About SAS


Student Affiliates of Seventeen (SAS) is a national membership organization for students associated with the Society of Counseling Psychology, Division 17 of the American Psychological Association. SAS is a vehicle for enhancing communication between counseling psychology leaders and counseling psychologists-in-training. SAS members are encouraged to increase their identification with the profession by experiencing formal involvement with the discipline’s professional organization, and the division benefits from the commitment and active participation of students who bring new ideas, energy, and enthusiasm to the division. SAS members benefit by learning about SCP and APA, developing leadership skills, networking with professionals in the field, and mentoring and being mentored.

The purposes of SAS are:

  • To enhance contact and communication between students and SCP membership.
  • To enhance student engagement in SAS and SCP.
  • To promote the professional development of counseling psychologists-in-training.
  • To promote diversity and social justice within SAS.

SAS membership is open to graduate and undergraduate students in counseling psychology and related fields, and coincides with the calendar year (January 1 through December 31). SAS members receive subscriptions to The Counseling Psychologist (8 issues per year) and the  SAS Newsletter (3 issues per year). Members who join after the first volume of The Counseling Psychologist is published are entitled to receive all back copies of the journal for the current membership year. For more information about SAS, we encourage you to read the SAS ByLaws.

Host Institution

The work of SAS is carried out by a host institution for a 2­–3-year term. This means that the tri-/co-chairs are selected from the institution and select the remaining Executive Board positions based on applications from individuals from APA accredited counseling psychology or related field programs. The current host institution is the University of Tennessee, Knoxville. Our term began in August 2022 and will end in August 2024. Our areas of focus, termed pillars, are: Structural Well-Being; Justice, Equity, and Liberation; Community Learning and Development; Scientist-Practitioner-Advocate. Following University of Tennessee’s tenure, SAS will be moving to a completely national model where all student leaders, including the chairs, will be selected from APA accredited counseling psychology or related field programs. Calls for applications for any open Executive Board positions are typically announced in the spring.

Current Host

The University of Tennessee, Knoxville is honored to serve as the host institution for Student Affiliates of Seventeen (SAS). We are happy to serve the Society of Counseling Psychology (SCP), distinguished leaders in our field, and most importantly, our peers. We are humbled to represent SAS for the 2022–2024 term, which will give us the opportunity to work alongside some of the most intelligent, hardworking, and dedicated students in our field. Through our goals and objectives listed in our pillars, we hope to further promote professional development, networking, scholarship, and leadership for all SAS members. The University of Tennessee, Knoxville aspires to promote the central values of SCP through the following four pillars that will guide our actions for the 2022–2023 term:

  1. Structural Well-Being
  2. Justice, Equity, and Liberation
  3. Community Learning and Development
  4. Scientist-Practitioner-Advocate

If you haven’t yet joined SAS, we invite you to do so today! Once you join, get involved by subscribing to the listserv, liking us on Facebook, following us on Instagram and Twitter, contributing to the SAS Newsletter, and joining the SAS Program Representatives Network.

Prior Hosts
1977-1980 University of Iowa
1980-1983 The Ohio State University
1983-1986 University of Maryland
1986-1989 University of Illinois
1989-1992 University of Southern Mississippi
1992-1995 Southern Illinois University
1995-1998 University of Utah
1998-2001 University of Missouri, Kansas City
2001-2004 University of Akron
2004-2007 Marquette University
2007-2010 University of North Dakota
2010-2013 University at Albany
2013-2016 Cleveland State University
2016-2019 Ball State University
2019-2022 University of Missouri, Columbia