for SWPA student membership if you are not a member already. Do this as soon as possible. You can obtain membership information and application forms at
www.swpsych.org. ALL authors of papers presented at SWPA must be members of SWPA. Only the lead author of papers submitted for a Psi Chi session needs to be a SWPA member when the paper or poster is submitted. The other authors can apply before the convention and pay their first-year dues at the convention next April, but apply today! As an incentive to join now, your dues and registration fees are usually higher if you wait until the conference to pay.
2) Submit your paper or poster proposal to SWPA electronically no later than midnight, Sunday, November 19, 2006—11 days earlier than last year! However,
if you are only submitting your paper for consideration for presentation at SWPA and the Psi Chi Research Competition, you have until 11:59 p.m., Wednesday, December 6, 2006
[NOTE! Please send your submissions directly to douglasd@bethanylb.edu]. This extended submission date is
ONLY for Psi Chi members submitting papers for presentation in Psi Chi sessions at SWPA and only for consideration for the Psi Chi Research Awards. For either deadline, follow the enclosed guidelines.
Again, welcome back! As a student of psychology in the Southwest Region of Psi Chi, you are a valued member of the psychological community. In the coming year, make certain you are a part of the excitement. Please take full advantage of the opportunities that your department and Psi Chi offer you. And remember: It is never too soon to start planning research that will eventually lead to a submission for SWPA 2008! I look forward to meeting you this spring in Fort Worth!
Sincerely,
Richard A. Kasschau, Professor
Psi Chi Southwestern Regional Vice-President
enc:
2007 SWPA Student Submission Instructions