Distinguished Researcher Award

Dr. Nancy Jordan - 2022

Dr. Diane Ryndak - 2021

Dr. Lauren Lindstrom - 2020

Dr. Michael Giangreco - 2019

Dr. Stephen Smith - 2018

Dr. Stephanie Al Otaiba - 2017

Dr. Asha Jitendra - 2016

Dr. Paul Morgan - 2015

Outstanding Dissertation Award

Dr. Courtney Wilt - 2022

Dr. Erica Mason - 2021

Dr. Ariana Riccio - 2020

Dr. Carlyn Mueller - 2020

Jolan Smith - 2019

HyeJung Kim - 2018

Kat Alves - 2017

Sarah Nagro - 2016

Debra McKeown - 2015

Greetings SIG members,

It’s Award Time!

If you are a former AERA Special and Inclusive Education Research (SIER) SIG award winner and would like to be on our award committee, please email Amy Accardo at Accardo@Rowan.edu

This document provides information about our three SIER-SIG awards:

1. Outstanding Dissertation Award
2. Distinguished Researcher Award
3. Graduate Student Annual Meeting Award 

Details and how to apply:

(1) Outstanding Dissertation Award

The SIER-SIG is pleased to invite nominations for the Outstanding Dissertation Award. This award recognizes excellence in research related to the education of children, adolescents, and adults with disabilities. Recipients will receive recognition by the SIG in the form of an award, a $1,000 honorarium, and will be invited to present their research at the 2022 AERA Annual Meeting.

The dissertation research for which individuals are nominated must have been conceived and conducted by them while they were enrolled as students, and not published as of the AERA Annual meeting. The research should represent an original, scholarly contribution to knowledge about education or related services for infants, toddlers, children, or youth with disabilities. Students may be nominated for this award by university faculty, SIG members, or may self-nominate. The winner must be willing and able to attend the AERA conference to present their work and to receive the award. For this year’s award, dissertations completed between May 1, 2020 and September 1, 2021 can be nominated. A dissertation can be submitted for consideration only once and can be nominated for an award within only one division or SIG of AERA.

Nominations should include:

1. a letter: identifying the nominee; providing a description of the research study; stating the date of successful defense; stating truthfully that the research has not been published or submitted for publication; and explaining why, in the opinion of the writer, the award is merited; 
2. a curriculum vitae for the nominee; 
3. an excerpt of the nominated dissertation, containing the title page, the abstract, table of contents, and one chapter (with the author's address, email, and phone number). The paper should be written in APA style (7th edition) and not exceed 30 double-spaced typed pages including references, tables, and figures.

To submit: Use this link to access the Outstanding Dissertation Award Submission Google Form. Submissions will be judged on quality, importance, and originality by a committee selected by the SIG chair. Submit by December 1, 2021.  Only PDF or Word documents will be accepted. Questions please contact the SIG Chair, Amy Accardo, Accardo@Rowan.edu 

(2) Distinguished Researcher Award

We would like to encourage you to consider nominating a researcher for the SIER SIG’s Distinguished Researcher Award. Individuals are nominated based on a body of research that has made significant and sustained contributions to research, policy, and/or practice in the field of special and inclusive education over an extended period of time. 

The nomination package should include:

• a nomination letter with 
  • nominee name
  • affiliation
  • short statement (1-2 pages) that explains why, in the opinion of the nominator, the nominee’s receipt of the Distinguished Research Award is merited 
• Current CV for the nominee  

The distinguished researcher's presentation at our business meeting at AERA is always a highlight of the conference for our SIG members, and this year we look forward to an in-person presentation and business meeting.

To submit: Use this link to access the Distinguished Researcher Award Submission Google Form. Submissions will be judged on quality, importance, and originality by a committee selected by the SIG chair. Submit by December 1, 2021.  Only PDF or Word documents will be accepted. Questions please contact the SIG Chair, Amy Accardo, Accardo@Rowan.edu 

(3) Graduate Student Annual Meeting Award

The Special and Inclusive Education Research Special Interest Group (SIER-SIG) is pleased to invite nominations for the AERA SIER-SIG Graduate Student Annual Meeting Award. This award has been created to financially assist with costs of attendance for graduate students presenting at the AERA annual meeting to be held April 2022. The AERA SIER SIG will award support to 1-3 graduate students, depending on the availability of the SIG funds. The amount of the award will be based on the funds available to the SIG and the number of qualified applicants, but they will typically range between $100-200. Awards will be handled on the back end of registration, you will not be receiving a check from AERA. Only graduate students who are not receiving conference support from their institutions are eligible. 

Support decisions will be made by the SIER SIG Executive Committee based on the following criteria:

• The applicant is a member of the SIER-SIG;

• a conference support application, submitted as a document in APA format, that includes:

1. an abstract of presentation related to special education research that is accepted to the AERA Annual Meeting (roundtable or paper session only); 
2. a brief explanation of why it is important for the applicant to present their work at AERA; (including implications for their career and benefits for the AERA audience);
3. a statement of financial need; 
4. status in program (advanced students will be given priority consideration over newer students); and
5. letter of support from advisor or program coordinator 
6. A statement that the student is not receiving financial support from the institution to attend the virtual meeting

To submit: Use this link to access the Graduate Student Annual Meeting Award Submission Google Form. Submissions will be judged on quality, importance, and originality by a committee selected by the SIG chair. Submit by December 1, 2021.  Only PDF or Word documents will be accepted. Questions please contact the SIG Chair, Amy Accardo, Accardo@Rowan.edu 

Sincerely,

The SIER SIG Leadership Team