APAGS Committee for the Advancement of Racial and Ethnic Diversity

The Committee for the Advancement of Racial and Ethnic Diversity (CARED) is a subcommittee of APAGS promoting diversity and representing and advocating for ethnic minority graduate psychology students and those who study issues of ethnic diversity.

Mission

APAGS-CARED exists to promote psychology programs that are representative of the nation’s ethnic diversity and foster culturally relevant and adaptive science and practice in psychology.

Vision

We aspire for a field in which all graduate students are empowered throughout each professional developmental stage and all psychology graduate students value and demonstrate cultural competency.

Values

• Consideration of race and ethnicity in each aspect of psychology graduate training
• Social justice in graduate training
• Race and ethnicity in human functioning and development
• The intersections of race and ethnicity with other dimensions of identity
• Empowerment of every graduate student to have voice and agency

• Identify issues of importance for graduate students of color and those who study ethnic diversity.
• Develop resources, programs, and initiatives to understand the interests and needs of graduate students of color and those who study issues of ethnic diversity.
• Establish relationships and foster connections with and among psychology graduate students of color and those who study issues of ethnic diversity.
• Collaborate with the APAGS Full Committee and other APAGS subcommittees on projects related to student issues.
• Carry out other activities and initiatives developed through yearly workplans.
• Dedicate the necessary time to sufficiently prepare for attending monthly virtual meetings.

In addition to all of the responsibilities listed above, the CARED chair and vice chair also:

• Coordinate and lead the monthly virtual meetings.
• Participate in the biannual APA Consolidated Meetings (virtually or in person), which usually occur in spring and fall of each year.
• Participate in bi-monthly APAGS Full Committee conference calls as the CARED representative.
• Work throughout the year to mentor the vice chair to take over as chair in the following year.
• Be a liaison to one or two internal boards and committees or external groups, as requested by the APAGS Chair.

*Chair and vice chair will distribute leading the duties listed above in a way that is equitable and that helps to develop the vice chair’s ability to take over in the subsequent year or as required by APA internal guidelines.

Examples of past CARED initiatives include:

• International students and internship
  Applying for an internship is a stressful part of the psychology graduate student experience. For international students, this process is further complicated by residency and visa requirements. In a video series we interviewed international students and training directors about their experiences navigating internship with international trainees.
• APAGS diversity survey
  How well are psychology programs addressing diversity training?
  APAGS-CARED and the APAGS Committee on Sexual Orientation and Gender Diversity (CSOGD) recently finalized a mixed-methods study that explored the impact of diversity on the program and training experiences of APAGS members. View national survey results.
• Peer Collaboration Program
  The Peer Collaboration Program is a 10–week program designed to bring together graduate students of color across psychology programs to build social support networks, share personal testimonies, learn from the experiences of others, and encourage professional collaboration and subsequent growth.

Access several free resources including the APAGS Resource Guide for Psychology Graduate Students of Color, our multicultural training database, resources for international students, and more on the APAGS student resources page.

Our webinar and podcast series cover a range of important topics related to diversity, professional development, community engagement, and more. Check out the latest in the series below.

• Countering violent extremism: What mental health professionals need to knowopens in new window
• Preparing diverse students for academic careers
• EPPP outcomes and test taking strategies for graduates of coloropens in new window

Find more items on our webinars and podcasts page.

We invite all APAGS members to contribute to the APAEMGS email group, where broad discussions and announcements around ethnic diversity in graduate school take place in a supportive environment. Send an email to the listserv with a blank subject. In the body, write "SUBSCRIBE APAEMGS <firstname> <lastname>". Read details and listserv policies.

Interested in applying for the APAGS-CARED committee? Visit our election information page.

Feel free to contact us via email.

• Chair: Yoscaira Gomez (2026)
  Roberts Wesleyan University
• Vice Chair: Josue Martinez (2026)
  Holy Family University
• Kaveri Sehgal (2026–27)
  Northeastern University, Boston
• Mona Karimzadeh (2026–27)
  Wright State University