The Next Fifty Years: Imagining the Community Psychology of the Future – An interactive visioning session

Session Submission Type: Town Meeting

Abstract

We are proposing to honor the 50 years since Swampscott with a SCRA Community Visioning session that would be a centerpiece of the Biennial. This interactive session builds upon visioning sessions from recent biennials and practice summits. The session will 1) Revisit the Vision of SCRA on this special anniversary, 2) Generate a ‘go-forward’, long-term vision for SCRA with shorter term, intermediate action steps, 3) Disseminate the vision widely throughout SCRA utilizing a diversity of platforms including the SCRA list serve, social media, TCP, and community-focused journals (AJCP, Global Journal of Community Psychology Practice ), 4) Engage the appropriate SCRA Committees and Councils to accomplish proposed action steps, and 5) Give voice to various SCRA sub groups that will live the vision such as students, recent graduates, and newer members of SCRA. To build excitement and inspire discussion, this interactive session will begin prior to the Biennial with a preparatory process that includes asking members to submit brief, personal ‘visions’ via comments or video to SCRA social media accounts and the SCRA website. During the session (see details of the process below), facilitators will moderate small and large group discussion to generate ideas that fulfill the five stated goals. Key questions to be addressed will be: If we really got it right today, what would community psychology look like in 50 years? What does the field have to do today to manifest that vision? How will we ensure that key SCRA groups will address these issues? A concrete follow-up plan to manifest the visions will be created. A moderated large group discussion will provide an opportunity to identify key themes, plan next steps to advance the agenda, develop strategies for dissemination, and find creative ways to recognize and track successes.

Sub Unit

• SCRA Biennial Meeting

Chair

• Thomas Wolff, Tom Wolff & Associates

Discussants

• Kyrah K Brown, Wichita State University

• Gina Cardazone, JBS International

• Jasmine Douglas, Wichita State University

• Nicole Freund, Wichita State University

• Lindsey Zimmerman, National Center for PTSD, Dissemination & Training Division, Veteran Affairs Palo Alto Health Care System

• Bill Berkowitz, University of Massachusetts Lowell

• Christian Connell, Yale University

• Olya Glantsman, DePaul University

• Sharon Johnson-Hakim, Atlantic Health System

• Carlos Luis, Science and Technology Interactive Center, horno3

• Greg Meissen, Wichita State University