AVAPL Executive Committee
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PRESIDENT Dr. George Shorter (Auburn University, 2001) is Chief of Psychology Service for North Florida/South Georgia Veterans Health System (NF/SGVHS) and has previously been the Assistant Chief. He serves as the VISN 8 Chairperson for the Substance Use Disorders Sub-Committee and as the Chairperson of the VISN 8 Psychology Professional Standards Board. Dr. Shorter has also served as the Chairperson of the NF/SGVHS’s Psychology Professional Standards Board and as the Director of Vocational Rehabilitation for NF/SGVHS. He has been a Preceptor for one of the three Post-Doctoral Traineeships offered in NF/SGVHS and has mentored five post-doctoral trainees, many psychology interns, and three participants in VISN 8 and NFSGVHS leadership programs. Previously, Dr. Shorter served as the Clinical Coordinator for NF/SGVHS’s Psychosocial Residential Rehabilitation Treatment Program and has been a provider of vocational rehabilitation, Compensated Work Therapy, substance use disorders therapies, and general psychotherapy. He has served as the Employee Assistance Program Coordinator for NFSGVHS and remains involved in the Workplace Intervention Committee for NF/SGVHS (a partnership between EAP, EEO, HR, and PI). Dr. Shorter remains active in mental health advocacy, substance use disorder treatment, vocational rehabilitation, psychology training, and general leadership development. He was recently elected as Chairperson of the State of Florida’s DUI Programs Review Board and has served on this board, ensuring the proper conduct of State of Florida Certified DUI education and evaluation programs, for 6 years.
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President-Elect
Dr. Besyner (Texas Tech University, 1978) is the Chief of Psychology, Mental Health Service at the VA North Texas Health Care System (Dallas). Having been a service chief for over 14 years, he was also Director of Training for APA-accredited Internship and Postdoctoral Fellowship programs at the Dallas facility. He currently serves as a Co-chair of the VA National Psychology Professional Standards Board and is a former member of the VA Psychology Training Council. Dr. Besyner is a Clinical Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Texas Southwestern Medical Center. He is board certified by the American Board of Clinical Psychology and serves as a Regional Director and Treasurer on its Board of Directors as well as being a Trustee of the American Board of Professional Psychology (ABPP). Dr. Besyner is a Fellow of Division 12 of APA. In his 33 year VA career, he has been the Director of a Specialized Inpatient PTSD Unit (at the North Chicago VAMC), and the Director of a military Mental Health Clinic (at Great Lakes Naval Hospital as part of a VA/DoD sharing agreement). Over the course of his career thus far, Dr. Besyner has worked in numerous clinical areas of healthcare from PTSD and Substance Abuse treatment to Health Psychology and Inpatient Psychiatry. In times past, Dr. Besyner has served as Chair of the VA Section of APA Division 18, President of the former National Association of VA Psychologists (NOVA-PSI), and President of the Dallas Psychological Association. |
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Past President June Malone (University of Illinois-Urbana/Champaign, 1991) is the Chief of the Domiciliary Residential Rehabilitation Program and the Clinical Director for the Psychosocial Residential Rehabilitation Program at the New Mexico VA Health Care System (NMVAHCS). She is member of the local Psychology Professional Practice Board is currently the treasurer for the Association of VA Psychologist Leaders. She was recently named to the Veterans Administration Central Office Field Advisory Board for VA residential rehabilitation programs and is a mentor for two new dom chiefs. She chaired the VA Psychology Leadership Conference 2003-2008 and was editor for the AVAPL newsletter 2000-2004. Before coming to the NMVAHCS in September, 2005, she was the program coordinator for the residential substance use disorder treatment program at the Milwaukee VA Medical Center. In addition to having expertise in substance abuse treatment, she has specialized in treating adult survivors of childhood trauma. Dr. Malone has had a long standing interest in supervising psychology practicum students, pre-doctoral interns, post-doctoral fellows, and psychiatric residents in biopsychosocial rehabilitation techniques for homeless veterans with psychiatric, medical, and psychosocial problems.
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Secretary
Dr. Lisa Kearney (University of Texas at Austin, 2004) is Chief of Psychology Service at the South Texas Veterans Health Care System. Previously she served as the Director of Training, Assistant Chief, and as a Primary Care-Mental Health Integration Psychologist. Dr. Kearney continues a strong investment in the training of future psychologist by supervising psychology interns and residents in primary care-mental health integration and by also serving on the APPIC Board. In addition to her service in APPIC, she has also have been dedicated to service in other psychology communities locally and at the national level, including as President of the Bexar County Psychological Association and as Conference Chair for the VA Psychology Leadership Conference. In addition to her service at the VA, Dr. Kearney is also appointed as Clinical Assistant Professor of Psychiatry at the University of Texas Health Science Center, where she is involved in the training of medical students, psychiatry residents, and pharmacy residents. Dr. Kearney's passion for primary care-mental health integration is continued through service as the VISN 17 Primary Care-Mental Health Integration champion, work on hospital wide committees partnering primary care and mental health to address chronic health conditions, and in clinical care of Veterans in primary care settings. Her primary professional interests include establishing interdisciplinary programs to address chronic medical conditions, such as diabetes, chronic pain, and hypertension; training of future psychologists; and research in gender/cultural dynamics in therapy and program outcomes related to brief psychological interventions in primary care. |
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Treasurer
Dr. Ann Landes earned a Ph.D. in Psychology from Georgia State University in 2007. At the South Texas Veterans Health Care System in San Antonio, Texas, she completed a Geropsychology Internship and a Palliative Care Postdoctoral Fellowship, with specialization in Primary Care Psychology and Posttraumatic Stress Disorder. Currently, Dr. Landes is a Primary Care Psychologist at the Malcom Randall VAMC in Gainesville, Florida. Dr. Landes is actively engaged in the field of primary care psychology, with an emphasis on issues pertaining to training and development of psychologists, management of chronic medical conditions, and program development. Additionally, Dr. Landes remains dedicated to the area of posttraumtic stress disorder by continuing to develop innovative programs for veterans with PTSD and their families.
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