Students

Hello Students! Welcome to the student page of the SCRA website.

Here you will find resources and opportunities for student engagement and professional development, including information about conference travel awards, research grants and awards, publication opportunities in The Community Psychologist, contests, and more.  We invite you to learn more about the organization by perusing the links and resources for student members on this site. 

To receive timely information on issues relevant to students, we encourage you to subscribe to the student and the general SCRA listservs.  In addition, we welcome you to get the most out of your membership by participating in any of the SCRA Interest Groups.

If you have questions, comments, or ideas for how SCRA can better meet student needs and interests, please feel free to reach out to your current Student Representatives (SRs), Camilla Cummings and Jessica S. Saucedo at StudentReps@scra27.org.

Apply to be a Student Representative (SR)!

Key Dates:

- May 14 (Nominations & Letters of Intention Due)

- May 17 (Election begins: All student members, please vote!)

- June 4 (Election closes)

- August 2021 (Term begins)

SRs are elected to a two-year term and serve as full voting members of the Society's Executive Committee. As a SR, students get an array of hands-on experiences through responsibilities such as managing student submissions to The Community Psychologist, coordinating award applications, budgeting student programming, and involving students in SCRA initiatives as needed. The incoming (first-year) SR serves a term that overlaps with a second-year SR. This overlap promotes a mentorship approach to learn more about SCRA and the roles of the elected position. The SR role is a wonderful way for students to get connected with other community psychologists in the field. 

Eligibility 

To be eligible for ballot consideration and service as SR, students must:

  1. Have two years remaining in their academic program;

  2. Be a SCRA student member (i.e., current annual dues are paid);

  3. Submit a nomination or self-nomination and a letter of intention by May 14, 2021; please email these to StudentReps@scra27.org and cc ccummi17@depaul.edu  

Nomination or Self-Nomination Requirements: 1-page (max.) explanation that 1) speaks to the quality of the student’s potential to fulfill the requirements of the SR position, 2) confirms that the student is in good academic standing, and 3) includes the Department Chair’s contact information. Nominations for the position may come from a faculty advisor or mentor, or directly from interested candidates.  

Letter of Intention  

In addition to the nomination, potential candidates must include a 300-400 word letter of intention, comprised of:

  • Brief academic biographical information; 

  • Intentions to run for SCRA Student Representative; 

  • Past and/or current involvement with SCRA initiatives and/or leadership or community-based activities outside of SCRA;

  • Goals for your term;

  • Other information as deemed relevant by the candidate. 

Letters of intention (i.e., candidate statements) will be made available to SCRA student membership to aid them in the voting process. Remember that this is an opportunity to communicate with your fellow students. We suggest focusing on brevity, clarity, and purpose.


SR Election Timeline & Process
Voting will be limited to SCRA–Division 27 student members in good standing (i.e., current annual dues are paid) at the time of the election, and only SCRA student members will receive ballots. Student members will receive the list of candidates with their statements via email, along with an encouragement to vote. Candidates are not permitted to campaign through the SCRA listservs, but are encouraged to gain support through their professional networks. Students will cast their vote through a unique link via an electronic data collection source; this URL is unique to each address and serves as a receipt for students casting their vote. Sharing this unique URL is strictly prohibited and will invalidate all votes associated with it. 

Election of the new SR will be determined by majority vote. The selected SR will be announced through the SCRA listserv and membership list at the conclusion of the election. The candidate with the most votes will assume office in August 2021.

Student Resources

SCRA Student Listserv

The SCRA Student Listserv is student initiated, run and maintained, and has "social coordinators," who will implement special events on the listserv, like having a "guest of the month" to elicit Q&A, etc.
To subscribe: 
1. Send e-mail to LISTSERV@LISTS.APA.ORG
2. Leave the subject area blank
3. In your message area type:  SUBSCRIBE S-SCRA-L Your_first_name Your_last_name (e.g. Fred Smith)
 
To post a message to the list send e-mail to S-SCRA-L@LISTS.APA.ORG. (Also, be sure that you are sending the message from the e-mail account you used to subscribe).

SCRA Listserv

The SCRA Listserv enables SCRA members and others to engage in stimulating discussions and provides information on job postings, grant opportunities, and SCRA events.To subscribe:

  1. Send e-mail to LISTSERV@LISTS.APA.ORG
  2. Leave the subject area blank
  3. In your message area type:  Subscribe SCRA-L  Your_first_name Your_last_name (e.g. Fred Smith)

To post a message to the list send e-mail to SCRA-L@LISTS.APA.ORG. (Also, be sure that you are sending the message from the e-mail account you used to subscribe). Be sure to check the SCRA Listserv Guidelines to learn what are appropriate topics and content for posting to the SCRA Listserv.

If at any time you wish to UNsubscribe from SCRA-L, please send the following message to listserv@lists.apa.org (leave the subject line blank): SIGNOFF SCRA-L

If you have questions about the SCRA-L listserv, contact scra.lists@scra27.org

Want to access the archives for this listserv? Visit the APA listserv archives page to browse or search for past messages. You'll need to set a LISTSERV password using the same email address with which you subscribed to the SCRA list in order to log in and view the archives.

Conference Resources

Upcoming Conferences

  • International Conference of Community Psychology in Melbourne, Australia (June 26-28, 2020)
  • SCRA Biennial Conference 2021 
  • Ecologicial Community Psychology Conference
  • Regional Meetings

Student Funding

Research Awards

Two categories of research awards are available to SCRA student members, both at the Master’s Thesis and Doctoral Dissertation levels, for outstanding research proposals that advance the vision and mission of SCRA. Dissertation and Thesis awards are $1,000.

The 2021 student research grant applications have now closed. Information about the 2022 grant cycle will be forthcoming in February 2022. 

 

Congratulations to the 2021 awardees: Munazza, Lama, Jennifer, and Emmanuel!


Professional Development

Publications

The Community Psychologist is the official publication of SCRA, published four times annually. It contains columns related to such topics as community health, cultural & racial affairs, environment & justice, and student issues to name a few. Students are encouraged to submit quality manuscripts for publication.

Student submissions should be submitted as Word attachments in an e-mail message to the Student Representatives at StudentReps@scra27.org. Authors should adhere to the following guidelines when submitting materials:

  • Length: Five pages, double-spaced
  • No cover sheet or title page. Please be sure to put the article title and author names and organizational affiliations at the top of the article.
  • Images: Images are highly recommended, but please limit to two images per article. Images should be higher than 300 dpi. Photo image files straight from the camera are acceptable. If images need to be scanned, please scan them at 300 dpi and save them as JPEGs. Submit the image(s) as a separate file. Please note that images will be in black and white when published.
  • Margins: 1” margins on all four sides
  • Text: Times New Roman, 12-point font
  • Alignment: All text should be aligned to the left (including titles) with a 5 space paragraph indentation.
  • Punctuation Spacing: Per APA guidelines, make sure that there is only one space after periods, question marks, etc.
  • Graphs & Tables: These should be converted and saved as pictures in JPEG files. Please note where they should be placed in the article.
  • Do NOT include footnotes or endnotes.
  • References: Follow APA guidelines. These should also be justified to the left with a hanging indent of .25”.
  • Headers/Footers: Do not use headers or footers.
  • Long quotes: Follow APA guidelines for quoted materials.
  • Please put your email information and an invitation to contact you in the article.

Deadlines:

  • Fall: August 15 
  • Winter: November 15 
  • Spring: February 15
  • Summer: May 15

Education & Training

Looking for information about academic programs in community psychology? Please visit The Council for Education Programs for programs and postdoctoral opportunities.

Get Involved

There are many ways to get involved with SCRA. The best way to get involved with SCRA is through our Committees, Councils, and Interest Groups. 

We also recommend joining one of our listservs. 

Not yet a member of SCRA? Join here!

Interested in serving as a Student Representative (SR), or know someone who would make a terrific SR? (Cycle 2021-2023 nominations due by May 14, 2021)

Other Organizations

Our members are engaged with a range of different activities and organizations outside of community psychology. Here are just a few:

American Psychological Association— The American Psychological Association is the largest scientific and professional organization representing psychology in the United States. APA is the world's largest association of psychologists, with nearly 130,000 researchers, educators, clinicians, consultants and students as its members.

American Psychological Association of Graduate Students—APAGS builds a better future for psychology by serving as a united voice to enrich and advocate for graduate student development. APAGS aspires to achieve the highest quality graduate training experience for the next generation of scientific innovators, expert practitioners and visionary leaders in psychology.

Society for the Psychological Study of Social Issues—SPSSI is an association of approximately 3000 psychologists, allied scientists, and others, who are interested in the application of research on the psychological aspects of important social issues to public policy solutions.

American Public Health Association— The American Public Health Association champions the health of all people and all communities. We strengthen the profession of public health, share the latest research and information, promote best practices and advocate for public health issues and policies grounded in research.

American Evaluation Association— The American Evaluation Association is an international professional association of evaluators devoted to the application and exploration of program evaluation, personnel evaluation, technology, and many other forms of evaluation. Evaluation involves assessing the strengths and weaknesses of programs, policies, personnel, products, and organizations to improve their effectiveness.

Psi Chi—The International Honor Society in Psychology

Additional Resources

Looking for employment? Check out our Jobs Board.

The Community Tool Box— The Community Tool Box is a free, online resource for those working to build healthier communities and bring about social change. It offers thousands of pages of tips and tools for taking action in communities.