Illinois Psychological Association

What Illinois Psychological Association does

The Illinois Psychological Association (IPA) is a 501(c)(6) non-profit professional association founded on August 28, 1936 (originally as the Illinois Society of Consulting Psychologists, renamed to its current name in 1976), and self-described as the largest professional association of psychologists in Illinois. It is headquartered at 67 E. Madison Street, Suite 1904 in Chicago and operates with a lean staff of approximately three paid employees (Executive Director Jessica Thomas, MBA; Legislative Liaison Terry Koller, PhD, ABPP; Office Manager/Membership Services Valerie Hanserd) plus a volunteer Council of Representatives. Its core offering is a membership-and-services platform serving practicing clinical psychologists, researchers, educators, consultants, early-career psychologists, and graduate students (via the IPAGS section) across Illinois.

IPA's products and services include tiered membership with access to a member directory, free ethics consultations, and discounted continuing education; a Continuing Education program delivered through the CE21-powered catalog (live workshops, annual convention, on-demand CE such as Alzheimer's/Dementia and required Sexual Harassment Prevention training); the public Find a Psychologist referral directory; the quarterly Illinois Psychologist newsletter; the IPAGS student section; ten special-interest Sections; the Member Resources library (bylaws, downloadable practice forms, HIPAA references, The Trust insurance information); and an Advocacy Program representing Illinois psychologists on licensure, reimbursement parity, and scope-of-practice legislation.

Revenue is generated through four streams: annual/tiered membership dues (subscription, processed through the CE21 portal), paid continuing education courses (transaction-based, with member discounts), multi-tier corporate sponsorships (Platinum/Gold/Silver), and implicit donations. Distribution is direct: members self-serve sign up via the CE21 portal, the public accesses the Find a Psychologist directory online or via the IPA office phone, and sponsors are sourced through the IPA office and Convention Sponsorship Form. Underlying technology is a WordPress site plus the CE21 SaaS platform for membership, events, CE, and directory, with Google Analytics, 8am.com PCI-DSS payment processing, and a WordPress GDPR Cookie Compliance plugin. IPA holds no patents or trademarks and has no subsidiaries other than its wholly owned graduate-student affiliate IPAGS.

Name

Illinois Psychological Association

Legal name

Illinois Psychological Association

Website

https://illinoispsychology.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1936

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

1–10 employees

Short description

The Illinois Psychological Association is a 501(c)(6) non-profit professional association, founded in 1936 and self-described as the largest such body for psychologists in Illinois, serving members through membership, continuing education, legislative advocacy, and a public Find a Psychologist directory.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Headquarters

HQ city

Chicago

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B and B2C

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Marketing or Sales, Technology or R&D, Infrastructure, Others

Revenue model

1. Membership dues: Annual/tiered membership subscriptions for practicing clinicians, researchers, educators, consultants, early career psychologists, and student affiliates (with IPAGS membership automatic for students). Dues are paid through the CE21 membership signup system. Tier-specific amounts are not publicly disclosed on the public-facing website.
2. Corporate sponsorship program: Multi-tier (Platinum, Gold, Silver) corporate sponsorship program where companies pay for sponsorship visibility, alignment with IPA programs and events, and exposure to the psychology community in Illinois. Sponsors include Light On Anxiety, Journey Clinical, AFSP, Ascension, The Trust, Chicago School of Professional Psychology, Triad, Shared Vision, and TheraClosure.
3. Continuing Education (CE) program fees: Revenue from paid on-demand CE courses and live CE events/workshops, including specialty programs such as the "Rooted in Respect" Diversity CE Series Part 2 (Culturally Responsive Care for Muslim Patients) and required CE such as Sexual Harassment Prevention for Illinois license renewal. Member pricing carries significant discounts.
4. Donations and general public support: Implicit fundraising stream supporting IPA's public education and advocacy mission; supported through the "Become a Member Today!" call-to-action and broader membership community.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion3 records

Distribution channels4 records

Marketing channels9 records

Core offering

Illinois Psychological Association (IPA) is a 501(c)(6) non-profit professional association that delivers tiered membership subscriptions, continuing education (CE) programming, legislative and reimbursement advocacy, and practice-support resources to psychologists in Illinois. Supplementary offerings include a public Find a Psychologist referral directory, a quarterly newsletter, special-interest sections, corporate sponsorship tiers, and an annual convention—all delivered via the CE21-powered web platform and Chicago office.

Product overview

The Illinois Psychological Association (IPA) is a 501(c)(6) non-profit professional association and the largest such body for psychologists in Illinois. Its offering is a membership-and-services platform rather than a single product: the core IPA Membership grants access to a directory, continuing education (IPA Continuing Education Program), advocacy representation, member-only discounts, and the quarterly The Illinois Psychologist Newsletter. Supplementary modules include the Find a Psychologist Directory (public-facing referral tool), Member Resources (bylaws, downloadable practice forms, HIPAA references, liability insurance through The Trust), the IPAGS graduate-student section, special-interest IPA Sections, the IPA Calendar of events, the IPA Sponsor Program, and an Advocacy Program that operates on legislative activity. The underlying member experience — registration, login, CE catalog, directory, and calendar — is delivered through the CE21 platform that powers the site.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Brands

• Illinois Psychological Association of Graduate Students (IPAGS): Graduate student section of IPA promoting education, professional development, networking, and advocacy for psychology graduate students in Illinois.
• The Illinois Psychologist

Products and services

• IPA Membership

Quantifiable outcome

• Lobbied Illinois General Assembly to pass the first Psychologist Registration Act (HB 926) in 1963
• +3 more outcomes

Segments6 records

Ideal customer profiles5 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Integration6 records

Feature3 records

Partnerships

Ten partnerships are on record, tiered flagship (gold sponsor, endorsed insurance partner), flagship (platform powering ipa's website, membership, ce, and directory), flagship (platinum sponsor), core (gold sponsor) and core (silver sponsor).

• The Trustflagship (gold sponsor, endorsed insurance partner)GTM or Marketing PartnerGold-tier sponsor and IPA's endorsed partner for professional liability insurance, financial security, and risk management programs tailored specifically for psychologists. IPA members may be eligible for a 15% discount on the endorsed policy. The Trust has been the leading provider in this space since 1962 and also supplies downloadable practice forms (sample contracts, intake forms, termination summary, electronic communication policy, HIPAA booklet, Medicare reimbursement article) via the IPA Resources page.
• CE21, LLCflagship (platform powering ipa's website, membership, ce, and directory)Technology or IntegrationCE21 powers IPA's website infrastructure, including membership signup, event/CE registration, on-demand continuing education catalog (e.g., Alzheimer's & Dementias, Sexual Harassment Prevention, Rooted in Respect Diversity CE Series), Find a Psychologist public directory, and member account management. Privacy policy lists CE21 as an Email Marketing Service Provider. Branded as "POWERED BY CE21" in the website footer.
• Light On Anxiety Treatment Centersflagship (platinum sponsor)GTM or Marketing PartnerPlatinum-level sponsor. Offers assessments, Cognitive Behavioral Therapy (CBT), medication management, and psychological testing focused on anxiety and related conditions. IPA's sponsorship program allows Light On Anxiety to align with the Illinois psychology community.
• Journey Clinicalflagship (platinum sponsor)GTM or Marketing PartnerPlatinum-level sponsor. Platform that gives licensed therapists in private practice the tools to deliver Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy in partnership with a medical team, aimed at safely expanding access to psychedelic treatments.
• American Foundation for Suicide Prevention (AFSP)core (gold sponsor)GTM or Marketing PartnerGold-level sponsor. Voluntary health organization established in 1987 focused on suicide prevention through research funding, public education, advocacy for mental health/suicide prevention policy, and supporting survivors of suicide loss.
• Ascension Illinoiscore (gold sponsor)GTM or Marketing PartnerGold-level sponsor. One of the largest health systems in Illinois, serving families for more than 156 years; provides care through nearly 700 providers at over 146 locations across the greater Chicago area.
• The Chicago School of Professional Psychologycore (silver sponsor)GTM or Marketing PartnerSilver-level sponsor. Nonprofit university that has trained psychology, counseling, behavioral science, business, and medical professionals for more than 40 years with an emphasis on cultural competency and community impact.
• Triadcore (silver sponsor)GTM or Marketing PartnerSilver-level sponsor. Leading provider of education, community, and career resources for behavioral and mental health professionals. Built on a 45+ year history of helping students succeed on professional licensure exams.
• Shared Vision Psychological Services (SVPS)core (silver sponsor)GTM or Marketing PartnerSilver-level sponsor. Not-for-profit organization serving children, adolescents, adults, families, schools, and other professionals with individual psychotherapy, group sessions, and community-based mental health services.
• TheraClosurecore (silver sponsor)GTM or Marketing PartnerSilver-level sponsor. Provides professional wills and practice executor services for psychotherapists, fulfilling ethical obligations around continuity of patient care.

Scale indicators5 records

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights6 records

Direct peers

• New York State Psychological Association: Statewide professional association for psychologists in New York. Same model as IPA: membership dues, legislative advocacy on licensure and scope of practice, CE programming, and ethical/practice support for doctoral-level psychologists.
• California Psychological Association: The largest state psychological association by membership in the U.S. Directly comparable to IPA: 501(c)(6) non-profit, member dues, CE delivery, statewide legislative advocacy, and a public Find-a-Psychologist directory. Closest 1:1 functional analog.
• Massachusetts Psychological Association: Massachusetts state psychological association offering the same member, advocacy, and CE model as IPA, including a public provider directory and legislative engagement on Massachusetts psychology practice law.
• Florida Psychological Association: Florida's statewide professional association for psychologists, comparable to IPA in mission, advocacy focus on Florida psychology practice law, continuing education, and member benefits.
• Ohio Psychological Association: Ohio's statewide association for psychologists; functionally comparable to IPA as a state-level membership, advocacy, and CE body for licensed doctoral psychologists.
• Pennsylvania Psychological Association: State psychological association serving Pennsylvania psychologists with advocacy, CE, and member services—parallel structure to IPA, though operating under Pennsylvania-specific licensure and reimbursement law.
• Texas Psychological Association: Texas state psychological association delivering the same core offering as IPA: membership, CE, advocacy on Texas psychology statutes, public referral directory, and convention programming for licensed psychologists.

Broad incumbents

• American Psychological Association: National parent body representing all U.S. psychologists. IPA explicitly serves as the APA state affiliate and coordinates federal advocacy through IPA leadership. Comparable because both are membership-and-advocacy associations serving psychologists, but APA operates nationally and at vastly larger scale.
• National Association of Social Workers: Largest U.S. membership association of social workers. Adjacent mental-health profession with overlapping scope-of-practice interests; relevant peer because master's-level clinicians (a competitive category to doctoral psychologists) are largely social workers and counselors.
• American Counseling Association: National membership association for counselors. Adjacent profession to psychology; competes for CE dollars, legislative influence on scope-of-practice, and mental-health workforce representation, particularly relevant given master's-level licensure debates.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat5 records

Key risks6 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• Xx.com/ILPsychological
• Facebookfacebook.com/ILPsychology
• Instagraminstagram.com/illinoispsychology
• TikToktiktok.com/@illinoispsychological
• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/illinois-psychological-association

Compliance4 records

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles4 records

Subsidiaries1 record

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

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M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about Illinois Psychological Association