I hope you had an opportunity to read the recent message from Patti Harrison, NASP President, on the status of the American Psychological Association's (APA) proposed revisions to its Model Licensure Act (MLA). The proposed MLA being considered for adoption by APA significantly restricts the exemption for school psychologists. I encourage you to keep up-to-date on this issue, which is so important to our professional futures, by visiting www.nasponline.org/standards/apamla.aspx.

NASP leadership, members, and staff have been actively engaged in a 3-year effort to preserve the right of school psychologists to use their title and engage in the practice for which they are trained and credentialed. NASP will continue to communicate our position to APA until the vote in February. Right now it appears that there is no formal opportunity for individuals to send comments to APA. Mass communications to the APA Council will not be helpful and are likely to be harmful. You can be confident that if the proposed MLA becomes APA policy, NASP is prepared to assist you and our state association in protecting school psychologists' title at the state level. NASP is currently updating key messages, coordinating with state leaders, and preparing for strong state-level advocacy.

In addition to serving as our profession's advocate, NASP continues to develop resources to support us in our day-to-day practice. I hope you find some of these new offerings to be of value.

Please join fellow NASP members this week, February 1-5, for an Online Discussion Event on School Discipline, hosted by George Bear, PhD, in the NASP Communities. To participate in the discussion, visit the www.nasponline.org/communities/default.aspx?g=topics&f=78 at your convenience and click on the February 2010 Online Event. School discipline has always been a topic of considerable controversy with respect to what constitutes best practices for preventing and correcting behavior problems and for developing self-discipline. This online event will focus on five aspects of school-wide discipline at the universal, or Tier 1, level.

NASP continues to provide members with informative podcasts for downloading at www.nasponline.org/resources/podcasts/index.aspx.  Recent additions address topics including cultural and linguistic diversity, homelessness, and home-school collaboration.  In addition, be sure to download 'In the Know With NASP,' a monthly podcast focused on what's new and noteworthy at NASP.

NASP members can access several sessions from last year's NASP Annual Convention at no cost at www.nasponline.org/profdevel/cpdmodules/nasp2009sessions.aspx. The sessions are video synced to PowerPoint presentations and handouts, and are ideal for self-study CPD. The topics offered include Conducting RTI Tier Three Case Studies, Combining Academic and Behavioral Supports for a Universal System, Things That Make You Go HLM: Getting Comfortable With Hierarchical Linear Modeling, Consuming Research: There Is Significantly More to Research Than Significance, and Grant Writing: Getting Funds for Your Education Research Project.

Now is your final chance to take advantage of the special rate of $44 for a full year?s access to the NASP EBSCO Online Library. Save 10% off the regular annual rate by signing up or renewing before the end of the month at www.nasponline.org/ebsco/ebscoaccess.aspx. The Library consists of thousands of peer-reviewed journals and more than one million full-text articles from six comprehensive databases. A new mobile application puts the most important features of the Library right in the palm of your hand!

I look forward to writing to you next month with more news from NASP and I hope to see you at the NASP 2010 Annual Convention in Chicago next month.

In the meantime stay warm and hope for no more snow!

Sincerely,

Deb Schwiesow
NASP State Delegate - IA