TCP 48(1) Winter 2015
|
A Publication of the Society for Community Research and Action |
Vol 48 No 1 |
From the President 
Brett Kloos
University of South Carolina
Expanding how we “Give Away” Community Psychology
As we prepare for another biennial conference, I have been encouraged by the diversity of topics, experiences, and collaborations that have been proposed for presentations this June. These include sessions on promoting racial equality, community perspectives on healing from trauma, and promoting social inclusion for people with disabilities.
From the Editors 
Gregor V. Sarkisian and Sylvie Taylor
Antioch University Los Angeles
Happy New Year!
We are delighted to announce that we have completed our updates of the TCP archives on the SCRA website! We have posted PDFs of all available issues from 1975 to the present. We have also posted a master list of all issues posted on the website to assist you in searching for issues that are of interest to you. We now need the help of our membership to locate missing issues. We are specifically looking for:
- Any issues prior to 1975
- Spring 1977
- Spring 1990
- Summer 1990
- Summer 1999
- Winter 2001
- Spring 2001
- Fall 2002
- Winter 2003
- Spring 2008
If you have any to these issues, please contact us at TCP@scra27.org so that we can make arrangements to get them posted on the website.
Thank you! We hope that you enjoy easier access to the archives.
Sylvie and Gregor
Special Feature Toward a New Nursing Identity: Organizing in the Face of Ebola
Written by Claire Cahen (ccahen@antioch.edu)
In 2013, the U.S. Bureau of Census estimated that women made up 90% of the Registered Nurse work force (U.S. Bureau of the Census, 2013). The profession remains as feminized as ever. Journals of nursing are filled with studies capturing and decrying the gendered stereotypes of the field (Kelly, Fealy, & Watson, 2012; Hallam, 2000; Bridges, 1990). Kelly, et al. (2012) found that images of nursing on YouTube today largely echo those of other means of mass media: they represent nurses as “sexual playthings” and “witless incompetent” women. Other studies, still, suggest another popular depiction: nurse as nurturing and “self-sacrificing” woman (Gauthier & Kjervik, 1982).
Special Feature: Ministers with Mission: Living One’s Faith in Action as a Permanent Deacon
Written by Dcn. Joseph R. Ferrari, Ph.D., Professor of Psychology & St. Vincent DePaul Distinguished Professor, DePaul University, Chicago, IL
Correspondence should be sent to: jferrari@depaul.edu or (773) 325-4244
Social justice, charity, building community.
These are cornerstone concepts to our field, which any student in community psychology will recognize. And, they are cornerstone concepts to an ordained clergy in the Roman Catholic Church, called the permanent deacon. People generally do not know that there are married clergy in the Catholic Church, familiar only with celibate priests. Permanent deacons fill quite a different role than the parish priest, who usually runs the "business" side of the parish.
Living Community Psychology
Written by Gloria Levin
For this installment, we profile a community psychologist who has made major contributions to community psychology, through his co-creation of The Community Tool Box, SCRA’s Practice Council, and the Global Journal of Community Psychology Practice. Vincent Francisco, PhD.
Public Policy
Edited by Melissa Strompolis (mstrompolis@gmail.com)
The first section of the policy column was written by two former SCRA Policy Committee practicum students, Taylor Bishop Scott and J’Vonnah Maryman. Although both remain active on the policy committee, their work as practicum students involved research on the integration of social media and policy and advocacy activities. The column describes the evolution of social media and advocacy, both within and outside of SCRA, and how social media can be used to increase student competencies in community psychology. In the second section, Jean Hill and Cynthia Cominsky briefly describe a call-to-action regarding the FAMILY Act that was approved by SCRA and APA. Finally, the policy column closes with an update from Venoncia Bate on the community health workers rapid response that was endorsed by the Public Policy and Executive Committees.
Regional Update Fall 2014 
Edited by Regina Langhout, Regional Network Coordinator, langhout@ucsc.edu; University of California at Santa Cruz
The fall is a busy time for SCRA members. Many are planning or attending Eco conferences. I want to especially thank all the graduate students who put so much time, dedication, and love into making Eco happen each and every year. Eco is an intimate setting that helps many people feel connected to SCRA, so this work is essential for our society. You can read three brief Eco reports in our column for this issue. In other news, Ciara Glover has finished the Regional Coordinator term for the Southeast. Thanks, Ciara, for all your hard work!
Rural Issues
Edited by Susana Helm
The Rural IG column highlights rural resources as well as the work of community psychologist and colleagues in their rural environments. In this TCP we highlight the collaborative aspects of rural wellbeing through the work of academic disciplines beyond psychology, as described by folklorist Dr. Frandy in the brief report section below.
Student Issues
Edited by Chuck Sepers and Meagan Sweeney
Sense of Community in East Pawtucketville
Written by Kristy Shockley (kristy_shockley@student.uml.edu), East Pawtucketville Neighborhood Group
University of Massachusetts, Lowell
Recently, I have worked with the East Pawtucketville Neighborhood group (EPNG), a nonprofit group aimed at improving life in East Pawtucketville, home to many University of Massachusetts, Lowell (UML) students. The group developed enhanced relationships between year-round city residents and university students. City residents often blame students for excess noise and trash in the neighborhood and students often feel targeted by city residents who report these activities to law enforcement. While tension may exist between the two groups, it is important to get the groups to work together in a constructive manner to make the neighborhood enjoyable for all. If the quality of the neighborhood is improved, all of the residents may feel a deeper connection to both their neighborhood and their neighbors. The EPNG is tackling how to promote a sense of community among all residing in the neighborhood. The EPNG attempts to promote a sense of community by encouraging power, social action, and collaboration within the group and among residents.
Remembering Swampscott
The History of SCRA’s Standing Committee on Women: Commonalities and Tensions, Then and Now
Written by Holly L. Angélique (hxa11@psu.edu), Penn State Harrisburg
Community psychology (CP) has patriarchal roots that have not always embraced feminism (Angelique & Culley, 2007). In this article, my goal is to present a brief history of the Society for Community Research and Action’s (SCRA) standing Committee on Women and to place that history within a context on both successes and setbacks. This article emerged largely from interviews with Anne Mulvey and I cannot begin to thank her enough for her keen memory, invaluable comments and editorial suggestions, as well as her commitment to the advancement of a feminist CP.
The Community Practitioner
Edited by Susan Wolfe
The Unexpected Consequences of a Cultural Event
Written by Amy Carrillo, Omar Ezzeldin, Seham Kafafi, and Carine Abouseif
Formerly at the American University in Cairo
In the Summer 2014 issue, we discussed the positive aspects of living community psychology (CP) values through the planning and implementation of a cultural event, Nuba Day, with the Nuba Mountains International Association (NMIA) – a Sudanese organization based in Cairo, Egypt. This column will highlight the challenges that we faced as a team and the unintended consequences of our community engagement project. We have attempted to categorize and highlight specific examples from our experience that will bring to life the most salient issues.
Cultural and Racial Affairs
Edited by Rhonda K. Lewis
Overview of APA’s Office of Ethnic Minority Affairs (OEMA) Written by Tiffany G. Townsend Senior Director, American Psychological Association Ttownsend@apa.org
Greetings Members of SCRA. I would like to introduce myself. I am the relatively new (appointed less than five years ago) Senior Director of APA’s Office of Ethnic Minority Affairs (OEMA). As some of you may know, this is not only a new position for me, but also a very new role for my career. I am a clinical psychologist by training, and due to my passion for applied research and social justice, I consider myself a community psychologist in practice. In fact, I have roots right here at Division 27. Prior to joining the staff of APA, I served as the Northeast Regional Coordinator for SCRA from 2004-2007 and then as the Member At Large on the SCRA Executive Committee from 2009 until my appointment here at APA in 2011.
International
Edited by Kahaema Byer
Community Psychology Nucleus (NUCOM-Brazil): The Choice for the Oppressed People and a Liberation Way of Doing in Psychology
Written by James Ferreira Moura Junior (jamesferreirajr@gmail.com), Barbara Barbosa Nepomuceno, Elívia Camurça Cidade, and Verônica Morais Ximenes
Latin American reality, specifically the Northeast of Brazil, has historically been marked by poverty, vulnerability, and material and symbolic violence. These conditions lead to modes of domination, culpability, and silencing that have psychological implications (Cidade, Moura Jr & Ximenes, 2012). Oppression is conceived as a situation of unequal power in which individuals can be prevented from being agents in their own lives, and become objects of manipulation and alienation (Guzzo, 2010). The Liberation School arose in Latin America as a movement critical of the status quo and of the predominance of scientific productions which are distant from the oppressed majorities’ needs. Several disciplines intersect with the Liberation School: Philosophy, Pedagogy, Psychology, Sociology and Theology (Burton, 2013; Santiago, 2007).