{"id":201849,"date":"2016-11-04T13:45:19","date_gmt":"2016-11-04T17:45:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/?p=201849"},"modified":"2023-07-26T13:50:41","modified_gmt":"2023-07-26T17:50:41","slug":"center-for-behavioral-education-and-research-celebrates-a-decade-of-success","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/2016\/11\/center-for-behavioral-education-and-research-celebrates-a-decade-of-success\/","title":{"rendered":"Center for Behavioral Education and Research Celebrates a Decade of Success"},"content":{"rendered":"

The year 2016 officially marks a 10-year milestone in the history of UConn\u2019s\u00a0Center for Behavioral Education and Research<\/a>\u00a0(CBER) \u2014\u00a0a Center based at the Neag School that has, over the course of merely a decade, secured millions of dollars in federal and state grants and contracts; conducted hundreds of innovative research projects; and enriched the lives of many thousands of educators and students around the world.<\/p>\n

This past October, CBER\u2019s leaders, researchers, and regional partners gathered with Neag School faculty, staff, students, and alumni on the UConn Storrs campus to celebrate the Center\u2019s 10-year anniversary and the accomplishments of its founding director, Neag School Professor\u00a0George Sugai<\/a>.<\/p>\n

\"George
Faculty, students, alumni and guests gathered to recognize George Sugai and CBER\u2019s 10th Anniversary. (Photo Credit: Ryan Glista\/Neag School)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Led since its inception by Sugai, a national leader in the field of special education, CBER was approved by the UConn Board of Trustees in 2006 and set out with the following mission: to promote equity and improve educational outcomes for all learners, especially those with, or at risk for, learning and behavioral difficulties. Ever since, Sugai has been working with CBER research scientists to ensure that the Center fulfills this mission while continuing to grow strategically over time, focusing research efforts in four key areas: literacy; positive behavior supports; behavioral health and school climate; and transition and postsecondary education.<\/p>\n

\u201cCBER has had a very clear mission from the beginning,\u201d says\u00a0Brandi Simonsen<\/a>, associate professor of special education and now CBER co-director with fellow Neag School faculty member, Professor\u00a0Michael Coyne<\/a>. \u201cWe have a strong commitment to rigorous research.\u201d<\/p>\n

But the Center\u2019s success, she adds, has always relied on more than carrying out research studies. \u201cSomething that makes us different, or something that we value heavily, is not just doing rigorous research, but really translating and making it usable. So that translation, dissemination piece has been a huge value in terms of the work that we do.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cCBER is about academic success and behavioral success,\u201d Sugai says. \u201cYou can\u2019t do one without the other.\u201d<\/p>\n

CBER\u2019s 10-Year Impact<\/strong><\/p>\n

October\u2019s anniversary celebration event featured a reception preceded by remarks not only from Center co-directors Simonsen and Coyne, but also Neag School Dean Gladis Kersaint; Sugai; and guest Edward Kame\u2019enui, professor of education at the University of Oregon\u2019s College of Education, each of whom highlighted the Center\u2019s significant achievements.<\/p>\n

\u201cI think it was a great tribute to George and the impact he\u2019s had at CBER and beyond,\u201d says Neag School alumna Marlena Minkos \u201916 Ph.D., a former CBER graduate assistant.<\/p>\n

With\u00a012 Neag School faculty members<\/a>\u00a0currently partnering as CBER research scientists, CBER has a wealth of accomplishments to celebrate.<\/p>\n

CBER\u2019s goal, Simonsen shared at the event, is to create a more equitable environment for all students in order to level the playing field, and also to provide differentiated supports for kids who need it. In addition, she said, CBER works to represent and serve the Neag School and UConn communities, the broader community, and the world. In fact, over the past year alone, Sugai has visited 17 countries as a representative of CBER; Simonsen and Coyne are looking to continue that international growth.<\/p>\n

\"The
New CBER co-directors Brandi Simonsen and Michael Coyne, gathered with UConn\u2019s Vice Provost for Academic Affairs Sally Reis, George Sugai, and Dean Gladis Kersaint. (Photo Credit: Ryan Glista\/Neag School)<\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

\u201cAs Mike Coyne and I look toward the next 10 years, we are excited to continue to enhance the contributions of CBER within the Neag School of Education, at UConn, and in local, national, and international communities,\u201d Simonsen says.<\/p>\n

Among the accomplishments highlighted by the event\u2019s various featured speakers is the Center\u2019s extensive research impact over the past 10 years: CBER faculty members have secured $40 million in federal and state grants and contracts in their four areas of focus \u2014 representing more than $550,000 per faculty member per year. This research has resulted in 437 peer-reviewed journal articles, books, and chapters, the equivalent of five publications per CBER faculty member per year.<\/p>\n

\u201cIt\u2019s really remarkable that in a period of 10 years or so that you\u2019ve had this kind of impact already,\u201d says Kame\u2019enui of the University of Oregon. \u201cFor someone who\u2019s had the privilege of working at both the state and federal level, this is pretty impressive.\u201d<\/p>\n

In addition to its publications, CBER has been successful in broad public engagement. Its faculty have actively partnered locally, with 65 school districts across the state of Connecticut, as well as nationally and internationally with educators, communities, and nonprofit agencies of all kinds, touching schools in all 50 states and 14 countries. Sugai\u2019s work with the\u00a0PBIS Center<\/a>\u00a0has meanwhile impacted more than 23,000 schools in the U.S. alone.<\/p>\n

\u201cFor CBER, 10 years in institutional life is not that long,\u201d says Neag School doctoral student Eleanor Maddock. \u201cThere are institutions that are hundreds of years old and what CBER has accomplished in just 10 years is significant and meaningful.\u201d<\/p>\n

\u201cWith CBER, George and his colleagues have shaped, from the ground up, a Center that is making positive, real-world impact that truly translates research into practice into valuable public service that continues to grow over time,\u201d Dean Kersaint shared during her remarks.<\/p>\n

CBER research scientists have also mentored more than 60 doctoral research assistants and supported 13 postdoctoral-level researchers, and have been awarded research grants of more than $2.5 million to support and prepare these aspiring researchers.<\/p>\n

\u201cThe last 10 years of work serves an excellent foundation for the next 10,\u201d Sugai says. \u201cI\u2019m confident that under Mike and Brandi\u2019s leadership, and with the strength of our research scientists, CBER will continue to lead UConn, Connecticut, and the nation in high-quality research and implementation, with a relentless focus on improving learning outcomes for our children and youth.\u201d<\/p>\n

View photos from the CBER 10-Year Anniversary Celebration\u00a0here<\/a>. Learn more about CBER at\u00a0cber.uconn.edu<\/a>, or access highlights from the Center\u2019s past decade of work\u00a0here<\/a>.<\/em><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

The year 2016 officially marks a 10-year milestone in the history of UConn\u2019s Center for Behavioral Education and Research (CBER) \u2014 a Center based at the Neag School that has, over the course of merely a decade, secured millions of dollars in federal and state grants and contracts; conducted hundreds of innovative research projects; and enriched the lives of many thousands of educators and students around the world.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":190,"featured_media":201850,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_crdt_document":"","wds_primary_category":0,"wds_primary_series":0,"wds_primary_attribution":0,"footnotes":""},"categories":[2424,1855],"tags":[],"magazine-issues":[],"coauthors":[2455],"class_list":["post-201849","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-neag-community-engagement","category-neag"],"pp_statuses_selecting_workflow":false,"pp_workflow_action":"current","pp_status_selection":"publish","acf":[],"publishpress_future_action":{"enabled":false,"date":"2026-05-08 00:55:43","action":"change-status","newStatus":"draft","terms":[],"taxonomy":"category","extraData":[]},"publishpress_future_workflow_manual_trigger":{"enabledWorkflows":[]},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/201849","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/users\/190"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=201849"}],"version-history":[{"count":2,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/201849\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":201852,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/posts\/201849\/revisions\/201852"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media\/201850"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=201849"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=201849"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=201849"},{"taxonomy":"magazine-issue","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/magazine-issues?post=201849"},{"taxonomy":"author","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/today.uconn.edu\/wp-rest\/wp\/v2\/coauthors?post=201849"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}