Two researchers at the School’s Social Development Research Group were honored recently with national awards from the Society for Prevention Research. They are SDRG director Kevin P. Haggerty and research associate professor Karl Hill.
Haggerty was the recipient of the 2015 Translational Science Award. An expert on substance abuse and delinquency prevention for more than 25 years, Haggerty has focused his work on developing innovative ways to organize scientific knowledge for prevention so that parents, communities and schools can better identify, assess and prioritize customized approaches.
He has been involved with Communities That Care since 1988, helping to bring that program to cities throughout the United States as well as in Australia, Canada, Sweden, the Netherlands, Columbia, Chile and First Nation populations. In conferring the award, SPR recognized Haggerty’s ability to “effectively, efficiently and elegantly” take state-of-the-art prevention science and translate it for those who are most in need of it. His achievements in the translation of CTC to web-streamed training were also cited, as was his long-standing body of work in evidence-based preventive interventions.
Karl Hill received the Friend of ECPN Award, presented to a mid-career or senior prevention scientist who supports and encourages early career prevention scientists and issues. Hill was recognized for his outstanding mentorship of students, postdoctoral researchers and junior faculty. The award recognized his commitment to “helping emerging scholars see the importance of interdisciplinary collaborations and professional networking as they transition from student to academic professional.”
About the Society for Prevention Research—SPR is a leading professional organization dedicated to advancing scientific investigation on the etiology and prevention of social, physical and mental health and learning programs, and on the translation of that information to promote health and wellbeing. SPR’s multi-disciplinary international membership includes scientists, practitioners, advocates, administrators and policy makers who value the conduct and dissemination of prevention science worldwide. Former SDRG director Richard F. Catalano, who has been serving as president-elect of SPR’s board of directors, recently assumed the board presidency, a position he will hold for the next two years.