Welcome Letter from the Specialty Board President

Jeni McCutcheon, PsyD, M.S.C.P, ABPP

Greetings and a warm welcome to you as you seek out our site for information related to becoming a board certified specialist in police and public safety psychology. Police and Public Safety Psychology (PPSP) is a relatively new specialty area that was first officially recognized by the APA as a proficiency in 2008 and as a specialty in 2013. The American Board of Police and Public Safety Psychology (ABPPSP) became an ABPP specialty board in 2011. Our mission is to serve the psychological needs of the men and women who serve and protect us, and to assist the agencies that employ them.
 
Since 2011, we have built a base of competent PPSP specialists. We are now focused on maintaining our base of specialists as well as attracting new PPSP specialists. We welcome inquiries and applications for candidacy from any psychologist working with law enforcement or other areas of public safety (i.e., corrections/detention, fire service, military) who meet the specialty requirements for candidacy and perform work in one or more the domains of assessment, intervention, consultation and/or operations in serving these populations.
 
Our specialty board is also focused on continuing education and opportunities in PPSP. These offerings are for any psychologist interested in PPSP, potential new candidates seeking to gain or maintain competence, and for current ABPPSP specialists to assist in the maintenance of competence. To this end, we have the American Academy of Police and Public Safety Psychology. The Academy’s mission is to provide continuing education in the specialty and develop a core curriculum for universities and professional schools wishing to establish graduate training and advanced degrees in the specialty. Stay tuned for upcoming offerings from our Academy.
 
Often, potential candidates inquire about whether they will qualify for board certification. They also express doubts about whether they are up to the task of applying. While certainly the process involves effort to seek and obtain board certification, it is a doable task and worthwhile endeavor. We have an Examination Manual in our Document Library that lays out a step-by-step roadmap for how to apply and the needed requirements. We are dedicated to recognizing competence and specialists routinely report that the process is challenging, but achievable and in-and-of-itself a positive professional growth experience. We take pride in being helpful, professional and collegial in the process of candidates seeking board certification.
 
We also have a mentoring program to assist you at the initial stages of the process. Mentoring further extends the supportive assistance we may offer you as you seek to apply for candidacy, and through submission of your Practice Sample. We are committed to working with applicants and candidates to assist them through the process. We have a National Chair of Examinations (NCE), who oversees all aspects of the application and the examination process. Our NCE is Dr. Gary Fischler and he can be reached at gfischler@psycheval.com .
 
Thank you for your interest in ABPPSP. I welcome your contact and questions. Please feel free to contact me so that I may assist, support and encourage you. You can reach me at jenimccutcheon@aol.com.
 
 
Jeni McCutcheon, PsyD, M.S.C.P, ABPP
President, American Board of Police and Public Safety Psychology