Student Circle Chair's Message ABPsi Student Circle Chair 2009-10Le Ondra CarkHotep Family! During the 41st annual National Convention of the Association of Black Psychologists, I had the distinct honor of delivering the key note speech during the Student Circle Enstoolment Ceremony Luncheon. The Luncheon was a great success, during which I enjoyed sharing the vision for the Student Circle- a vital part of the ABPSI. The Student Circle’s vision statement for the 2009-2010 year is “Recruitment, Service and Sustainability.” We will meet the challenges of each of these salient tasks this year. Specifically, we will focus on the completion of these tasks during the brainstorming and planning sessions scheduled during our 3rd Annual Student Circle Board of Directors Leadership Retreat. I look forward to this time with the SC BOD and I also look forward to sharing about the exciting projects we will be working on, with the rest of the SC community, in the coming months.
In the meantime, please review the key note speech and please feel free to contact me with any questions, concerns or ideas pertinent to the Recruitment of new members, Service to students inside and outside of our Student Circle, or the Sustainability of our efforts to advance the organization and the Black community at large.
With love for and in service to ABPSI
Le Ondra Clark
Synopsis of Le Ondra’s Key note Address
“Recruitment, Service, and Sustainability” I am here to introduce myself and my vision to you today. Originally from Southern California, I am a graduate of California State Polytechnic University, Pomona and a doctoral candidate at the University of Wisconsin Madison’s Counseling Psychology program. I have recently returned to Los Angeles to complete my pre-doctoral internship at Childrens Hospital Los Angeles. Despite the many leadership opportunities, fellowships, scholarships, and academic preparation that I have been blessed with, ABPSI has taught me some of my most profound lessons. I must share that as I stand here today, I am overwhelmed with pride, humility, and most importantly, hope. Pride, because of who we are and why we are. Humility, as I think of the awesome responsibility that I have been entrusted with, and hope for the future endeavors of the Student Circle. When I think of ABPSI, I think “family” Perhaps it’s because family counseling is what I practice. Or, perhaps it’s because of the feeling that is conveyed when you attend an ABSI convention. Whatever the reason, family is who I believe we are. Like a family structure, we have grandparents, in this case our elders, to pass on history and to remind us where we have come from. We have parents, the National Board of Directors (BOD) and professional members, who “run the house” so to speak by making sure things are in order. And we have our youth, the Student Circle, who contribute by bringing in new energy, vitality, and ideas. Many of us here have experienced the great responsibility and joy of raising a family, and I believe I am speaking for many of you when I say that some of a parent’s greatest lessons came from those that they raise. Sometimes you see yourself in your posterity resulting in feelings of pride and sometimes fear of what we have created. In my own practice I have heard parents say, “did I really create this person?” The answer is “yes.” Our posterity learn by example. We get our direction from what we see. But what families often fail to recognize is the life that our youth bring sustains us and guarantees our future. I am here today to revive your energy. To remind you how much you love ABPSI and how much you care about the future of this organization. You see, many of us have become overwhelmed by what began as a passion. We have joined committees, served on the national board, and planned conventions. Many of us are tired. And rightfully so, but the Student Circle is here to remind you of your youth. So take a moment, close your eyes, take a deep breath, and reflect. Picture your first exposure to ABPSI… perhaps it was a professor in your department that introduced you, perhaps you just heard about the conference and showed up, or maybe you are a founding member who can reflect on the struggles you endured to begin this organization. Whatever your story is, remember where your passion began. Now trace a path in your mind remembering how your journey has evolved and where your passion has led you. To places of leadership, participation on the local and national level, and now think about the friendships, the sisterhood and brotherhood, the networking, and all the ways ABPSI has benefited you. Now open your eyes, look around. We are an eclectic and rising sea. To sustain this beautiful tapestry, we must have a vision for how we invest our resources, time, money and leadership. My call to you is to invest in the efforts of the Student Circle. In September of 1968, the aims of ABPSI were documented in a press release which stated: “ABPSi will address its attention to increasing the number of Black students and professionals in psychology.” As the Student Circle grows, so do you. We are the future professional members, future BOD, and oneday we will be elders. So reflect now on how you got where you are and remember what it was like to be young, educated, brilliant, and broke. Remember those who provided Jegnaship and guided you. We need you now more than ever to reach out and support us. The Student Circle is a substantial part of our lifeline as an organization and we need nutrients in order to survive. In Dr. Holmes’ speech last year, she reminded us about the importance of healing relationships within ABPSI. And, I am proud to say that over the past three years, ABPSI leadership has made a concerted effort to do this evidenced by their financial support of the Student Circle. My plea to you today is to help us stay healthy. Like any young person, we are growing and evolving. At last year’s convention, our 40th anniversary, I heard many individuals refer to ABPSI as “grown” Might I add, that today we celebrate the Student Circle’s 21st birthday and we need not to live in our mama’s basement anymore. In 1991, Dr. Linda James Meyers declared during her presidential speech: “We are at the stage of development where our identity has developed to the point of self determination. . . . We have come a long way toward our goal of institution building, but we have a long way to go before we can function at our fullest capacity and make the impact we all desire. (p. 6) When the ABPsi reaches its full strength and viability, we will be able to provide real solutions to the problems that provide the fuel for the burning rage that courses through disenfranchised members of our population. (p. 5)” Just three years later, Dr. Wade Nobles stated in his presidential speech: “The ancestral spirit demands that we heal. It is our destiny. When we meet this challenge, the name of the ABPsi will taste sweet in the mouths of our children’s children’s children forever and the day after forever. (p. 5)” We are living in that forever time. Here, today, in this very room, we have everything we need. We have the resources, the minds, genius, and the talent. We can affect communities and make a place for ourselves on a national stage. But I believe that we have to do some things “in-house” first. First, we must know who we are. Every new student member should know our history. Currently, there is not a standardized mechanism to ensure this. In this vein, I propose that each incoming student receives a copy of our history. We know who we are better than anyone else. As such, the SC should produce a best practices in black psychology resource guide. We must also promote regional conferences that not only students lead, but that the national regional reps and local chapters work together to promote. Students need funding. We should have our own funding to support the needs of students within our organization as well as a funding resource guide for ABPsi students. This means that the Student Circle needs a treasurer added to their board. As we grow financially, we need to train a Student Circle member to mirror our National treasurer in managing our funds. We should also provide editorial support to help students with essays that will help them secure internships and jobs. One of our advisors recently reminded me, the efforts of the Student Circle should not merely be to promote the interest of the students who already belong or the BOD with whom we work with but most importantly to be shared outside of our circle to supplement the education of other black psychology students. We can do this by hosting regional conferences, distributing the best practice guidelines, and reading lists. With the aim of continuing to build upon a strong foundation, my goal is also to sustain previous efforts. We must continue to conduct the internship and dissertation support groups, and the Virtual Jegnaship Program. My belief is that when we know who we are, and when we take care of our current members/our family, we position ourselves better to reach out and attract new members. More importantly, we position ourselves to serve our communities. I will close with a quote from Dr. Joseph White during his acceptance speech when he received the Distinguished Psychologist Award in ….. he stated: I want to acknowledge the next generation because the future belongs to you. You will take us to the next level which is just barely visible on the horizon. Each generation creates something for the next generation to build on. (p. 4) |
