Across the Nation: News of the Councils

Déonda Scott, Associate Editor

Introducing: The Center for Organizational and Personnel Police Psychology, Inc.

A new non-profit organization dedicated to "sharing information about the science and practice of law enforcement organizational and personnel issues" has recently appeared on the web. The site has an interesting "Current News" section which includes information on testing controversies including Suffolk County's Bio-Data Selection Test, and the Department of Justice's case against the City of Torrance, CA. One of the articles even directs visitors to our website for more information! It includes (or is in the process of including) a bibliography of published and unpublished articles relating to law enforcement organizational and personnel issues, a calendar of events, links to related web sites, job listings, and membership information. So check out this new resource at www.copp-psychology.org.

Bay Area Applied Psychologists (BAAP)

BAAP hosted Dr. Bob Jako of Physician Performance Assessment and Compensation discussing the topic "Can I/O Psychologists do Compensation? Why it Should Work and Why it Doesn't" in January. Dr. Jako explored the aspects of I/O training that are productively applied to compensation practice and discussed pitfalls to avoid. Future speakers and topics are in the planning stage, but add the following dates to your calendar now: Wednesday, April 21; Thursday, July 29; and Tuesday, October 26. For information contact Becca Anhalt (415) 743-8705.

Metropolitan New York Association for Applied Psychology

Alan Kraut of Baruch College presented "The Future of Organizational Surveys: It's Here" at the January meeting. METRO is currently celebrating its 60^th year. They are reviving a long-standing METRO tradition - Ground Hog's day dinner. Raymond Katzell, past METRO president and Professor Emeritus at New York University will speak on "Janus Redux: Looking Back and Looking Forward." This special meeting will be held on February 11 (yes, they know Ground Hog's day is really Feb. 2^nd) in Manhattan, NY. For information contact Vince Conte (212)708-6424 or e-mail vincent.a.conte@ac.com, or Seymour Adler (212)539-7593.

Mid-Atlantic Personnel Assessment Consortium (MAPAC)

MAPAC's Winter Meeting was held in January and included presentations on Executive Assessment, Exercises and Oral Interviewing in Managerial Selection, Utility Analysis, Written Tests for Managers and more. For information on upcoming events, contact Linda Dunn (212)794-5672.

Minnesota Professional for Psychologists At Work (MPPAW)

At the November meeting, David Peterson of Personnel Decisions International (PDI) discussed his research and consulting practice in executive coaching. Tim Judge of the University of Iowa discussed his research on the impact of "Positive Self-Concept: Its Relationship to Workplace Outcomes" at the December meeting. The next meeting is scheduled for March 11 with Jack Wiley of Gantz Wiley Research, on the topic "Linking Employee Survey Results to Customer Satisfaction and Business Performance." MPPAW holds meetings at the University of Minnesota on Thursday evenings. Programs include a social hour, presentation, and question and answer session. For information, contact: Sidney Teske at (612)348-4443 or send an email to Sid.Teske@co.hennepin.mn.us.

PSC/Florida

The Personnel Selection Council of Florida's October meeting in Ft. Lauderdale featured speakers Ron Frankel and John Burns with the Florida Department of Veteran's Affairs who discussed veteran's preference in employment. Future meetings are in the planning stages. Contact Desiree Bice (954)724-1351 for more information.

PTC/Arizona

The Personnel Testing Council of Arizona had a very exciting and productive 1998. The Board of Directors is still planning a range of exciting and informative programs for 1999. For more information contact: Terry McKinney at (602)261-8861 or tmckinne@ci.phoenix.az.us, Vicki Packman at (602)236-4595 or vspackma@srp.gov.

PTC/Northern California

PTC/NC hosted Dave Milne of Bay Test Services who spoke on test administration issues at the July meeting. Additional events are in the planning phase. Contact Shelley Langan at slangan@spb.ca.gov for more information.

PTC/Metropolitan Washington

PTC/MW hosted James Hogan of the National Skills Standards Board who presented "Voluntary National Skill Standards: Myth or Reality?" at the January meeting. Sharon Fletcher and Jess Robinson of the Federal Aviation Administration will discuss a "Two-Step Hiring Process for Electronics Specialists" at the February 10 luncheon meeting. A special luncheon/workshop will be held on March 10. The speaker and topic of that meeting are TBA. Contact Suzanne Tsacoumis (703)706-5660 for information. The PTC/MW also has a very good website that can be accessed through IPMAAC Online! Their newsletter provides summaries of past presentations, job announcements and a professional calendar.

PTC/Southern California

PTC/SC's November meeting featured Rheta Baron King who spoke on "Employing Workers with Disabilities: Recent ADA & FEHA Case Law." January's meeting was presented by Wayne Flick and Lisa Von Eschen and included an update on the United States v. City of Torrance case. February's meeting to be held on 24th of the month will feature John Worcester from the City of Portland who will discuss "Accepting and Processing Applications Over the Internet." Contact Seema Thakur (213)743-3536. PTC/SC holds a luncheon meeting in Monterey Park, CA on the fourth Wednesday of each month. PTC/SC and its upcoming activities are listed on IPMAAC Online!

Western Region Item Bank

The Western Region Item Bank (WRIB) is a cooperative organization of public agencies using a computerized test item bank. Services include draft test questions with complete item history, preparation of "printer ready" exams, and exam scoring and item analysis. Membership includes 190 agencies nationwide. For more information, contact Kathryn Paget at (909)387-6086.

WRIPAC

The Western Region Intergovernmental Personnel Assessment Council (WRIPAC) celebrated its 20^th anniversary in January. Their special meeting included presentations from many distinguished speakers and workshops on job analysis and selection planning. The Western Regional Intergovernmental Personnel Assessment Council (WRIPAC) is comprised of assessment professionals from more than sixty small, medium, and large public agencies throughout the western United States. For more information contact Mark Rau at (209)297-2335.

Déonda Scott is the Civil Service/Testing Manager for the City of Orlando. If you have regional organization news or an item to add to the calendar, please contact her. She can be reached by phone (407)246-2061; fax (407)246-2019; or e-mail dscott@ci.orlando.fl.us. Snail-mail will eventually find her at the City of Orlando, 400 S. Orange Avenue, Orlando, FL 32801-3302.