The Disability Section presents several awards each year during the Annual Business Meeting and Award Ceremony at the APHA Annual Meeting. These awards celebrate the contributions of outstanding individuals to the disability field within the context of public health. Over the years, several awards have been established to recognize the various types of contributions: the Alan Meyers Award, the Lifetime Achievement Award, and the Student Member Award. This year the New Investigator Award was presented for the first time. This year’s awards ceremony was exceptionally well-attended, with the group celebrating the Disability Forum’s achievement of section status, as well as the accomplishments and contributions of the following individuals.
The Disability Section Student Member Award is presented to a student member who has conducted promising work to advance the health and quality of life of people with disabilities. B.J. Kitchin, a doctoral student at the University of Maine, was selected to receive this award for contributions in the areas of teaching, technology and scholarship that are too numerous to list here, but include teaching undergraduate disability studies courses and serving as a technology specialist to help students with disabilities to communicate their work in class. B.J. is pursuing an interdisciplinary PhD that examines the intersection of accessibility, human rights, and technology within the framework of disability studies. As his nominator, Liz DePoy, wrote, “B.J. has synthesized his talents and commitment to disability, access and social justice in a manner that has exceeded any student who I know.”
The New Investigator Award recognizes a newer investigator who demonstrates evidence of a promising career in public health research in the area of health and wellness for people with disabilities. Thilo Kroll was selected as the first recipient of this award. Currently a faculty member at the University of Dundee in Scotland, Thilo has launched what promises to be a stellar research career by serving as lead or co-investigator on several studies related to health promotion for people with disabilities. He served as lead author for several publications and data briefs and also served as lead editor for a book titled Towards Best Practices in Surveying People with Disabilities. Thilo was nominated for such substantial contributions at this early stage of his career.
The Allan Meyers Award is presented to a person who has combined excellence across the areas of research, teaching and advocacy in disabilities. This award was established in memory of Disability Section member Allan Meyers, a passionate public health and disability researcher, professor and advocate whose life and distinguished career were tragically cut short. This year, Jim Rimmer, professor in the Department of Disability and Human Development, College of Applied Health Sciences, at the University of Illinois at Chicago, director of two federally funded centers -- the National Center on Physical Activity and Disability and the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Recreational Technology and Exercise Physiology -- and chair of the APHA Disability Section, received this award. As one nominator wrote, Jim “has devoted his career to prevention of secondary conditions and health promotion for a population that has received very little attention in the scientific community that is at great risk for worsening health and further disablement without the interventions he has proposed and implemented.” Indeed, Jim is well known for the passion and energy he directs toward these issues!
The Lifetime Achievement Award is presented to a person who, over the course of his or her career, has made a major contribution to the improvement of health and quality of life for people with disabilities in one or more areas of research, teaching or advocacy. This is the first award that was established by the Disability Section, to recognize specialty and achievement in the field at a time when “disability” and “health” were often considered mutually exclusive. This year, Peg Nosek, executive director of the Center for Research on Women with Disabilities (CROWD) at Baylor University and professor, Department of Physical Medicine and Rehabilitation, Baylor College of Medicine, received this award. Peg is a nationally known investigator who is well-published in the areas of rehabilitation, independent living and health promotion for women with disabilities. Her interest in the health of women with disabilities and her determination to conduct research on this topic led her to found CROWD in 1993. Her nominator cited Peg as a personal and professional role model for women with disabilities who has overcome significant barriers to live independently, be an active community member and achieve a distinguished career.
Additionally, the Disability Section Executive Board presented Don Lollar with a Distinguished Service Award in appreciation for his many years of work to strengthen the Section and to promote it within APHA. Don cycled off the Executive Board last year, but his years of leadership and vision have greatly benefited the Disability Section -- and continue to do so!
With the exception of Peg Nosek, the awardees were able to attend the Annual Meeting in Washington, D.C. to receive their awards and to share a few words with the audience. Gloria Krahn accepted Peg’s award on her behalf and shared her thanks with the audience.
This year’s Awards Committee, Dot Nary as chair, David Keer and Rene Jahiel as members, and Gloria Krahn as ex officio member, would like to thank all who submitted nominations.