Hello Western Regional Presidents and Advisors:

I hope your semester is going well and that your chapters are thriving. I wanted to remind people of some key events that are coming up:

The National Leadership Conference (NLC), which will be held in Nashville, TN from January 2-4, 2009, will be a wonderful opportunity for chapter advisors and presidents to gain some hands-on experience with leading their chapter to success. Based on feedback from the last NLC 2 years ago, this one will have more workshops and information you can directly apply to your chapter. Please register on the Psi Chi website by Sept. 30, 2008 to be eligible for travel and lodging funding. Participants who live 100 miles or more away from Nashville can get up to $400 travel reimbursement and the hotel room (not including incidentals) for free if they are one of the first 76 eligible registrants. The registration fee for this worthwhile conference is $220.  I hope you take advantage of this great opportunity.
The 89th Annual Western Psychological Association Convention will be held in Portland, OR on April 23-26, 2009. I encourage Psi Chi members to submit their research posters under the Psi Chi session to be eligible for $300 poster awards. Deadlines for poster submissions are November 15, 2008.  Also, I encourage advisors to attend a complimentary breakfast in their honor at the conference hotel on Saturday morning.  Chapter advisors will be able to share ideas and mingle with other advisors. Finally, we hope to see all of you at our two big presentations during the WPA conference:


1. Abby Wilner, co-author of “Quarterlife Crisis” will discuss the issues that 20-somethings face in life, in terms of career, relationships, and identity. She has appeared on numerous talk shows and has also co-written “The Quarterlifer’s Companion”.  Her talk will be Friday morning.
2. A panel of professors will discuss graduate school issues at our session titled “What I Wish I Knew before Going to Graduate School” on Saturday afternoon.  
3. Poster winners will receive their $300 research awards at the Chapter Exchange and Awards Ceremony Saturday night. Chapters will also get a chance to share ideas and play some fun games with other chapters. Don’t miss the opportunity to help your chapter shine. Door prizes and food will be available.

We hope to see everyone at WPA next year for these exciting events!

Specific details about the schedule of events will be listed on WPA’s website after January 2009. We will e-mail you any updates regarding events before the conference as well.

Thank you,
Ngoc H. Bui
Associate Professor of Psychology
University of La Verne
Western Regional Vice-President
Psi Chi National Council