Early Career Research Award Recipients

Ron Nelson Recipient of the 2000 Award

The CEC-Division for Research was pleased to present the second annual Distinguished Early Career Award to Dr. Ron Nelson at the 2000 CEC Annual Convention in Vancouver. The award of $1,000, co-sponsored by the Donald D. Hammill Foundation, recognizes an individual who has made outstanding scientific contributions, in basic and/or applied research, within the first ten years following completion of the doctoral degree. CEC-DR created this award in recognition of the critical role of research in current and future practice in special education. CEC-DR's award committee was chaired by Dr. Karen Harris (University of Maryland) and its members were Dr. Marty Kaufman (University of Oregon), Dr. Donald MacMillan (UC-Riverside), Dr. Barbara Keogh (UCLA), and Dr. Sam Odom (Indiana University).

Dr. Ron Nelson is an associate professor at Arizona State University in the areas of emotional and behavioral disorders. He was integrally involved in the development of the Arizona Behavioral Initiative, funded in 1999. The Initiative is a large statewide collaborative partnership with the Arizona Department of Education, the National Center on Positive Behavioral Interventions and Supports at the University of Oregon, and three Arizona public universities to provide technical assistance and training to educators on effective behavioral supports for all children.

Ron has worked with children and youth for over 15 years as a teacher, technical assistance provider, researcher, and professor. He earned his Master's degree in special education from Eastern Montana College in 1987 and his Ph.D. in educational psychology and special education from Utah State University in 1990. Since completing his Ph.D., he has authored or co-authored more than 70 research and practice articles, 5 books, and 6 chapters that have focused on educational and research issues.

Ron is noted for his academic and social programs used in risk and resiliency focused interventions for children with emotional and behavioral disorders. As a member of President Clinton's consensus panel on school violence, he was involved in the development of the guide, Early Warning, Timely Response: A Guide to Safe Schools, that every school in the nation received. He also was a consultant to the Office of Juvenile Justice and Delinquency Prevention. In 1998-1999 he received the Dean's Award for Excellence in Research at Arizona State University.

Dr. Nelson's scholarly activities include the development of school-wide prevention and intervention approaches that recognize the importance of environmental and cognitive influences on the context of behavior. He also has studied children's views of educational matters and considers the impact of diversity on the educational experiences of children. Ron has been described as "one of those rare individuals who can turn research into practice and inform practitioners about empirically-based practices." Ron is a dynamic, energetic, and creative professional with a well established reputation as a professional in special education who has and will continue to make a difference in the lives of individuals with disabilities.

CEC-DR was proud to present the 2000 Distinguished Early Career Award to Dr. Nelson at the special reception on Friday, April 7 at CEC's annual meeting in Vancouver, BC.