The PAR Training Portal is a complimentary resource designed to help you get acquainted with select PAR instruments on your schedule.

• Learn about an assessment before purchasing or obtain a deeper knowledge of a tool you already use.
• Get an overview of the instrument, including instruction on how to administer, score, and interpret the measure. 
• View sample items, learn about development, and examine normative and clinical data.
• Obtain a quick but thorough understanding during each on-demand, interactive training session. Author videos, recorded Webinars, and supplemental materials are also available!

Training is available on some of your favorite products, including the FAR™, PAI®, RIAS™-2, and more! Visit PARTrainingPortal.com!

PAR’s University Partnership Program (UPP) is a way to help you save time and money through a concierge service meant just for universities. The UPP is dedicated to assisting you and your students as they pursue advanced degrees.

UPP offers eight essential elements, all focused on providing you support:

1)     Reduce time reviewing tests. The UPP can save you valuable time by providing you with the information you need to help you decide which tests best fir your syllabus.

2)     Concierge service. Our UPP specialists are dedicated specifically to the UPP program. You’ll have a single point of contact from start to finish. Consider them part of your team.

3)     Training resources. We’re happy to provide PowerPoint slides for many PAR products that can be integrated into your course objectives. We also offer free online training through the PAR Training Portal.

4)     Free products. Get three PAR test kits of your choice—at absolutely no charge. If you need more forms, we offer a 40% discount on reorders plus free uses on PARiConnect, our online assessment platform.

5)     Discounts for students. Graduate school takes financial dedication, and PAR can lighten the load. Graduate students using PAR products in their research can apply for a 40% discount.

6)     Research discounts for professors. Professors conducting research through their universities are eligible to receive a 40% discount on PAR products.

7)     PAR guarantee. Our guarantee isn’t just a list of services, it’s who we are. PAR guarantees your order will be shipped the same day you order it, and if you’re not completely satisfied with your purchase, you can simply return it.

8)     Best help in the business. PAR proudly offers live Customer Support. No automated menus—the phone rings and one of our UPP specialists will be on the line to help you.

For more information about joining the UPP, visit our website, e-mail upp@parinc.com, or call 1.866.727.2884.

The beginning of a new year is a common time for people to evaluate jobs and careers. Are your clients seeking occupations to better align with their passions? With the new Self-Directed Search (SDS) it’s easier than ever to help your clients explore career options that best match their personality types!

The SDS is the gold standard in career personality assessment. Since its release in 1971, the SDS has been used more than 36 million times. The SDS is based on Dr. John Holland’s theory, known as the RIASEC theory, that both people and working environments can be classified according to six basic types: Realistic, Investigative, Artistic, Social, Enterprising, and Conventional. One of the main ideas of this theory is that the closer your personality type aligns with your work environment type, the more likely you are to find fulfillment at work.

The SDS was recently rebranded, repackaged, and refreshed! A bold new look and a cleaner, more user-friendly interface means clients can easily learn more about their personality and find a career that fits.

The online SDS experience also features interactive and highly customizable digital reports.

So if your clients are exploring occupations or want a career change, the SDS will greatly improve their search.

Visit self-directed-search.com to learn more!

The new SPECTRA™: Indices of Psychopathology offers clinicians a new way to assess psychopathology in that it measures valuable clinical information on a wide range of psychopathological conditions at three levels of specificity.

The SPECTRA measures 12 clinically important constructs (depression, anxiety, social anxiety, posttraumatic stress, alcohol problems, severe aggression, antisocial behavior, drug problems, psychosis, paranoid ideation, manic activation, and grandiose ideation). These constructs are organized into three higher-order spectra of Internalizing, Externalizing, and Reality-Impairing. The constructs map on to DSM-5 conditions and help link assessment findings to the quantitative model research literature. The three spectra combine to provide a General Psychopathology Index score, which measures the total burden of psychopathology. Three supplemental scales include Cognitive Concerns, Psychosocial Functioning, and Suicidal Ideations.

 The SPECTRA takes just 15-20 minutes to administer and can be administered and scored on paper or via the PARiConnect online assessment system. The SPECTRA is useful when evaluating individuals in a variety of clinical settings, such as inpatient and outpatient clinics, hospitals, schools, and forensic settings. It also can help track progress over time if administered repeatedly.

 To learn more about the SPECTRA, visit the product page.

PAR has announced the recipient of its fourth-annual program to benefit worthy charities. “PAR has been incredibly fortunate as a company,” stated Kristin Greco, MBA, Chief Executive Officer. “Rather than sending our Customers an end-of-year gift, a few years ago, we decided to make a charitable contribution on behalf of our Customers to an organization chosen by those we serve. This is the fourth year we have done so, each year selecting a new charity to honor.”

In November, PAR mailed an end-of-year communication to select Customers, thanking them for their business and asking them to choose their favorite organization from a list as a way to acknowledge the important work they do throughout the year. Most PAR Customers are involved in psychological assessment, educational assessment, or mental health work.

Now that results have been tallied, PAR is proud to announce that on behalf of its Customers, a $5,000 donation will be made to Prevent Child Abuse America.

“We are so inspired by the work our Customers do, and Prevent Child Abuse America is doing work that is important to them,” said Greco. “It is an honor to be able to pay it forward to such a worthy organization.”

At the end of this year, Kay Cunningham will be retiring after 26 years at PAR. Kay joined PAR in 1991 and is retiring as President and Chief Operating Officer. Kay has been an integral member of the PAR team and will be leaving a lasting impression on everyone who had the honor to work with her. This is the second part in a series where we will be sharing stories, memories, and well wishes as we send Kay on to her next chapter.

Kay is an incredible person, and a wonderful leader. I was able to work closer with her when she took over as supervisor of the sales team. I am not sure Kay knows how much we valued her direction, but she offered a new perspective to the team, which put us on the path to a great sales year. She was always helpful, kind and generous of her time and she did all that with a great sense of humor. I feel fortunate and grateful to have had her support and encouragement. You will be missed, Kay! —Darla DeCarlo, Clinical Assessment Consultant

I have had the privilege to work with Kay for over 18 years. In addition to her duties as President and COO for PAR, she took on the responsibility of leading our sales team. She assisted in establishing and writing policies and procedures, which was something we needed. She was also was very helpful to me with large bids and contracts. Over the years, Kay has always been a great “go-to person” because she seemed to know the answer to any question. I wish her much happiness as she begins this next step in life. —Nancy Fazioli, Senior Administrative Assistant

I have worked with Kay since her beginning days at PAR, and over the years, she has taught me so much about helping others. Kay is a kind and generous person, both with her time and with her financial resources. She has supported nearly every community activity PAR has supported. She has participated in fundraising walks for various charities; she is an extremely generous supporter of United Way; she has been board president of PACE Center for Girls in Tampa, as well as past secretary of the state board of PACE; she is an active member of Hospice Women of Philanthropy; and the list goes on. Kay is a selfless person who has willing offered her time, expertise, and counsel to many people and organizations, always in an accepting, nonjudgmental way. She has had a strong, steady presence at PAR over the past 26 years. I will really miss Kay (and her funny jokes!) and wish her the very best as she approaches this next exciting part of her journey—retirement! —Cathy Smith, Vice President of Community Relations

I’ve known Kay about 26 years. She always has a kind word for others. She often asks how my out-of-state family is doing and it is clear to see she genuinely cares. One year, she hosted a St. Patrick ’s Day party and that was a lot of fun. Recently, before Hurricane Irma hit, she offered her place to ride out the storm if the need should arise. She has been a wonderful leader and will definitely be missed. —Becky Haines, Senior Graphic Layout Specialist

One of my favorite memories of Kay is when she organized the bowling event for the PACE Center for Girls. The theme was 80s. She went out and bought all the girls hot pink 80s shirts and hair bows. It was a great time and our team won best team spirit. —Christine Fontenot, Clinical Assessment Consultant

Every year, we are asked to submit a list of goals to our supervisor for the following year. Many years ago, one of the goals I submitted was to be more like Kay. Kay always asks the best questions, has such a logical way of looking at the world, handles stress effortlessly, and puts people at such ease. I feel fortunate that I’ve been able to learn from Kay all these years. Kay, enjoy your retirement! You will truly be missed at PAR. —Jamie Goland, Editor/Project Manager

This is not directly related to PAR, rather Kay’s involvement with PACE. Many years ago, Kay introduced me to the PACE organization and I was able to collect some data (for the TEC) using their site in Pinellas. I also enjoyed visiting the PACE Tampa facility with Kay a few years ago. —Sue Trujillo, Manager of Data Collection

I can always count on Kay to review every ad, flyer, brochure, and e-blast and provide one of the following comments: Looks good; Looks fine to me; Looks okay to me; Looks great! When she submits more than a few words as feedback, I know there’s a problem! —Melanie Casey, Editor/Project Manager

It’s been my absolute pleasure to work with Kay for almost her entire tenure here at PAR. I also had the advantage of working with her in a variety of different roles and company projects. She has always been one of my favorite people to work with. Smart as a whip, generous, quick witted, honest, and not afraid to be quirky or fresh in her approach, she always offered the most valuable feedback to subordinates and members of her team. I always found her willing to listen and to be fair in situations that warranted it. Make no mistake, Kay is also as tough as nails, always taking care of the company and our interests, both financially and otherwise, but she was never brash or disrespectful in her approach—she was always the epitome of “grace under pressure.” Early on, I learned never to doubt the outcome of any project as long as Kay was involved—she always brought a sense of calm and reason to any situation, even when things may not be going our way. We are going to miss Kay so much. I know, however, that she is going to have the most wonderful retirement because she very much deserves it! Thank you for all you have done for us and our Customers over the years, Kay. PAR would not be the wonderful company it is today without your great care and strength of character in every role you occupied while working here. —Tamara Dwoskin, CS Customer Relationship Manager

I’ve reported to Kay since starting with PAR in late March of 2017. In that time, she has been directly responsible for my orientation to the company and training on our company policies and procedures. As you can imagine, with all of the activities related to sales including travel, conferences, author communications, day to day responses to Customers and outside organizations, I have gone to Kay for all kinds of questions and requests. I’ve found Kay to be welcoming and have found her always willing to help. This includes one Friday when despite a closed door, she instructed me to come in for our weekly meeting. On the floor, in a box was a local rescue dog that she was taking to a new foster home. I found this to be indicative of the type of person Kay is. She’s giving and welcoming, always with a smile. This includes not only all of us at PAR, but those in need as well, be they two-legged or four-legged. We’ll miss her generous spirit and her leadership, and wish her well in whatever lies ahead. —David Houser, Director of Sales

I have had the great pleasure of working with Kay for 26 years as she served in many different roles—controller, CFO, vice president, director, COO, executive vice president, and then president. Kay joined PAR in 1991, when we were just 13 years old and a little more than half the size we are today. She has been part of our team for the next 26 years (or two-thirds of our total existence). As the CEO who worked closely with her for 25 and 1/2 years, I cannot imagine having a work partner who is more competent, dedicated, hardworking, committed, trustworthy, or loyal than Kay. At some point in our lives, we realize that there are only a limited number of people who will have significant impact on our life. For me, Kay is one of those people. I will miss her greatly, but am very pleased that she has agreed for us to get together for lunch once in awhile so we can stay in contact. I wish her great happiness, health, and adventure in her post-PAR journey through life. —R. Bob Smith III, PhD, Executive Chairman and Founder 

Thank you so much, Kay. You will truly be missed.

At the end of this year, Kay Cunningham will be retiring after 26 years at PAR. Kay joined PAR in 1991 as Chief Financial Officer and is retiring as President and Chief Operating Officer. Kay has been an integral member of the PAR team and will be leaving a lasting impression on everyone who had the honor to work with her. Throughout the next week, we will be sharing stories, memories, and well wishes as we send Kay on to her next chapter.

 Kay is an amazing person—she is a wonderful blend of a strong, ambitious business woman while also being very caring and funny, too. She is one of the first to have a funny joke to share—and is often found talking about the recent football games (especially if it involves Alabama). She is courageous, too—I cannot imagine spending all those years sailing around the world like she did. It must have been an amazing experience but certainly not one for the weak! For me, Kay was an integral part of my learning of PAR and my development into my current role. She has always been there to provide advice or just be a listening ear. She approaches issues very thoughtfully and is not shy to share her opinion—a wonderful combination. I have such respect for Kay and all her contributions to PAR. It has been such a pleasure to work with her over the years. She will be greatly missed though I can only imagine what wonderful adventures, jokes, and good times await her. —Kristin Greco, Chief Executive Officer

 In the 11 years I have worked for PAR, Kay has taught me what it means to be professional, to get to the heart of the matter by asking lots of questions, and to be flexible and resilient in business. She has taught this just by example—not by telling or by instructing, but by simply being a leader and allowing me to observe her over the years. I will miss her openness and sense of humor so much! —Erika Thompson, Manager of Production

 Kay has been a great example of the wonderful leadership at PAR. She will be dearly missed by all. Her smile and laugh are infectious and her baking delicious. Best wishes for a relaxing and enjoyable retirement! —Vicki McFadden, Permissions Specialist

 The greatest thing I learned from Kay over the years is how important it is to fully understand a situation before making a decision. She’s always asking questions and getting more information. Despite being in such an important position, she was never embarrassed to admit when she didn’t know something. I’ve also always been amazed at how much she knows about so many different topics! But most importantly, she is an amazing listener. No matter how trivial your problem was or how busy she was, she always made time. —Daniel McFadden, Manager of Customer Support

 Kay, you have been such a valuable asset to PAR over the years! Your contributions to the overall strategy and daily operation of PAR, and the guidance you have provided to managers and staff will be sorely missed. I’ve learned a great deal from you, from how to look at a certain situation from a different perspective, to questioning things that just don’t seem to fit. And coming from someone who can never remember a joke from beginning to end, your humor is enlightening and envious. You have truly passed on to the rest of us the knowledge that devotion to Customers and understanding their needs is what keeps us in business. I wish you the best in your future endeavors. Retirement will surely offer you many new opportunities, which I know you will embrace wholeheartedly. —Vicki King, Executive Assistant to the CEO and Executive Chairman

Having working directly with Kay for 11+ years, I will genuinely miss her leadership, encouragement, and knowledge. I will sincerely miss her! —Lottie Zack, Senior Administrator

From an internal perspective, Kay is an editor’s best friend, always responding to review items quickly and, 95% of the time, before anyone else has read them! She is such a genuinely nice person and always has a smile for everyone. She will be sorely missed! —Frank Filippone, Copywriter/Project Manager

I’ve worked with Kay for over 25 years! She became my supervisor many years ago and has helped me develop into the manager I am today. She always provides great advice and has helped pass her knowledge on to me. You’ve been a great friend and mentor over the years! Thanks for all your contributions to PAR and the DC!! Congratulations on a well-deserved retirement. Best wishes! —Greg Presson, Vice President of Distribution

 I remember interviewing with Kay almost 13 years ago as she was transitioning from the CFO to COO. I have been fortunate to have had her leadership and guidance throughout my entire tenure at PAR. As she moved up in the organization, she has provided support to me in her “old” role and I am forever grateful for all of the lessons that I have learned. Her presence will be missed at PAR but her legacy will live on in all that we do! —Donna Drackett, Vice President and Chief Financial Officer

 Come back over the next week as we share more well wishes!

PAR prides itself on providing the best Customer Service in the industry. But this commitment was taken to a new level recently, when 56 boxes of PAR assessment products got delivered to the wrong address, meaning an afternoon of seriously heavy lifting for two PAR distribution center employees.

When Nate Cooper and Cliff Gardner realized that it would take several days of work to retag, rebill, and redeliver 1,600 pounds worth of product that ended up in the wrong location in downtown Tampa, they took matters into their own hands. Knowing our Customer was waiting on the materials, Nate and Cliff decided to jump into Cliff’s truck and drive to the location, load up the boxes, drive back across town, and hand deliver the order to the right place, even though it took more than 10 trips in an elevator.

When we say we provide the best Customer Service in the industry, we mean it!

You may know that PARiConnect offers administration and scoring of some of your favorite PAR assessment products, but did you know the safety, security, and stability of our online assessment platform leads the industry?

Security

PARiConnect was designed in strict adherence to HIPAA guidelines. The safekeeping of your clients’ sensitive information is extremely important. Client data remain solely within your control; PAR never accesses, aggregates, mines, or analyzes client data. Encryption ensures security in transmission and storage

Patient identification data are protected with TLS 1.2 encryption, and all internal PARiConnect communications are performed behind a firewall. All systems are hosted at a Peak 10 data center that is centrally located to our U.S. Customer base. In addition, PAR complies with the EU-U.S. Privacy Shield Framework, certified to adhere to privacy and security principles outlined by the U.S. Department of Commerce to meet EU privacy concerns.

Stability

PARiConnect has only been offline for fewer than 30 minutes during 2017, which includes planned downtime to make updates. That means that you don’t have to worry about your access to PARiConnect—it’s always there when you need it!

 Learn more about PARiConnect today! Join us for a free interactive Webinar on December 13 at noon ET to learn how to use PARiConnect to simply your assessment process. Register now! 

The SPECTRA: Indices of Psychopathology is a brief, self-administered, multiscale measure of adult psychopathology and functioning. Informed by quantitative model research, the SPECTRA provides an integrated hierarchical assessment of psychopathology from lower-order clinical constructs up through multiple spectra and one general factor.

Standing apart from other measures, the SPECTRA:

• Is a low burden (96 items), psychometrically sound tool that is much briefer than most psychopathology measures.

• Can be used in treatment settings where longer assessments are not feasible or with patient populations that are unable to complete longer test batteries.

The SPECTRA’s 12 scales measure clinically important constructs. The Internalizing, Externalizing, and Reality-Impairing spectra are each composed of four scales. The three spectra combine to form the General Psychopathology Index. Administration and scoring will be available on PARiConnect, our online assessment platform.

Preorder your copy of the SPECTRA today!