Submitted and written up by Mary Launder

The 2026 ASPE Conference, “25 Years of Excellence,” celebrated the remarkable achievements within the ASPE community while looking forward to its future. One of the conference’s traditions is the annual awards program, which recognizes outstanding members whose dedication, leadership, and service have made lasting contributions to the ASPE community and beyond. Eligible ASPE members are nominated by their colleagues and peers, and each nomination is evaluated through a fair, inclusive, and standardized process conducted by the awards committees.  The 2026 Awards Ceremony was held on June 23 & 24, 2026 in St Louis MO.

Awards presented on June 23, 2026:

2026 ASPE Grants: Research & Project Awards

Full Proposal
"Qualitative Evaluation of a Simulation-Based Pediatric Communication Curriculum: Perspectives from Simulated Participants, Faculty Educators and Alumni Fellows"
Investigators: Katharine E. Brock, Gina Shannon, Meghan Tracewski, Katherine Lee

Pilot Proposal
"Elevating the Standardized Participant Voice: A Qualitative Study of Standardized Participants as Co-Educators in Interprofessional Simulation to Inform ASPE-Aligned Best Practices"
Investigators: Karen Dickinson, Phil Griffey, Sherry Johnson

"A Pilot Study Exploring Standardized Patients as Co-Creators of Simulation Scenarios"
Investigators: Eva Feigerlova, Marion Berguer, Hind Hani, Catherine Martin, Elodie Seclier

ASPE Emerging Leader Award

To be eligible for the award the nominee must meet these requirements:

• Be an active member of ASPE;
• Have been involved in SP education/training for fewer than ten (10) years;
• Have served the ASPE community by presenting at an ASPE Conference; and
• Have made contributions to an ASPE Committee.

Cori Maskart is the recipient of the 2026 ASPE Emerging Leader Award. Cori is an SP Specialist with the Perelman School of Medicine University of Pennsylvania Penn Med SP Program.

ASPE Outstanding Educator of the Year Award

To be eligible for the award the nominee must:

• Be an active member of ASPE;
• Have been involved in SP education/training for ten (10) years or more;
• Have made a significant contribution to the SP community by providing professional development and/or guidance to newcomers in the field; and
• Be recognized as a leader by collaborating with community partners and/or faculty at various levels within one's own institution, the SP community, and national or international organizations. (ASPE, AAMC, CAME, NBME, ECFMG, SSH, INACSL, AMEE, SESAM, ASPiH, etc.).

Lou Clark is the recipient of the 2026 ASPE Outstanding Educator of the Year Award. Lou is the Executive Director of M Simulation with the Office of Academic Clinical Affairs and an Associate Professor in the Division of General Internal Medicine with the Medical School at the University of Minnesota (UMN).  

Awards presented on June 24, 2026:

Poster Awards

• The Grants and Research Committee (G&R) Sponsors the Poster Awards
• Posters are judged based on objective criteria (such as visual appeal, clarity, and significance to SP methodology and ASPE’s mission)

Innovation

First Place: "Preparing Medical Students to Work with SPs with Intellectual Disabilities Through Video Scenarios" 
Janice Radway, Alyssa Seigel

Runner Up: "Draping Simulated Patients: A Model for Workplace Safety and Patient Centered Care"
Jacqueline Klevan, Aimee Kipila,  Jessica Snow,  Noah DeBiase, Thomas Guerin

Research

First Place: "Does the reintegration of handshakes put Standardized Patients at risk during OSCE encounters? A microbial transfer study"
Christina Wise, Jacqueline Shoemaker, Averee Pack, Megan Cozort,  Matthew Williams

Runner Up:  "The Impact of SPs Debriefing on Student Satisfaction in Family Medicine & Obstetrics/Gynecology Clinical Skills Exams"
Amy Rye, Britton Rhoden, DeShundra Barnes, Sumit Sontakke, Lecretia Buckley, Timothy Dasinger, Norma Ojeda

ASPE Scholar Certificate

• ASPE Scholars complete the required Basic of Scholarship session, as well as requirements in qualitative and/or quantitative measurement and electives, either from the ASPE conference itself or relevant, comparable content from other conferences.

 2026 Scholar Program Recipients

Aparna Mangadu
Sara Bowling
Catherine Hagele
Vallea Woodbury
Melinda Carriker

Congratulations to all our awardees and scholars!!

Missed the Awards Lunch? A recording of the Awards Lunch held on June 23, 2026 is available here:
https://www.facebook.com/share/v/1CwXRvTzpv/

Communications and Connections Committee Mission: “To bring high quality reporting of current research, trends, techniques and information regarding SP methodology and other relevant industry articles to the attention of the membership through the web-based ASPE eNews blog.”

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