"Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does" ~ William James

On behalf of the Mississippi Association for Psychology in the Schools (MAPS), I would like to welcome you to our website. We are a non-profit organization that is focused on supporting and advocating for the professions of school psychology and psychometry within the state of Mississippi. Our membership includes school psychologist, psychometrists, professors of school psychology, related service providers, and graduate students from across the state. As the introductory quote above suggests, we believe that what we do and how we do it truly matters. Therefore, our organization's goals are as follows: 

• To provide opportunities for professional fellowship and for the exchange of professional ideas among school psychologists;
• To advance the professional status of school psychologists;
• To promote and maintain high standards of professional psychological services;
• To promote the development of sound educational practice for the total school program;
• To promote and advance school psychology as a distinct viable profession within the State and to serve as a vehicle of communication for the profession.

According to the National Association of School Psychologists (NASP), our profession is one that involves helping "children and youth succeed academically, socially, behaviorally, and emotionally". NASP notes that we do this by "collaborating with educators, parents, and other professionals to create safe, healthy, and supportive learning environments that strengthen connections between home, school, and the community for all students". As school psychologist and psychometrists, we must continue to advocate for our roles within schools as well as for the provision of best practice with regard to assessing and addressing the academic, behavioral, and mental health needs of children and youth within our state. As an organization, MAPS supports the professional growth and development of our membership by providing opportunities for members to learn, collaborate, and advocate.

We believe that with the unique combination of knowledge and skills that we possess as helping professionals within schools, school psychologists should have a strong voice in terms advocating for Mississippi's children. Therefore, our current goals are: 

• To provide MAPS members with increased access to training, resources, and information related to advocacy and the provision of best practices within our state;
• To improve access to our organization by updating our website, distributing a quarterly newsletter, and providing options for online registration and payment of dues;
• To increase membership participation and involvement within the organization by supporting the organization's committee structure;
• To facilitate our organization's efforts to collaborate with other state organizations in order to accomplish common goals.

We appreciate that you have chosen to visit our site today, and  ope that the information and resources contained on this site are beneficial to you. You may have noticed a few changes to the site. Expect more in the near future. If you are interested in learning more about school psychology and/or how a school psychologist may impact your school district, visit the NASP Practice Model Site. Please feel free to contact me if you have any questions, ideas, or suggestions regarding our organization.