Welcome to The Blotter

So, you’ve received the first edition of The Blotter from the Teachers College Interdisciplinary Psychedelic Society (TCIPS). At one point or another – you registered for an event of ours, signed up for our mailing list, or expressed interest in TCIPS in person. Your interest & engagement is validation that TCIPS’ mission to reach those in the Teachers College & Columbia University communities eager to learn more about the rapidly emerging field of psychedelics is a necessary one – our gratitude knows no bounds. 

I decided to start the Teachers College Interdisciplinary Psychedelic Society as a result of several factors which were illuminated by my professional involvement within this psychedelic ecosystem. As a student at my undergraduate institution, UConn, I had the privilege of being mentored by Dr. Monnica Williams, a leader in the field of psychedelics whose research centers on racial trauma & OCD. Through this connection, I was able to serve as a Clinical Research Coordinator for the MAPS-sponsored FDA expanded access study of MDMA in the treatment of PTSD & support Ketamine-Assisted Psychotherapy treatments as a Student Therapist alongside highly trained clinicians. Additionally, I have co-authored several papers on psychedelic science & have had the opportunity to present at / support the production of numerous psychedelic conferences & training events. My engagement in this community led me to connect with other students who believed students should have less barriers to getting involved in psychedelics, & we eventually founded / developed the Intercollegiate Psychedelics Network (IPN). My long-term service as the Director of Finance for IPN allowed me to engage not only with the research or clinical aspects of the field of psychedelics, but with many other disciplines that are directly related to psychedelics such as drug policy, philosophy, anthropology, community organizing & education, and harm reduction. Finally, I currently serve as the Diversity Fund Manager & Training Support Staff at Fluence, a post-graduate institution situated at the forefront of educating licensed clinicians to become the nation’s first wave of psychedelic therapists. 

These numerous professional experiences allowed me to become intimately attuned to the ethos & practical application of psychedelic-assisted psychotherapies and engrain myself within this community of thought-leaders that has produced the latest advancements of psychedelic research, applications of this research in practice, & resources to support the masses integration of psychedelics into commonplace awareness. Drawing on these experiences, I immediately observed that knowledge & discourse on psychedelics was lacking at Teachers College despite its role as Columbia’s hub for psychology research & training. I met many people (students & faculty alike) who shared my interest in psychedelics during my first semester at Teachers College, and I intuitively knew that I needed to draw on my experience supporting countless students establish student psychedelic organizations at prestigious academic institutions around the globe during my time with IPN to start TCIPS. 

The goal is simple – TCIPS aims to facilitate educational & experiential opportunities to bring attention to the topic of psychedelics (science, culture, theory) and to establish a community of like-minded individuals from Columbia. Using our platform to accomplish these aims will support the destigmatization of psychedelics in academia & allow for those with expertise in numerous disciplines to address issues in psychedelics that require the integration of interdisciplinary perspectives. The importance of this organization lies primarily in the fact that several indicators suggest that legislative change is beckoning to reschedule several psychedelic substances (i.e., MDMA & psilocybin) that have demonstrated unrivaled efficacy in treating various mental health disorders. Ready or not, change is coming – TCIPS hopes to do its part in ensuring that our academic institution is keeping up with the latest in the field of psychedelics. 

The Blotter Paper serves many functions to help TCIPS accomplish these aims; sharing timely resources with the community & providing both professional development & writing opportunities for our volunteers. In the context of psychedelics, “blotter paper” is a material that liquid lysergic acid diethylamide (LSD) is commonly placed onto & ingested to deliver this psychedelic to the body. Blotter paper is usually brilliantly decorated with psychedelic art designs. In other contexts, “blotters” generally refer to a frequent report of events & happenings within a certain area. One popular use of blotters includes police blotters; characterized as a skeleton report of a precinct or station’s activities for a given period of time. Considering the purpose of this newsletter is to deliver interdisciplinary psychedelic content to you on a regular basis & the duality between the federally illegality of these substances & TCIPS’ intention to operate within all guidelines, ensuring our legitimate coverage of this important topic – I decided to name this TCIPS newsletter ‘The Blotter’.

by Joel Lopez