Building Sustainable Academic–Practice Partnerships: Lessons Learned From Collaborating With a State Government Agency

Building sustainable academic–praxis partnerships does not require a pre-existing relationship. Sometimes it starts with something as simple as a cold email, followed by trust-building, careful listening, and a genuine focus on mutual value. In our new article in The Industrial–Organizational Psychologist, published by the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP), we share lessons from collaborating with a state government agency and discuss how academic programs can create partnerships that benefit students, faculty, and organizational stakeholders. Academic–praxis partnerships can do more than enrich teaching. They can strengthen programs, support organizations, and help students apply evidence-based IWO Psychology in real settings.