When some Western graduate students in the clinical psychology program were looking for ways to spread the word of psychological issues to the London community, acknowledgement for their plan from the Ontario Psychological Association (OPA) was not a part of their motivation.
But with hundreds of local residents assisted through the unique student-led Finding Your Way lecture series – leading to a larger program this year – it was an easy decision for the OPA to award the students with the 2008 Public Education Award.
The series featured free public lectures, in conjunction with the London Public Library, with topics based on the student’s respective areas of research and expertise – from getting your child up and out of the house in the morning to overcoming depression.
First organized in 2006 by eight students (Aimee Coulombe, Vanessa Hamill, Vivien Lee, Patricia Jordan, Agnes Massak, Erin Ross, Alex McIntyre-Smith, and Kathryn Turnbull), the Advocacy for Action Group has since grown to 20 students.
With the new members (Francois Botha, Lyndsay Evraire, Naomi Gryfe, Megan Hancock, Sol Rovillard, Katie Kryski, Tara Morley, Kathleen O’Connor, Pamela Seeds, Matthew Shanahan, Juliana Tobon, and Ya Xue) the group includes more than half of the incoming graduate classes of 2007 and 2008.
Leora Swartzman, associate professor of Psychology, serves as the communications and outreach coordinator for the department as well as the clinical practicum coordinator for the clinical program.
The soaring involvement in the group indicates community service is increasingly important to students.
“Our clinical students had the skill and desire to use their Western training to make a difference locally and people in the library championed the program because they recognized that these students could provide a valuable service to the community,” says Swartzman.
“The initiative and its success speaks to the fact that we have here at Western a broad and deep talent pool of students, faculty and staff interested and capable of making a difference for the London community.”
Graduate student Aimee Coulombe says the students were looking for ways not only to advocate for psychology but for individuals who could benefit from what psychology has to offer – not just those with concerns at the clinical level, but anyone facing common dilemmas or questions about everyday life.
“In addition to the advocacy aspects of the lecture series, the talks are really a way to give back to the community and to say ‘thanks’,” says Coulombe. “A number of us do research that involves people and families in the community. This participation makes our research possible. The talks are a way to show how helping us in this way can enable us to help others.”
The OPA award was important for students since many were unsure of how much of an impact the series would have.
“The fact that we have received such recognition and appreciation in only our second year went beyond our original expectations,” says graduate student Juliana Tobon, adding the positive response to the inaugural series in 2008 leading to an expansion of the series this year was gratifying enough.
“To have the Ontario Psychological Association publicly recognize our efforts is inspirational to us as future psychologists,” adds graduate student Vivien Lee. “It is our hope that other future and current psychologists will also be inspired to lead similar initiatives in their communities.
Through feedback from participants of the inaugural lecture series last year, the students were able to expand the program offered this year (which begins in February) to include such topics as strategies for dealing with depression, fostering self-esteem in young girls, emotional fitness for couples and dealing with difficult child behaviour.
More information on the Find Your Way lecture series can be found at https://psychology.uwo.ca/news/community/fyw.htm.