Want to Volunteer?             

ALGBTIC President Michael Kocet is seeking individuals who are interested in becoming more involved in the division. There are a number of projects that will be taking place during the 2009-2010 year.  The Association of LGBT Issues in Counseling welcomes new leadership, particularly graduate students and new professionals. Oftentimes people do not know how to become involved. Please consider joining a committee or a task force within our division. There are many ways to serve and become more active in ways that meet your needs and busy lives.  There are a number of committees and task forces that are being convened this year to help support the work of our division. Below is a brief description of each of these volunteer opportunities.  We hope that you consider bringing new leadership to one or more of these areas:

ALGBTIC Website and Resources Committee. The purpose of this committee is to help monitor and revise the Resource page of the ALGBTIC website. This committee will partner with our webmaster in ensuring that current and emerging research, technology, multicultural resources, etc. are available for members and non-members alike who need access to cutting edge information on the lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and ally community. Our goal is to see ALGBTIC be a leader within ACA in terms of our website resources, which would include books, journal articles, reports, pamphlets, podcasts, youtube videos, online documentaries, just to name a few.

ALGBTIC Competencies Revision Task Force.  The purpose of this task force is to examine the current ALGBTIC competencies and to provide recommendations on ways to make this important document more inclusive and increase its visibility and use within the counseling profession. This proposed draft of the LGBT competencies may include emerging areas, such as bisexuality, spirituality, and other important areas for consideration. The current LGBT competencies have not been revised and more needs to be added to this important document. The goal of the task force will to propose revised ALGBTIC competencies that will be brought to the ALGBTIC Board for a vote at next year’s ACA Conference in Pittsburgh.

 LGBTQ Inter-Spiritual Task Force.  A few years ago ALGBTIC sponsored an inspiring LGBT Wedding Event in Montreal which was attended by about a hundred (or more) ACA members, leaders, and guests to support LGBT marriage. This event was inspirational and historic. Along the same lines of an event on that scale, ALGBTIC (along with co-sponsorship from other ACA divisions) will host an LGBTQ Inter-Spiritual Service that will be a celebration of the LGBTQ spirit. Members of the LGBTQ Inter-Spiritual Task Force will help plan this event and organize the speakers, musicians, and other contributors for this event during the ACA Convention in Pittsburgh. This task force will also provide recommendations to the ALGBTIC board about ways to integrate LGBT affirmative spirituality and inclusivity throughout our division.

Membership Committee. The purpose of this committee is to help advise the ALGBTIC board on ways to increase division membership and to assist the committee chairs in maintain regular and ongoing contact with ALGBTIC members.

State Branch/Division Committee. The purpose of this committee is to provide support and assistance to states that have existing ALGBTIC state branches and to support state leaders who wish to create state branches of ALGBTIC.

Mentoring Program. The purpose of this program is to provide mentorship to graduate students and new professionals within ALGBTIC. Mentors are typically seasoned professionals who provide support and guidance to mentees, particularly in the area of LGBT issues facing professionals today.

ALGBTIC Newsletter. The board is always in need of those who are available to write articles for our very popular divisional newsletter. We also need those have expertise in editing articles and providing support to our newsletter editor.

As you can see, there are many different ways to become involved in our division. Simply complete the form below by August 31, 2009 and if you have any questions about these committees, task forces, or projects, please don’t hesitate to contact any member of the board or write to ALGBTIC President-elect Michael Kocet at mkocet@yahoo.com.