Release

UAlbany Professor Amanda Nickerson Receives National Award For Crisis-Intervention Curriculum Model

Contact: Catherine Herman (518) 437-4980

ALBANY, N.Y. (May 19, 2006) -- University at Albany Assistant Professor in School Psychology Amanda B. Nickerson and her team were awarded a 2005-2006 National Association of School Psychologists (NASP) Presidential Award for developing one of the first models of crisis intervention explicitly for providers who work in the school setting with children.

The NASP Presidential Award is presented to a highly select group of individuals who have made a significant contribution to the profession, to NASP, and to the specific goals set forth by the president that year. Team member Ted Feinberg, assistant executive director of NASP and 1997 UAlbany Alum, was also honored with the NASP Presidential Award.

"We have been committed to developing a standardized, research-based, crisis-prevention and intervention curriculum for school-based, mental health professionals to meet the unique needs of children in schools," said Nickerson "It has been exciting to see the hard work of our group come to fruition, and I'm honored to be recognized with this award, because it reflects the NASP's support of this important effort."

The team developed "PREPARE," the NASP school crisis prevention and intervention training curriculum, created to give school-based mental health professionals guidance on how to best fill the roles and responsibilities generated by their membership on school crisis teams. The training curriculum includes a one-day workshop (Prevention and Preparedness - The Comprehensive School Crisis Team) designed to provide a broad overview of the school crisis team's roles and responsibilities, with an emphasis on crisis prevention and preparedness, and a two-day workshop (Crisis Intervention and Recovery - The Roles of School-Based Mental Health Professionals) designed to provide a specific examination of the school-based mental health professionals' role and responsibilities, with an emphasis on crisis intervention and recovery.

Nickerson, a Nationally Certified School Psychologist (NCSP) joined UAlbany in September 2002 where she teaches courses in social, emotional, and behavioral assessment, psychotherapy with children, a research seminar, and an interdisciplinary course on Emergency Preparedness in Schools. She earned her bachelor's in psychology, cum laude, from Bates College and both her master's and doctorate in school psychology from the University of South Carolina, where she earned the Dean's Award for Excellence in Graduate Study and the Outstanding Graduate Work in Research Award. Nickerson has published more than 20 journal articles and book chapters and has conducted numerous local, state, and national presentations. She is also a member of the Advisory Committee on Campus Security at the University at Albany.