Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Initiatives

Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Statement

Department of Psychological Science and Counseling's DEI work

APA's Inclusive Language Guidelines

APA Guidelines on Race and Ethnicity in Psychology

Recent Departmental DEI-related Highlights

• Fripp, J. A., & Gibson, E. M. (2022, November 3-5). Program practices for cultivating  antiracist counselors.[Round table session]. Southern Association for Counselor  Education and Supervision Conference, Baltimore, MD, United States. http://www.saces.org/conference-2022 
• Gibson, E. M., & Fripp, J. A. (2022). Program practices for cultivating antiracist counselors.  In K. Johnson, N. Sparkman-Key, A. Meca, & S. Tarver (Eds.), Developing Anti-Racist  Practices in the Helping Professions: Inclusive Theory, Pedagogy, and Application (pp. 197-224). Palgrave MacMillan. http://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-030-95451-2_11 
• Sheahan, C. L., Pica, E., Thompson, L.E., Vettese, A., & Pozzulo, J. (2022). The influence of  Indigenous identity and gender in perceptions of behaviour in response to racialized  police communication. Race and Social Problems. http://doi.org/10.1007/s12552-022-09363-6  
• Sanders, A.M.F. (Co-Shair), Huelsman, T. (Co-Chair), Pool, G. J. (Co-Chair), Iverson, N.,  Reynolds Kueny, C., Scuderi, N., Shahani-Denning, C. (2022, April). If the shoe fits: Empowering students to strategically select an I-O graduate program [Panel]. Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology Annual Conference, Seattle, WA. 
• Shatto, E. (2022, March 29). Understanding Neurodiversity: A Suicide Prevention Imperative. [Keynote]. Autism Awareness Form, Austin Peay State University, Clarksville, TN.
• The M.S. Counseling Clinical Mental Health Practicum and Internship courses and the 365bet Latino Community Resource Center have an ongoing partnership to provide mental health awareness and pscyhoeducation to our Latinx students.
• The Department of Psychological Science was awarded a $50,000 grant from the Tennessee Board of Regents (TBR) for Student, Engagement, Retention and Success (SERS) for fiscal year 2022. The goal of the grant is to help offset research, conference travel, or internship/field experience expenses for students of color, low-income, or disability. Students must have made a grade of A or B in both PSYC 2010 Stats and PSYC 3180 Research Methods. Students that earn a C in one of the classes may also be considered. This grant is led by Dr. Brian Hock (PI), and supported by Drs. Kimberly Coggins, Eva Gibson, Kevin Harris, Emily Pica, and Kymmalett Ross, M.S. 
• Dr. Adriane M.F. Sanders is serving as the Editor of The Industrial-Organizational Psychologist (TIP) for 2022-2025. She has selected five editorial board members who represent diverse backgrounds, some of whom also conduct research on DEI-related issues in the workplace. With this editorial board, Dr. Sanders as developed a vision for the publication which centers the promotion of DEI knowledge, research, and practice in the broadest sense. Their priority is to increase the representation of voices, experiences, and I-O content across race, ethnicity, gender identity, sexual orientation, neurodiversity, disability, and other minoritized groups. They also recognize the need to increase representation of the individuals who are training, practicing, and teaching I-O through alternative paths (i.e., training/career experiences that are non linear, non doctoral, and non tenure-track). Dr. Sanders would like TIP to become known as an official and consistent voice of the anti-racist movement in the field of Industrial-Organizational Psychology. 
• Dr. Erynne H. Shatto together with the members of her STRETCH translational research lab has been providing clinical and research services to minoritized populations. In March 2022, her team will present research on three projects. Two projects focus on work with an urban school in an area of concentrated poverty that is over 90% comprised of African American and Latino students where children routinely grapple with housing insecurity, food scarcity, and neighborhood violence. We will be presenting work on methods of utilizing teacher reports to identify those in need of trauma specific assessment and of an implementation of Teacher-Child Interaction Therapy to foster positive behavior management practices and enhance teacher-child relationships at this school in which 46% of children qualify for PTSD.  The third presentation focuses on a pilot implementation of full scale DBT for autistic teens or the “Neurodiversity Affirming DBT-Multifamily” project. The STRETCH lab is also currently engaged in partnerships with Safe House to provide evidence based mental health services to parents and children affected by intimate partner violence. Families utilizing these services are typically disproportionately those who hold one or more minority statuses. We are hoping to learn about the unique parenting needs of women impacted by partner violence. Lastly, the lab is partnered with organizations to support autistic individuals. We provide neurodiversity affirming consultation to Advanced Behavioral Consultants and the Full Spectrum Learner Program. This spring, Dr. Shatto has been invited as a keynote speaker for an event sponsored by Advocates for Autism.