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2019 Awards & Stipends

2025 Awards & Stipends

Awards & Stipends

2025 Awards & Stipends

2025 Awards and Stipends

The 2025 awards ceremony of the Midwest Symposium for Leadership in Behavior Disorders (MSLBD) recognized current and future leaders in our field. We welcomed one new member to the MSLBD Master Teacher group. Nominations are accepted each year by November 1.
2024 Awards Program video. 

A smiling woman with shoulder-length red hair and a light green top stands beside a bearded man in a black suit and orange tie holding a black-framed award plaque. They pose in front of a “Midwest Symposium for Leadership in Behavior Disorders” banner.
Outstanding Leadership Award

Nicholas Gage, WestEd, San Francisco, California

The Outstanding Leadership Award
The Midwest Symposium presents this award to an individual who has exhibited outstanding service and leadership to the field of behavior disorders on a national level.

Nicholas Gage, Ph.D., Research Director, Special Education Policy and Practice, WestEd, San Francisco, California

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Outstanding Building Leadership Award

James King, East Central Kansas Academy, Garnett, Kansas

Outstanding Building Leadership Award

The Midwest Symposium presents this award to an individual who has exhibited outstanding achievement and excellence as a building or program administrator serving students with behavioral needs.

James King, M.A., Building Administrator & Program Director, East Central Kansas Academy, Garnett, Kansas
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Outstanding Educator Award

Valerie Broderick, Columbia Public Schools, Columbia Missouri

Outstanding Educator Award

The Midwest Symposium presents this award to an individual who has exhibited outstanding achievement and excellence in classroom service to students with behavioral needs.

Valerie Broderick, M.A.E., District Behavior Support Coach, Columbia Public Schools, Columbia, Missouri

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Outstanding Advocacy Award

Lee Stickle, Kansas Technical Assistance System Network, Autism & Tertiary Behavior Supports, Lenexa, Kansas

Outstanding Advocacy Award

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Lee Stickle, M.S.Ed., Director, Kansas Technical Assistance System Network (T'ASN) Autism and Teriary Behavior Supports (ATBS), Lenexa, Kansas

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At the Midwest Symposium for Leadership in Behavior Disorders, a bespectacled man in a suit and a short-haired blonde woman in a dark top stand behind a black podium. The woman holds a translucent award trophy as they address the audience.
Unsung Hero Award

Kaye Otten, Advanced Behavior Collaborations, Kansas City, Missouri

Unsung Hero Award

MSLBD is served by many individuals who work in making our organization successful for 41 years and are considered by many as a leader in meeting the needs of educators and others serving youth with significant behavioral or mental health needs. This award recognizes an individual who has contributed significantly to the success of MSLBD but may not have been recognized for these contributions.

Kaye Otten, Ph.D., BCBA, Advanced Behavior Collaborations, Kansas City, Missouri

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Doctoral Student Stipend

Kassandra Spurlock, Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona

Doctoral Stipend Award 

Provided to students pursuing, or applying to pursue, a Doctoral degree in special education with a program emphasis on behavior disorders or a closely related field.

Kassandra Spurlock, M.Ed., Arizona State University, Tempe, Arizona

Kaleigh Pickett, University Instructor and Consultant, Billings, Missouri

MSLBD Master Teacher's Program

The Midwest Symposium for Leadership in Behavior Disorders Master Teachers are a group of experienced professional educators committed to bridging the "research to practice gap" by promoting the use of evidence-based practices in their work directly with students who exhibited behavioral challenges in public schools. Founded in 2006, the master teacher group provides a strand of practical, "what to do on Monday" presentations at the annual MSLBD symposium every February and contributes tips and tools on this website to help teachers in their daily practice. 

 

 

 

Kaleigh Pickett, Ed.S., University Instructor and Consultant, Billings, Missouri

2025 Outstanding Award in Poster Presentation

  • 2025 Outstanding Award in Poster Presentation

    No Sweat: Implementing Transition Instruction for Students with Emotional and Behavioral Disorders

    Olivia R. Hester, Ph.D., Kristine Jolivette, Ph.D., Sarah Sanders, EdD., Lauren Hart Rollins, Ph.D., from the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, Alabama
    Rose Osnaya, Ph.D., and James Hogan, M.Ed. - Poster Committee Co-Chairs

  • Mickey Losinski Research Poster Award
    Mickey Losinski Research Poster Award

    Improving Teacher-Student Relationships: A Single Case Study of the Banking Time Intervention

    Kelsey Smith, M.Ed., BCBA, Grace Reeder, Kyla Cisneros, and Kathleen Tuck, Ph.D., BCBA
    Nicholas Gage, Ph.D., and Robin Ennis, Ph.D. - Losinski Award Committee Co-Chairs

Get Involved

The Midwest Symposium for Leadership in Behavior Disorders recognizes individuals for the following awards. Review the criteria and nomination forms for these awards, here. 

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