Our Blog is Getting a Makeover! Help Us Rename It

This blog started out as an experiment in October 2010. Now it's 2012 (!) and the blog is still going strong. To celebrate, we're giving the blog a makeover.

Although we know that content is key, we'd like to make it look a little snazzier and have a more memorable name. We'll keep "community psychology practice" in the title (after the colon, in true academic style), but we want something that's easy to say, easy to remember, and easy to type. Once we've got that, we'll move ahead with making the blog a little more attractive and a little less...orange. We're also looking into organizing content and making it easier to find posts that are relevant to you.

So, dear readers, what should be the new name of the Community Psychology Practice blog?

Here are some examples of blog names from different fields, to get our creative juices flowing:

• Savage Minds: Notes and Queries in Anthropology
• Economix: Explaning the Science of Every Day Life
• Accounting for Atmosphere: The Anthropology of Climate Change
• The Valve: A Literary Organ
• Frog in a Well: Collaborative Weblogs Dedicated to East Asian History 
• Sound Education (a music education blog) 

Do you have any ideas for names, or words and images that you associate with Community Psychology Practice? Share them in the comments! 
 

The Professional vs.(?) The Personal

As a graduate student, it's often difficult to balance the demands of the program (classes, research, teaching, professional development, community work) with my life as a non-student: as a community member, voter, and neighbor.  Though I've gotten better at juggling, or rather, integrating these two identities, it's still a challenge.  (An ironic challenge for a student of "community psychology," in my personal opinion).

A recent article in the Global Journal of Community Psychology, written by four Canadian Community Psychology Practitioners (Sherri van de Hoef, Purnima Sundar, Stephanie Austin and Theresa Dostaler), served to convince me that this disconnect I am feeling in the classroom might just be a passing, school-related phenomenon. The article accounts each woman's journey and career path after graduating with a Masters degree in Community Psychology.  While it's interesting to read about their diverse job settings and unique ways they are putting their degrees to work, more compelling are their personal accounts of being a professional, community member, and (sometimes) mother at once.  

I'd like to think that a community psychologist would make a great neighbor; someone who is involved, action-oriented, values-driven, and understanding of the community context.  However, when you have a career that you love and are actively involved in helping others' communities, how do ensure you stay involved in your own?

Sharon Hakim
Wichita State University, KS

A Usefule New Year Resolution: Get Acquainted with Your Legislators

If you are interested in accomplishing policy changes at the local or state level, a very good way to start is to get acquainted with the people who represent you in your local and state governments and with key staff members who do a lot of the legwork.

I mean, really get acquainted; don’t just meet them once and let it go at that.

Between legislative sessions, contact state legislators and ask for an appointment to talk about issues that interest you. Request a half-hour meeting, and stick to that limit, unless the Legislator wants to go longer. As part of the meeting, briefly explain Community Psychology and describe specific ways you might be helpful to the Legislator and her/his staff. Ask what issues are important to the Legislator and his/her position on those issues. It is OK to talk about points of agreement and disagreement, or just to hear why it is important to the Legislator. Highlight common interests. Offer to help research issues/solutions.

Ask for permission to maintain contact between and during legislative sessions; get email addresses and phone numbers. Follow-up with a thank you note.

Then follow up and provide any issue information you promised to provide. If you can’t find any relevant information, or if you don’t know the answer to the Legislator’s question, admit it and promise to keep searching. Never try to bluff, as you will lose all credibility.

If you are advocating for a specific issue or cause, be clear about that and make certain that all of your advocacy messages provide factual information and/or suggest possible solutions. Keep your messages brief and to the point. State your request and include a brief supporting comment; ask for a reply. The long “model messages” that many advocacy groups suggest you send out don’t really get read; they get counted but not read.

Legislators hear a lot of purely emotional appeals; be sure yours contain factual information and objective reasons why they might consider a particular solution. Legislators also receive a lot of angry communications, and are turned off. One of my favorite state senators reminded our Homeless Coalition that legislators are human beings and that The Golden Rule works best: Do unto others as you would have them do unto you. Legislators can handle civil disagreement, so keep it civil at all times.

Find opportunities to get further acquainted. Ask for meetings. Invite the Legislator to coffee. I always state whether I want to advocate, or just get better acquainted and help brainstorm possible solutions. Call or send emails with factual information. If you are teaching Community Psychology or are part of a community coalition, invite the Legislator to talk with your group about policy development and political process.

Most of the above also applies when getting acquainted with local government officials and key department heads. Get acquainted. Learn about issues that are of interest to the official and politically important. Give helpful information. Advocate in a straightforward solution-oriented manner. You might consider volunteering to serve on a local commission or advisory board. You might offer to post a yard sign or make a campaign contribution; often helpful, but not required.

The political process is fascinating, and a key part of policy change. Try it; you might like it! But more important: in the long run, you will be more effective as a policy advocate. Invest the time needed to become really acquainted with your elected officials.

Al Ratcliffe

Tacoma, WA