Editor's Corner

Dr. Sarah Weinsztok, Ph.D., BCBA 

Welcome to the Fall 2025 SoAP Box Newsletter. I am Sarah Weinsztok, the new editor for the SoAP Box, and I am thrilled to present my first issue. I thank the members of Division 50 for allowing me the opportunity to serve in this role. I also welcome my fantastic student editor, Kianna Csölle, who introduces herself in the student spotlight column. 

I would also like to take a moment to thank Dr. Jennifer Fillo for her hard work and leadership as the previous SoAP Box editor.  

We begin this issue with the final president's column by Dr. Susan Collins. Dr. Collins describes the ways that Division 50 elevated lived experiences and showed continued commitment to the values of diversity, equity, inclusivity, and sustainability at the 2025 APA Conference. 

Following Dr. Collins' remarks is a president’s column from the new APA Division 50 President, Dr. Noah Emery. Dr. Emery opens with a discussion of this year’s presidential theme, “The Science of Lived Experience: Reimagining Research Through Lived and Learned Expertise.” Dr. Emery highlights the importance of engaging in leadership roles as Division 50 members. Finally, Dr. Emery invites readers to reflect on the 2025 priorities set by the Presidential Trio. 

The next column features a diversity spotlight in which we catch up with CPA inclusive poster award winners: Dr. Neo Gebru, Rachel Girard, and Ebonie White. Each of these winners are conducting groundbreaking research in their respective areas, and commend CPA for fostering community and connection, providing exposure to high-impact science, and supporting long-term career goals.  

We next hear from Dr. Anne Fernandez, Division 50 member-at-large (practice), for a Clinician’s Corner column. Titled “Meeting Patients Where They Are: Integrating Substance Use Disorder Care Across Healthcare Settings”, Dr. Fernandez provides an overview of the barriers to comprehensive treatment for people with SUDs and explores several ways to improve current practices and provide transformational care for individuals with SUDs. 

Following the Clinician’s Corner, Dr. Julie Cristello is highlighted in the Early Career Spotlight. Dr. Cristello is the Division 50 member-at-large early career psychologist. In this spotlight, we learn about Dr. Cristello’s professional experience, research, clinical, and advocacy interests, and motivation for joining Division 50.  

The next column highlights the new SoAP Box student editor, Kianna Csölle. Kianna is a doctoral student at the University of Kansas. I look forward to working with Kianna during our tenure as editors of the SoAP Box. 

The final column features curated panel notes and key takeaways from the APA Division 50 presidential panel: Navigating a Fraught Political Landscape as Addiction Psychologists, facilitated by Dr. Susan Collins at the 2025 American Psychological Convention in Denver, CO. 

Finally, the Division 50 APA Program Committee provides a call for proposals for the 2026 APA Convention August 6-8 in Washington D.C. 

Thank you to everyone who contributed to this season’s newsletter. Looking ahead to the Spring 2026 issue and beyond, I welcome anyone from our membership to contribute a piece or to provide suggestions for content. This includes content that fit within our established structure, as well as new ideas for standalone or recurring columns. Please submit any content for the Spring 2026 issue to me (s.weinsztok@rutgers.edu) by Friday March 20, 2026. 

Standing content submission areas:  
- Diversity Science Spotlight. In this column, we are looking to highlight recently published work or accomplishments by members from backgrounds that are underrepresented in psychological science. We are also interested in promoting research focusing on improving health equity and social justice in historically disadvantaged groups. Send us a link and description of your current projects, awards, or media attention you have received, and any other information that you would like to share with our readers. If you are discussing research focused on improving health equity and social justice, you can also provide additional information about the implications of your research. Please limit responses to 500 words. 
- SoAP Box Sound Bites. In 50 words or less, please respond to the following prompt—What are you most looking forward to this summer, both personally and professionally? 
- Show and Tell. This is the place to show off your recent accomplishments, accolades, awards and/or to highlight the cool ways in which you promote your lab (websites, Facebook pages, Instagram accounts, etc.). Send us a link and description of your current projects, awards, or media attention you may have received, and any other information that you would like to share with our readers. Please limit responses to 200 words. 
- Clinical Translation. Do you have any recently published work that you wish you would have had more room in the manuscript to discuss clinical implications and applications? Please limit responses to 1,000 words. 
- Clinician’s Corner. Clinician’s Corner can include creative ideas, important lessons learned, and innovations in practice and implementation. The Clinician's Corner is also a place for clinicians to introduce themselves and talk about their work and accomplishments. Clinical practice members of the Division can inspire and learn from one another. They also can provide fresh ideas and a unique perspective to academicians that could open the door and inspire new research. The Outreach & Dissemination Committee thought this was a way that the clinical voice based on theory, practice, experience, and imagination can be given a new forum within the division. 
- Finding Success in Failure. In line with the recent trend of prominent academics and clinicians sharing their “CVs of Failures”, we want to hear about a time in your career that things didn’t go your way. For this next issue, I am hoping someone will provide insights into the challenges they experienced as a mentor and what they learned along the way. We are interested in what the challenge was, how you approached resolving the issue, and what you learned as a result of the experience. What advice would you give to others when facing similar challenges in the future?  Please limit responses to 500 words.  
- Ethical Issues. In this column, we are looking for articles focused on describing ethical issues you may come across in your research and/or addiction-related clinical practice. Specifically, we want to hear what the ethical issue was, how you handled it, and lessons learned. Some examples could be issues related to googling patients, how you handled it when a patient contacted you on social media, or what happens when you run into a research participant out in the real world. Please limit responses to 500 words or fewer.