Greetings from Dr. Todd Lewis

2008-2009 IAAOC President

First, I am honored to serve as President of IAAOC and feel privileged to be associated with a great ACA division made up of dedicated and hard-working professionals. My transition and task for this year has been made easier thanks to the consummate leadership of our past president, Simone Lambert, who, along with other past IAAOC leaders, has moved our division in exciting directions. Indeed, I have some big shoes to fill.

The IAAOC mission statement highlights advocacy and leadership as two essential functions of our division. As such, I will be committed to strengthening these functions to promote appropriate counseling strategies for those struggling with addictions and/or offender issues. I also am dedicated to continuing IAAOC’s tradition of being a strong resource for professionals working with those struggling with addiction and offender issues.

In many ways, my goals for the 2008-2009 year are extensions of the positive developments of the past, such as (a) persistently exploring innovative ways to expand our website, (b) continuing to acknowledge and expand awards and recognition for excellent contributions to the addictions/offender field and counselor education by IAAOC members and leaders, and (c) greater collaboration with other ACA divisions. I also would like to expand the growing use of technology as it relates to inter-division communication among IAAOC members and leaders and strengthen IAAOC’s commitment and service to promote growth of state IAAOC chapters.

A definite strength of IAAOC is its continued support of students, new professionals, and members who will continue to have opportunities through research grants, scholarships, and networking opportunities at the 2009 ACA Conference in Charlotte, North Carolina. My mission will be to continue these efforts and perhaps explore new ways in which IAAOC can support the outstanding work by our members.

The realities in the counseling field suggest that most counselors will confront substance-related issues in their practice, whether in a community or school setting. In addition, many of these individuals will have concomitant mental health problems. Proficiency in addictions prevention, diagnosis, assessment, and counseling needs to be enhanced through our counselor training efforts. A continued area for IAAOC expansion would be greater collaboration with other ACA divisions, perhaps by creating collaborative tasks forces, engaging in joint-publication opportunities, and co-sponsoring events at the annual ACA conference. My vision for IAAOC is consistent with its mission statement, especially related to “providing leadership in the advancement of the fields of addictions and offender counseling.”

Finally, I look forward to working with the many talented and professional members and leaders of IAAOC. Considering the many lives negatively affected by addiction, I am once again honored to serve as President, and pledge to carry on IAAOC’s vision of being “a high quality resource organization which supports prevention, treatment, research, training, and advocacy for the addicted and forensic/criminal justice populations.”

Todd F. Lewis, Ph.D., LPC, NCC

IAAOC President (2008-2009)