FOUNDATION
Starting the Year Off Right – NJPA Foundation Matt Hagovsky, PhD (President); Toby Kaufman, PhD (Secretary); Abby Rosen (Treasurer); Belvin Williams, PhD (Trustee); Richard Klein, EdD (Trustee); Ann Stainton, PhD (Trustee); Regina Budesa, PsyD (Trustee); Alyssa Austern, PsyD (Trustee); Eileen Kohutis, PhD (Trustee)
In addition to supporting the New Jersey Psychological Association (NJPA) mission, the mission of the Foundation is promoting the psychological health of the diverse people of New Jersey. The NJPA Foundation administers and raises money to deliver psychological services to underserved populations, trains psychology graduate students as clinicians and researchers with an emphasis on treating underserved populations, supports the mission of NJPA especially in its commitment to diversity, public health, underserved populations and the training of graduate students in psychology. The NJPA Foundation is a 501(c) (3) corporation and all donations, less any goods and services received, are tax deductible. In 2020, we look forward to introducing a new dissertation grant, with more flexibility for our graduate students to explore social advocacy issues that impact underserved populations. We welcome 2020 NJPA member benefit dinners, tributes, and individual donations to support the Foundation’s grants and awards. We will also continue our work in supporting our existing four categories of grants/ awards: the NJPA Foundation Community Service Project Grants, NJPA Foundation Student Dissertation Grant (two optional topics of The Impact of School Violence on the Victims and on Society or the Traumatic Impact of Separating Children from Families on the Victims and on Society), the NJPA Foundation Graduate Student Initiated Research Award, and the NJPA Foundation Student Conference Participation Grant. In this article, we want to take a moment to congratulate to our 2019 Graduate Student Initiated Research Award winners! The NJPA Foundation 2019 Award Winner for the John M. Lagos Award for Research into Causes and/or Treatment of Social Problems was Tamara L. Quezada, PsyM, for her research paper A MixedMethods Study of the Social-Emotional Learning and the School Experience of Emergent Bilinguals. Visit the NJPAF 8
website page to read her research paper to learn about how as the number of immigrants steadily rises in the United States, our society has become culturally diverse, and the number of Emergent Bilinguals(EBs) continues to increase. The John M. Lagos Award for Research into Causes and/or Treatment of Social Problems is awarded for the study of causes and/or treatment of social problems. Some possible topics include school issues, work problems, health issues, and aggression. The NJPA Foundation 2019 Award Winner for the Award for Research on Diversity Issues was Cindy Chang, BA, for her research paper Application of Minority Stress and Suicide Models in Bisexual versus Gay/Lesbian Young Adults. Visit the NJPA Foundation website page to read her research paper to learn about how suicide is a significant public health concern in sexual minority populations (King et al, 2008; Koh & Ross, 2016). Several frameworks have been developed to explain suicide risk in the general population, including the Interpersonal Theory (IPT, Joiner, 2005) and the Clinical Model (Mann et al., 1999). Separately, other researchers have also utilized the minority stress model (Meyer, 2003) to explain the greater suicide risk in sexual minorities, which posits that stressors unique to sexual minority status increase
risk for adverse outcomes. While both suicidological and minority stress models have been used to explain suicide risk in different populations, only one study to date has integrated them to understand suicide risk in sexual minorities (Plöderl et al., 2014). The NJPA Foundation Scholarship for Research on Diversity Issues is awarded to a graduate student who advances the following goals: (a) promote scientific understanding of the role of diversity in psychology; (b) foster the development of sensitive models for delivery of psychological services to diverse populations. Some possible topics include issues related to cultural or ethnic issues, socioeconomic issues, gender issues, or work with underserved populations. Please read more about the NJPA Foundation in the quarterly Foundation Flash e-publications, encourage graduate students to apply for the NJPA Foundation grants/awards, and make a donation! The Foundation derives nearly all of its funding from NJPA members like you. The Trustees and Central Office staff work diligently to provide opportunities to give at dues renewal time, when you receive an email Foundation Blast, at our Spring and Fall conferences, at our Foundation dinners, or any time the spirit moves you. Please be mindful of our efforts as we forge ahead into a new decade and, as always, thank you for what you have already done to make the Foundation The “Heart” of NJPA.
New Jersey Psychologist
