One of ISPA's most important achievements has been to promote the spread of school psychology, particularly in countries where psychology has not been prevalent. This process has been facilitated through the ISPA Colloquium, held each year in a different country. This gathering of professionals from around the world has an impact on the development of the profession in the host country and serves as an important forum for participants. Significant results have been already been achieved in eastern Europe and South America. In the coming years, ISPA will emphasize helping the growth of the profession in Asia, particularly China and India, and in Africa.

At present, ISPA has nearly 650 registered members from 50 countries. Thirty national school psychology associations, representing a vast number of professionals, are affiliate members. A delegate from each country is invited to report to the annual Colloquium on the status of the profession in their country.

ISPA is a non-governmental organization officially affiliated with UNESCO. The Association was active in persuading the United Nations to adopt the Convention on the Rights of the Child   in 1989 and since then we have been working closely with other international organizations to promote the Convention in as many countries as possible to ensure the human and psychological rights of children worldwide.

Both internationally and nationally, school psychology now faces dramatic challenges, including poverty, crime, ecological dangers, rising unemployment, the breakup of family structures, religious fundamentalism, and alarming drug abuse at ever-decreasing ages, to name but a few. The quantum leaps in technological development make the world in which our children are growing up an increasingly confusing place with almost unlimited choices.

ISPA has devoted much discussion in recent years to broadening the role of school psychologists. Historically, our profession began in response to the needs of schools to place "special" children in "special" classrooms and until now we have accepted this mandate to make our base in the schools. In most countries today, school psychologists still spend most of their time and energy testing and evaluating individual children and placing them in appropriate learning environments. More frequently, however, there is growing demand that school psychologists broaden their spheres of influence. We are now in a position to take a more active role in the community and to help the local leadership, both political and educational, develop and implement programs aimed at stemming the tide of negative changes. Psychology in general, and school psychology in particular, has accumulated knowledge that is useful when confronting the realities of today. Many of us now live more challenging and more comfortable lives than our parents, yet a big question mark hovers over our ability to bequeath more interesting and exciting lives to our children. Most of the world still lives in misery, especially the children, and our goal is to making their lives better.

The Association has several major goals for the coming years. We are working to establish requirements for the training of school psychologists and accreditation of training programs throughout the world. We are building teams of experts that can be available to national or international organizations in times of special need or crisis. To that end, we were active in providing material and support to crisis intervention teams working with refugees from Kosovo and in the aftermath of the earthquake in Turkey. And ISPA seeks to strengthen ties with other international organizations committed to the same goals, in particular the implementation of the United Nations Declaration on Children's Rights.

It is remarkable that ISPA, as an organization of people spread out all over the world, has remained strong and viable for twenty-eight years. The reason may be the unique spirit it has developed over time, as well as the intense dedication of many of its members. The annual ISPA Colloquium is not simply another conference - it is a joyful reunion of dedicated professionals who share a deep belief in their aim to make schools better places for children and to improve the mental health of our communities.

Bernie Stein, Ph.D., is Past-President of the International School Psychology Association and was the Chief Psychologist in the Israeli Ministry of Education in Jerusalem.

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Reference:
Stein, B. (2000), Organization Profile: ISPA. Psychology International, 11, 1.