Minutes of Business Meeting: San Diego April 2007

Association of Directors of Psychology Training Clinics (ADPTC)
Business Meeting Minutes
Mid-Year Meeting, San Diego, CA, April 12 Ð 14, 2007

10:00 - 10:05 Overview & Acknowledgements, Rob Heffer

10:05 - 10:20 Report from the APA Education Directorate, Cathy Grus

• The Assessment of Competencies Benchmark Workgroup Document is being revised and will be ready for public comment in approximately 2 weeks. Five questions are posed for systematic feedback.
• The BEA passed a motion to create practical toolkits for educators: 1) to assist in the switch to competency-based outcome assessment, and 2) to assist in the assessment of competencies.
• With regard to strategic planning, Cathy asked the group what else was needed to present to BEA in November of 2007.
• BEA passed a motion to gather all resources to develop a plan, including short-term and long-term initiatives, which will address the disparity between number of internship applicants and number of sites available.
• The APA Model License Act-Revised is now available for public comment. This document will update the previous Act from 1987. Cathy will send the exact link to the ADPTC website. She mentioned that the APA website, including search and navigation features, is in the process of being updated.
• Cathy commented that she is excited about the relationship between the Education Directorate and ADPTC regarding competencies.
• Those interested can contribute to the Education Advocacy Trust.
• Tony Cellucci asked who is working on changes to the Practicum Guidelines document. Cathy said that she is consulting with regulatory groups to get help with changing the language.

Reports from Committee Chairs

10:20 - 10:30 Publications & Public Relations, Phyllis Terry Friedman

• Phyllis discussed the splash format for the newsletter. She has found that creating two formats for the newsletter is too time-consuming. Phyllis polled members regarding their format preference.
• She requested that presenters forward copies of this meeting's presentations to her so she can attach them to the newsletter. Karen Saules said she can send MS Word text and graphics to Ryan (webmaster). Rob solicited help for Phyllis. Steven Cook encouraged Phyllis to use the format that is easiest.
• Phyllis offered thanks to Vic Pantesco and Karen Saules for their help with the newsletter.
• There will be an article by Cathy Grus on the APA Education Directorate.
• Phyllis asked if there are any materials that ADPTC should consider developing. Erica Wise said it is a good time for outreach to other training clinics like school and counseling. Phyllis asked Frank Collins from CUDCP if we need a brochure. Frank agreed that a brochure would be helpful, considering the number of new DCTs that join every year. Mary Alice Conroy says that she emails CUDCP yearly to remind new DCTs about ADPTC.
• Eric Sauer would like feedback from new directors about the ease of getting connected with ADPTC.

Membership & Resources, Karen Saules & Erica Wise

10:30 - 10:35 Website/Listserv, Karen Saules

• Karen will move newsletter access to the Member Benefits section of the website. She reminded the group that the Member Benefits section includes a packet for new Clinic Directors. Karen will also make the Competencies Document link more prominent.
• Karen requested that ADPTC members check personal information and their own resources currently posted on the website. Updated versions of resources can be sent to Karen.
• The Google Groups listserv is searchable, but material from the old listserv is not currently available. Karen reports that she and Ryan are working on moving content from the old listserv. Karen will develop a FAQ sheet about using Google Groups and post this to the website. Joe Scardapane mentioned that he configures new users to receive an email every time a post is made to the Google Group. Users can log onto Google Groups and change this setting.

10:35 - 10:45 Treasurer's Report, Joe Scardapane

• Joe reports that ADPTC is in good financial standing. In January of 2007 we had a balance of $8200.00. We collected $6000.00 in membership fees and $2500.00 in conference registration fees. Before the San Diego meeting ADPTC had a balance of $16,700.00. After all conference costs have been paid, the balance will be approximately $6700.00.
• If any dues-paid ADPTC members have website or listserv access problems, please email Joe.
• Joe raised the issue of raising dues to $100.00 and including the TEPP journal. Rob Heffer said he wants to keep dues affordable but understands how getting the journal with dues payment could raise ADPTC's credibility. Rob questioned how an increase in dues would affect associate ADPTC membership.
• Tony Cellucci says that he has found APPIC to be quite welcoming of ADPTC and thinks that not accepting their journal would be a mistake. Erica Wise mentioned that she anticipates TEPP will be quite successful. Rob commented that some members of ADPTC are on the editorial board. Bonnie Forrest asked who finances the journal; she wished to ensure that ADPTC would not become financially responsible for TEPP. Erica clarified that ADPTC members would only be subscribers, not owners, of the journal; she estimates the discounted price of subscription to TEPP would be $45.00 to $50.00. Joe asked Rob to speak with Emil Rodolfa about the exact cost.

10:45 - 10:47 Elections, Phyllis Terry Friedman

• Phyllis encouraged ADPTC members to consider running for office. Open offices are President Elect, Secretary, Treasurer, and Member-at-Large (2 positions). Phyllis emphasized that "new blood" is important to keep ADPTC growing. In May, Phyllis will send out a template for candidate's statements of interest. Statements will be compiled in June, voting will be in July, and announcements of the results will be in August.

10:47 - 10:50 Meeting Records, Colleen Byrne

• Colleen mentioned that she will type the minutes and make them available for comment via the listserv. They will be posted on the website and a link will be included in the next ADPTC newsletter.

10:50 - 10:52 Diversity, Elaine Shpungin, in absentia

• Rob Heffer read the report for Elaine. She appreciates all the hard work that went into the diversity survey. Elaine will assume role of Diversity Committee chair at the end of the summer.
• The Diversity Committee will report on training issues in neuropsychology at APA in 2007.

10:52 - 11:00 Research, Eric Sauer

• Eric mentioned that the journal TEPP has an open position for an Associate Editor.
• Eric stated that the Research Committee had originally pushed for clinics the use the electronic format of the OQ45.2 and WAI through the Practice Research Network, but now the committee wants to invest energy into helping Clinic Directors get research projects going in their own clinics. Eric would like to hear from Clinic Directors about what they need.
• In his Clinic, Eric reports that all adult clients complete the OQ before each session. He is writing about the scientist-practitioner model in training clinics and he looking for people with whom to collaborate. Eric says he is also still writing about process research.
• Phyllis Terry Friedman reports computer (server) compatibility problems with Carepaths. She mentioned that the OQ45.2 is also available through Lambert. Eric mentioned that interested parties can contact him for information about Carepaths.
• Brian Rabian mentioned that his Clinic has begun using an electronic record-keeping system called Titanium. Although the cost is high (>$1000.00) he finds the system easy to use, flexible, and secure.

11:00 - 11:10 New Director Support, Kim Fuller

• Kim reports that new directors are finding the website to be a helpful resource. Some have used the Guideline for Psychology Training Clinics Document (hereafter referred to as the Guidelines Document) to gain leverage with their departments. Further most website/listserv access problems appear to have been corrected.
• Kim feels the biggest issue facing this committee at present is outreach. She asks that new directors email her with information on how they learned about ADPTC. An informal poll of ADPTC members present at this meeting showed that most new directors heard about ADPTC from the previous Clinic Director at their site. Other answers included the following: Department Chair, colleague who is a Clinic Director, web research, and articles about practicum competencies. Sean O'Halloran recommends that members contact other universities in their states and perhaps send them a link to the ADPTC website. An unidentified speaker suggested that we look to masters-level programs to find combined programs. Rob Heffer clarified that ADPTC is not open to programs that are masters-level only. Tony Cellucci recommended a postcard mailing as an outreach campaign. An unidentified speaker suggested having a booth at CE workshops and at meetings of related organizations. Further, she suggested that we could give information about ADPTC to directors of non-clinic practicum sites.
• Phyllis Terry Friedman suggested that we have a catered breakfast at the welcome reception for new Clinic Directors at the 2008 mid-year meeting.
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11:10 - 11:12 Awards & Recognition, Rob Heffer

• Rob explained the significance of the Friend of ADPTC Award and the Jean-Spruill Award.

11:12 - 11:25 Collaboration & Liaison, Lee Cooper

• Lee commented that this joint meeting with APPIC is an historic event and that he remembers when collaborative relationships were questioned by members of ADPTC. Lee says he is excited by the positive results of ADPTC's collaboration with related organizations. Lee mentioned that Tony Cellucci will take over as Chair of this committee this August.
• Eric Sauer reported on the APPIC liaison's meeting on behalf of Kim Lassiter, who was unable to attend. During this 4-hour meeting, Eric noted much overlap between ADPTC's and APPIC's goals and matters of interest. These included the following: 1) supply and demand of internship placement; 2) the very positive effects of the Competencies Document; 3) the importance of clear communication between practicum and internship sites regarding applicants' skills and potential; 4) moving to an electronic APPIC application for 2008; and 5) challenging the idea that only total practicum hours matter. Regarding the final point, APPIC wishes to stress that goodness-of-fit, letters of recommendation, quality of practicum training, supervised training, and types of experiences contribute substantially towards an applicant's chances of matching to an internship.
• Lee reported on meeting with CCTC. He mentioned that Bob Hatcher's work on competencies and Vic Pantesco's work on difficult conversations is being viewed favorably.
• Erica Wise reported on the meetings with ACCTA. She says that ACCTA is also using the Competencies Document in some of their training centers. Erica reminded our membership that counseling centers also have graduate students doing practicum training and seeking internship placement. She feels that it would be natural for ADPTC to work with ACCTA, especially regarding external practicum placements. Erica mentioned that ACCTA attempts to hold their mid-year meetings in locales that are culturally diverse.
• Erica also reported on her meeting of the Accreditation Assembly, which was hosted by BEA and CoA. There are many different groups involved in this meeting that takes place every other year. No final decisions are made, but the group fosters dialogue on accreditation and it is intended to help all groups feel equally heard.
• Rob Heffer expressed his great appreciation for all of Lee's hard work as chair of this committee.

11:25 - 11:45 By-Laws & Documents, Rob Heffer

• Rob stated that the Policy, Procedures, and Plans manual is still in process. Bob Hatcher says the most current version is from November 2006.
• Rob provided some background on development of the Guidelines Document, which began after the 1999 meeting in Chicago. The purpose is to equip, empower, and support Clinic Directors. Brian Lewis, Tony Cellucci, and Rob Heffer started an update 1 year ago to expand upon issues discussed at the Santa Barbara meeting. Additionally, Kim Fuller and Erica Wise have been collecting ongoing feedback from the membership.
• Kim Fuller proposed an online discussion of the document. She has found the document useful for making changes in her department; Rick Shulte also used the document to lobby for change consistent with HIPAA.
• Rob notices an increase of "shoulds" in the document. He posed the question of how we can maintain the support aspect without handcuffing directors (i.e. making the guidelines implicitly mandatory). Mary Alice Conroy said that the document currently reads as if the guidelines are mandates rather than aspirations. She believes that people will take this seriously, namely that APA will view the guidelines as mandates and there could be negative consequences for Clinics that do not follow them in that such Clinics could be viewed as not meeting standards of practice. She suggests that we make the guidelines more vague and that we need to "look down the road" when updating this document.
• Colleen Byrne suggested that we consider packaging specific details of the guidelines as a "toolkit." Bob Hatcher agrees with Mary Alice's comments and likes the idea of grouping the specific ideas from the Guidelines Document as a toolkit.
• Tony Cellucci commented that the history of the Guidelines Document is important. He has noted recently how much other organizations are looking to this document in comparison to their own. We need to consider the cutting issues and take a stand on those issues important to ADPTC. He emphasized that a major purpose of the original document was to delineate topics to consider when structuring a clinic.
• Rob proposed that we shift emphasis from "Guidelines" to "Domains" so that Clinic Directors are given the freedom to adapt and change as needed.
• Bob Hatcher said that outsiders see the current version of the Guidelines Document as containing "rules" whereas we see a document that contains important topics. He suggests that creating a "Best Practice" document is another task entirely. Further, Bob stated that others will think about and evaluate the Guidelines Document even if we do not move forward, so committee formation is especially important.
• Phyllis Terry Friedman suggested that we create a committee to update and edit the Guidelines Document, specifically with the task of breaking it into Domains and a toolkit.
• As an action point, Rob Heffer formally proposed creation of the committee described by Phyllis as well as an online discussion proposed by Kim Fuller. Further, due to time restraints, Rob proposed that we continue the Business Meeting from 4:00 to 4:20 to address the meeting at APA in San Francisco and the 2008 Mid-Year Meeting location.

4:00 - 4:20 Programs & Conferences, Rick Schulte & Rob Heffer

• There will be two symposia presented by ADPTC members at the 2007 meeting of APA in San Francisco. Rob suggested that we have a Friday social hour from 5 to 6pm. Steven Cook mentioned that attracting large numbers to a social hour can be difficult since they overlap for various organizations. Tony Cellucci finds the social hours to be good for networking. He has enjoyed the poster sessions in the past. Erica Wise suggested that presenting a poster might help some members get funding to attend the meeting.
• Tony has noticed that more and more members seem only to be able to attend 1 meeting and that ADPTC's mid-year meeting is more substantive. Even so, Tony hopes that ADPTC will maintain a presence at APA in order to remain available to potential members. An unidentified speaker asked about the possibility of a virtual meeting. Brian Rabian commented that he values the face-to-face meetings and wondered if we could get some 8am meeting times at APA. Joe Scardapane suggested that an 8am meeting time could be used to convene a workgroup for those members who can go to San Francisco. Steven Cook mentioned that the Executive Committee could take advantage of the time together to get work done.
• As an action point, Rob will request from APA an 8 to 9am time for a discussion hour.
• Rob asked for feedback regarding this year's joint meeting with APPIC. Most members agreed that it was somewhat difficult to attend APPIC's meetings. Brian Rabian commented that the synergy of our two groups was very positive; he feels that a joint social hour would have been a plus.
• Regarding next year's mid-year meeting, Rob said that he is eager to get program topics via the listserv. Further, Rob raised the possibility of a joint meeting with CUDCP in January, 2008. Many in attendance voiced their support for this idea. Mary Alice Conroy mentioned that we could have our meeting first, join CUDCP for part of their meeting, and then engage in a social hour/activity. Rob also mentioned some other locales such as Chapel Hill, New York, and Virginia Beach. Brian said that missing an opportunity for a joint meeting with CUDCP would be unfortunate.
• Erica mentioned that some of our members might be interested in the site visitor training and wondered if we could participate.

4:20 Meeting Adjourned, Rob Heffer