Scholarship and Fellowship Awards

The Department of Applied Behavioral Science offers several types of awards annually, including recognition awards for outstanding achievement in a concentration and a couple of scholarship awards. A summary of recent undergraduate awards provided through the Department are provided below.

For a full listing of financial award available through KU, review KU scholarship opportunities through Admissions.

Helen Jedlicka Mandigo Student Scholarship Fund

The Department of Applied Behavioral Science awards the Helen Jedlicka Mandigo Student Scholarships in Human Development and Family Life, which provides $500 to deserving undergraduate students. This endowed fund was generously established in 2004 by Helen Jedlicka Mandigo, a 1935 graduate of the Department of Home Economics, with a gift of $25,000. The fund provides "scholarship assistance for a deserving undergraduate or graduate student pursuing a degree in the department, and is administered through KU Endowment. The scholarship is based on need and merit, with an emphasis given to an individual who has shown strong potential for future participation in social leadership roles."

Award Recipients:

  • 2022: Nicole Dowell, Sophia Perniciaro, Meadow Scott
  • 2019: Danielle Mullins
  • 2018 Tara Brachtenbach
  • 2017 Keyah Richardson, Alicia Morgan, Victoria Bogner
  • 2016 Shannon Altmeyer, Talley Friessen, Crissy Ryun
  • 2015 Elizabeth Ekis, Katie Griffith, Campbell Haug, Julia Martinez, Krista Newton
  • 2014 Hannah Berc, Shelby Peavler, Mary Ritch
  • 2011 Jen Berman, Marjorie Cooper, Cara Smith, Kate Uxa
  • 2010 Bailey Bosc, Katie Guthrie, Abbigail Long, Laura White, Dana Wible

Outstanding Achievement Awards

The Department recognizes a graduating senior from each specialty area with an award for outstanding achievement. The award is presented to students during the graduation ceremony for the Department. The award recipients are based on noted academic achievement in a specialty area. For further information about Departmental awards, scholarships, and fellowships (e.g., eligibility, award criteria), contact: Dr. Jon Pinkston, Chair of the Awards Committee.

Donald M. Baer Award for Outstanding Achievement in Basic Research and Conceptual Foundations

A KU faculty member between 1965 and 2002, Professor Baer (1931-2002) articulated the basic dimensions of applied behavior analysis in the field's most widely cited article. He conducted early research with children (e.g., imitation), helped found the behavioral approach to development (e.g., cognition), and contributed significantly to research design and measurement and to interventions for people with developmental and intellectual disabilities. He was president of the Association for Behavior Analysis.

Award Recipients:

  • 2020 Amy Nguyen
  • 2019 Alejandra Carrillo
  • 2018 Londonne Ayers
  • 2017 Will Fleming
  • 2015 Josh Harsin
  • 2013 Marjorie Cooper
  • 2012 Skyler Rueb
  • 2011 Brent Kaplan

Stephen B. Fawcett Award for Outstanding Achievement in Community Health and Development

A KU faculty member in the Department of Applied Science between 1975 and 2015, Professor Fawcett is renowned for the application of behavioral science methods to understand and improve health and development in communities. He served as the inaugural Director of the KU Work Group for Community Health and Development (a World Health Organization Collaborating Centre) and as a founding member of the team that developed the web-based Community Tool Box. The criteria for this award include outstanding scholarship, work ethic, and contributions to service learning. We honor those who effectively apply their knowledge and skills learned in the classroom through demonstrable service to community organizations working to promote health and human development.

Award Recipients:

  • 2022 Olivia E. Jones
  • 2020 Samiyah Para-Cremer
  • 2019 Meagan Ziegler
  • 2018 Huda Dalaq
  • 2017 Rachel Riedel
  • 2016 Luke Swimmer
  • 2015 Ellie Eastes
  • 2013 Ashley Arenholz
  • 2012 Cara Smith
  • 2011 Gretchen Siebert
  • 2010 Alexis Kruse

Barbara C. Etzel Award for Outstanding Achievement in Early Childhood Education and Intervention

A KU faculty member between 1965 and 1994, Professor Etzel (b. 1926) is renowned for her research on basic behavioral processes (e.g., stimulus-control), as well as for her contributions to research administration, where she served as KU's Associate Dean of the Office of Research Administration and Director of the Kansas Center for Research in Early Childhood Education. She was president of the Association for Behavior Analysis and a role model for generations of women in behavior analysis.

Award Recipients:

  • 2020 Halle Norris
  • 2019 Emma Laughlin
  • 2018 Simone Light
  • 2017 Amanda Curtright
  • 2016 Morgan Henry
  • 2015 Rachel Jackson
  • 2013 Cynthia Livingston
  • 2012 Zachory Johnson
  • 2011 Jessica Danon
  • 2010 Jessica Cox

Todd R. Risley Award for Outstanding Achievement in Autism and Adults with Developmental Disabilities

An ABS faculty member between 1965 and 1982, Professor Risley (1937-2007) was renowned for innovative interventions in early education, among them, arranging environments to promote learning (e.g., incidental teaching). In longitudinal research, he found that the amount parents speak with their children is reflected in their children's linguistic competence, irrespective of minority and socioeconomic status. As Alaska's Commissioner of Mental Health and Mental Retardation, he created levels of support that allowed people with disabilities to lead meaningful lives.

Award Recipients:

  • 2022 Sarah Vesely
  • 2020 Emily Meiring
  • 2019 Morgan Benson; Madison Ross
  • 2018 Lindsay Aberle; Dalton King
  • 2017 Hannah Weise
  • 2016 Alexandra Hardee
  • 2015 Clara Foster
  • 2013 Jessica Winne
  • 2012 Molly Shireman
  • 2011 Tisha Denton
  • 2010 Bailey Bosc

Montrose M. Wolf Award for Outstanding Achievement in Youth Development and Juvenile Justice 2011

A KU faculty member between 1965 and 2000, Professor Wolf (1935-2004) was renowned for developing the Teaching-Family Model for delinquent youth. Emphasizing social relations and social validity, the model has been adopted nationally and internationally (e.g., at Girls and Boys Town, NE) and was recognized by the American Psychological Association as a "Model Program in Service Delivery in Child and Family Mental Health." He was the first editor of the Journal of Applied Behavior Analysis.

Award Recipients:

  • 2022 Maya Levee
  • 2020 Brendon Elliot
  • 2019 Keyah Richardson
  • 2018 Alicia Nicole Morgan
  • 2016 Sarah Barksdale
  • 2015 Julia Martinez
  • 2013 Kara Boelk 
  • 2012 Gregory Germann
  • 2011 Elizabeth Conley
  • 2010 Amos Christner

Award for Outstanding Achievement in Organizational Behavior Management Research and Practice

Individuals honored with this award show evidence of applying classroom and research knowledge and skills to improving the performance of employees of organizations with a charitable mission or that serve vulnerable populations, such as individuals with disabilities or sheltered animals.

Award Recipients:

  • 2022 Natalie Lamb
  • 2020 Grace Bartle
  • 2019 Ryan Gallagher
  • 2017 Puteri Ayu Kirana Ahmad Jayaputera
  • 2016 Scott Curry
  • 2015 Rachel Andrews
  • 2013 Jayme Kauffman
  • 2012 Michael Sofis

Undergraduate Degree