Description:
The overall purpose of this position is to raise awareness of disability issues within the Association as well as promote, facilitate and broaden equal opportunities of persons with disabilities in all areas of psychology. The incumbent seeks to promote psychology’s contribution to the reduction of prejudice, stigma, and discrimination toward people with disabilities and to the improvement of their health, welfare, and psychological well-being.
The essential functions and work context of the position include overall management of the APA Office on Disability Issues, including providing direction, planning and conceptualization to all of its activities, programs, and administrative operations. The office provides support and manages projects of the APA Committee on Disability Issues in Psychology (CDIP), and related task forces and working groups.
In fulfilling the mission of the office the incumbent:
- Gathers research and other substantive information relevant to disability issues;
- Monitors litigation and judicial decision-making, legislation, and executive initiatives;
- Develops information and information products;
- Provides consultation and training to in-house staff and general APA membership on issues relating to disability;
- Serves as a contact and referral source for APA members and the general public and disseminates materials on a variety of educational, professional, and consumer issues;
- Provides technical assistance, information and referral, and consultation to external professional organizations, APA members and students, other APA offices, and the public;
- Networks and engages in collaborative efforts with APA offices and divisions, federal agencies, and other disability groups within professional organizations;
- Maintains liaison relationships with APA divisions, and affiliated state, provincial, and territorial psychological associations;
- Promotes psychological knowledge and scientific understanding of disability in health, education, and human welfare;
- Represents the association, directorate, Committee, or office in collaborative relationships, conferences, and meetings with members, divisions, government agencies, disability-related coalitions, and other organizations.
Required Qualifications:
Education and Experience:
The minimum educational requirement for this position is a Master’s degree in psychology or a closely related field.
Type of Work Experience required
- Must possess at least seven years of increasingly responsible administrative and program development and management experience in a not-for-profit organization.
- Must have substantive knowledge of disability issues, and demonstrable skills and sensitivities in interacting effectively with, working with, and anticipating the needs of persons with various disabilities.
- Must be able to interact with numerous external organizations, high level federal agency officials, and internal staff members across the association.
- Must be discreet and able to exercise political sensitivity.
- Must be knowledgeable of public interest related issues and data gathering tools and resources.
- Must have budgeting and supervisory experience.
- Excellent writing and high level communication skills, including those required in effective negotiation, coordination, collaboration and team building, are imperative.
RESPONSIBILITIES:
- Direct, coordinate, manage, and evaluate all activities of the APA Office on Disability Issues, as well as supervise one full-time administrative coordinator and monitor office’s budgetary expenditures. Develop educational materials, information and data resources relating disability-related research, policy, and practice, and implement strategies to disseminate these resources to the APA membership, other professionals, the general public, and federal agencies.
- Provide consultation and training to in-house staff and general APA membership on issues relating to disability; provide technical assistance, information and referral, and consultation to external professional organizations, APA members and students, other APA offices, and the public. Monitor development of public policy and new bodies of disability research. Interface with staff in other APA directorates and members of the APA Board of Directors (B/D), the Council of Representatives (C/R) and other APA boards and committees, and outside organizations
Provide primary senior staff support to the APA Committee on Disability Issues in Psychology (CDIP), and to other ad hoc groups as warranted:
- Oversee the development and implementation of CDIP decisions, projects and activities.
- Initiate and coordinate CDIP’s interactions on issues of mutual concern with entities internal (governance groups, other offices, divisions) and external (federal agencies, mental health and disability organizations) to APA.
- Gather/analyze information from disparate sources to direct CDIP projects and activities.
- Direct governance activities and meeting preparations for CDIP including development of meeting agendas and disability-related accommodations.
- Facilitate cooperative and productive working relationships between the committee and APA staff in PI and other directorates, with APA divisions, with other governance groups, and with other APA members.
- Represent the Committee and ad hoc groups to other APA groups, APA staff, APA Board of Directors and Council of Representatives, and to other organizations and agencies external to APA.
- Provide leadership on disability issues by promoting awareness of disability issues in psychological research as well as specific research activity in disability areas, and promoting inclusion of knowledge about disabilities and disability issues in education, training programs, and professional development of psychologists. Represent the interests and concerns of APA in disability issues by serving on committees and advisory groups of national organizations and federal agencies. Attend meetings and functions as a representative of the Office and CDIP.
- Gather research and other substantive information in all areas of disability issues from diverse sources; monitor litigation and judicial decision-making, legislation, and executive initiatives at all levels of government; provide policy interpretation, research referrals, issue-specific information and data, publications, and some service delivery referrals (consistent with APA policy) to consumers, APA members, students, non-member researchers, and other professional groups.
- Develop and disseminate information and information products; supervise web material development and posting to the Internet of all products; maintain publications list of the Office; develop new products as information needs and bodies of knowledge develop.
Location:
The American Psychological Association, located at 750 First St NE, Washington D.C., was named a 2014 recipient of the Washington Post Top Workplace. It is metro accessible from the Red Line.
APPLICATION INSTRUCTIONS:
Qualified candidates must apply online through APA’s applicant system and attach a cover letter and resume specifying your salary requirements. Applications that are submitted without both documents are considered incomplete and will not be reviewed for consideration.
The American Psychological Association is an Equal Employment Opportunity/Affirmative Action Employer. All qualified applicants will receive consideration for employment without regard to race, color, religion, sex, national origin, disability, protected Veteran status, sexual orientation, gender identity, or any other protected categories covered under local law.