After spending five years on our Executive Committee and a total of nine on our Board of Directors (Executive Council), it is abundantly clear to me that a President must be extremely focused in order to accomplish his or her goals. There are five areas in which I have major goals that I wish to accomplish during a Presidential term and I am outlining these areas below:
- The certification/TA link. Of all the issues that bedevil us, this I believe is the major issue that is diverting our energies. We simply must find a solution to this dilemma and this would be a major focus of my presidency. While we were once well- served by this link, the major changes in the psychoanalytic world of the past two decades have made this exclusive connection highly problematic. It is clear that dissatisfaction with this link is widespread, including not only our changed membership but also our own Board on Professional Standards and many of our individual institutes. Many of us recognize an imperative for change.
- Greater pluralism, less central regulation. I believe this issue is closely related to the solution of the certification/TA link difficulties. Our organizational history has often been characterized more by an elitist hierarchical form of governance than by a democratic one. We have many examples where small groups of members have made decisions affecting the broad membership. We have also had a long history of central regulation concerning various issues, including educational policy, TA appointment, eligibility for membership, and privileges within the organization. While at one time these policies may have been helpful, they have clearly become cumbersome, restricting and alienating in current times. This kind of approach must change quickly so that we can more readily attract and advance our younger members, provide them with leadership opportunities, and involve many more of our colleagues in decision making. We might also make our organization more inviting and appealing to colleagues trained in other settings but who are eligible for membership in APsaA and who are capable of enriching our Association. Greater inclusivity and pluralism should bring greater creativity and more innovation.
- Strengthening the Executive Committee and the Executive Council. During my lengthy leadership service in APsaA, I have noticed a number of structural problems with our governance. One notable difficulty is that presidents often come into office with a definite and laudable agenda but once their relatively short two-year term is ended, the agenda often withers without their presence to articulate and support it. The succeeding president may well start his or her own term with a completely new set of priorities. I believe we need more continuity in our planning and policymaking. One specific way of doing this (there are others) would be to add three members (Councilors) from our Board of Directors (Executive Council) to our Executive Committee. I anticipate that these members would represent Council’s best interest on the Executive Committee and would help assure that policies and objectives put into place during our administration would be kept vital until accomplished. I strongly advanced this position during my campaign for president two years ago. I suspect many think of this as a good idea since the proposal and the current Bylaws Committee have both endorsed this for renewed.
- Development. As Treasurer for the last five years, it has become clear to me that we cannot rely on our current sources of income if we are to expand the scope of our Association and its activities. Dues, subscriptions, meeting fees, etc. can cover basic expenses but cannot cover the cost of the new innovative efforts we need to attain creative leadership positions in wider venues. We need a program of development to expand our resources and provide the funds required to allow us to implement generative ideas and new programs. We also need to establish an endowment. During my eight years as a Trustee and Board Executive Committee member of Wagner College, my alma mater, I have been an active participant in a major capital campaign, which has substantially increased the size of the college’s endowment. I will bring this expertise to my presidency.
- Advocacy. One of my proudest achievements as Treasurer is that we have made support of our government relations advocacy program one of our highest budgetary priorities. I have consistently seen to it that we have put as much of our financial resources behind these efforts as we can reasonably afford. However, my support for our advocacy efforts precedes my term as Treasurer. I was Chair of the CGRI from ‘97-‘00. During my time on CGRI, we made a major shift in our priorities towards the protection of the privacy of the psychoanalytic situation. During my tenure, we undertook a search for new leadership for our representation in Washington. I played a significant role in hiring Jim Pyles, and this has led to our playing a major role on Capitol Hill and in other areas of Washington in setting the priorities for the privacy of the mental health treatment setting. However, I have learned that the situation in Washington, D.C, can change very rapidly so it remains essential to have a major presence at the negotiating tables in the nation’s Capitol. When I chaired CGRI, we held a meeting in Washington, D.C, and had an opportunity for many of us to meet directly with legislators, policy developers and government regulators. I would re-establish the practice of having CGRI conduct a Washington meeting. I will continue to provide as much support, financial and otherwise, as is possible to our ongoing advocacy effort.
While there are many other areas I value greatly and will also support, such as psychoanalytic science, community involvement, individual rights, etc., I believe it necessary to have a specific set of goals and priorities for major attention in order for a President to have significant organizational accomplishments during a brief two-year term.
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