Dear Fellow Psi Chi Members,
Welcome to what promises to be another great year for Psi Chi. I want to begin by introducing myself. My name is Deana Julka and I am happy to serve as your Western Regional Vice-President. I am looking forward to hearing from you and hopefully meeting many of you at the upcoming conferences. I welcome any comments, suggestions, or feedback you have throughout my term. Please let me know how I, or Psi Chi, could be of greater service to you.
I would like to start by congratulating the newly inducted members of Psi Chi as well as the new chapters in the region. I also want to congratulate the award winners from the Western region this past year. While there were many qualified presentations considered for
Regional Research Awards at the regional meeting of the Western Psychological Association (WPA), which was held in Portland, Oregon April 14-17, 2005 (with a record number of attendees) several projects were selected to receive awards. The
eleven award winners in the Western Region included
Cody Bullock, Pacific Union College (CA),
Rodgrigo De La Mora, California State University, Fullerton,
Marc A. Emerson, San Diego State University (CA),
Kate Haralson, Boise State University (ID),
Colin Harbke, Washington State University-Vancouver,
Alishia Huntoon, Washington State University,
Priscilla E. Macias, California State University, Fullerton,
Brennon Moore, Southern Oregon University,
Giuseppe Pelligriti, University of Oregon,
Haley Stapleton, George Fox University (OR), and
Jane Stout, Augustana College (IL).The
Regional Chapter Award went to California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and the Psi Chi/ Regional Faculty Advisor Award to
Dr. Lori Barker-Hackett, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona. My sincere congratulations to all of you!
Although these awards reflect active involvement in Psi Chi by chapters and members in the region, I would like to encourage further involvement. It is not too late to apply for some upcoming awards. For example, several awards have upcoming
December 1 deadlines (National Convention Research Awards, Denmark National Faculty Advisor Award, Regional Faculty Advisor Awards, Regional Chapter Awards) and others have a deadline of
February 1 (Bandura Graduate Research Award, Newman Graduate Research Award, Cousins National Chapter Award, Website Awards). Additionally many awards have
spring deadlines (NSF/REU Grants, Summer Research Grants) and
May 1 deadlines (Guildford Undergraduate Research Awards, Allyn & Bacon Psychology Awards, Erlbaum Awards in Cognitive Science, Kay Wilson Leadership Award). As you can see there are many opportunities for you to get involved and be rewarded! Please visit
www.psichi.org/awards/ for a detailed list of awards.
Psi Chi again played an active role in both regional and national conferences last year. Psi Chi events at the 2005 WPA meeting were particularly well attended. The Psi Chi Invited Address was presented by
Robert Sternberg, Ph.D. on
"Culture and Intelligence." Both
Robert Sternberg, Ph.D. and
Elizabeth Loftus, Ph.D. were awarded Psi Chi Distinguished Member status for career contributions to the field of psychology and to Psi Chi as a society. Additionally, the Psi Chi Symposium
"Tackling Graduate School Applications and Training: Recipes for Success" again reached standing room only capacity. Faculty and student representatives from graduate programs in the region then met with many interested potential applicants during the subsequent Graduate School Exchange session. Psi Chi also cosponsored with the Council of Undergraduate Psychology Programs (CUPP) an informative symposium on "Learning Beyond the Classroom."
Plans are currently underway for Psi Chi contributions to the
2006 regional meeting of WPA, which will convene at the
Riviera Resort in Palm Springs, California from April 27-30. Based on positive feedback to many of the Psi Chi offerings at WPA, the program will again include a graduate school symposium and exchange. We will again hold a faculty appreciation luncheon. Space will be limited for this luncheon so keep a lookout for future notifications. We also expect to have a Psi Chi poster session and a cosponsored session with CUPP addressing ethics. Finally, the
Psi Chi Invited Address will be given by
Dr. Diane Halpern, Claremont McKenna College. Students who wish to apply for a Regional Research Award should know that you are not required to present your work in the Psi Chi poster session to be considered for an award. In fact, all Psi Chi students with posters are potentially eligible. Just be sure to include both the Psi Chi Statement of Membership form along with an indication on the Submission Cover Page that work is being submitted for the Psi Chi Program. Directions for submissions are available on the WPA website at
www.westernpsych.org.
The deadline for submissions is November 15, 2005. As a final reminder, please have your chapters consider involvement in any or all of
Psi Chi's national service projects. For example, Psi Chi chapters have had success with their
Adopt-A-Shelter projects within their communities,
Habitat for Humanity,
UNICEF and the
Archives of the History of American Psychology (AHAP) Service Project. Finally, chapters should consider getting actively involved in the
Food Drives, a Psi Chi Service-Education Project. Further information on all of these projects can be found at
www.psichi.org/chapters/serviceprojects.asp.
I am excited to begin my term as your regional vice-president. I look forward to meeting many of you in the upcoming years. Do not hesitate to contact me if you have any questions concerning Psi Chi opportunities or events.
Sincerely,
Deana L. Julka, Ph.D.
Psi Chi Western Regional Vice-President
Department of Psychology
University of Portland
5000 N. Willamette Blvd.
Portland, OR 97203
Telephone: (503) 943-7260
Fax: (503) 943-7802
Email:
julka@up.edu