Summary of the 2012 Midwest Regional Conference in Pediatric Psychology
Highlights of the regional conference included tributes, keynotes, panel discussions and tracked programming
By Hobart Davies
The first regional meeting was held in Cleveland in 1987. Twenty-five years later, nearly 250 pediatric psychologists gathered in Milwaukee on April 26-28, 2012, for the 25th anniversary Midwest Regional Meeting on Pediatric Psychology. Regional meeting participants came from 32 states and Canada.
Highlights included a tribute to the career contributions of Mary Jo Kupst by Bob Noll and Andrea Farkas Patenaude; a keynote on Child Injury Prevention by David Schwebel; and a panel discussion on the Past and Future of the Field featuring Denny Drotar, Celia Lescano, Scott Powers, and Brad Stolbach. We also saw the debut of what we hope will become a regular feature, as Grayson Holmbeck bravely tackled an open consultation session on statistics and methodology.
Another new feature was tracked programming with three parallel symposia offered for all sessions other than keynotes. This allowed attendees to attend the presentations of most interest to them, and allowed for a record number of paper presentations at a regional meeting. The paper presentations were also presented later as posters to make sure attendees did not miss out by choosing a different symposium.
Nearly 150 posters were presented at the meeting. As has been traditional at the regional meetings, trainees were well-represented among both poster and paper presenters. Student Poster Awards went to Moriah Brier, University of Pennsylvania; Aaron Davis, University of Alabama at Birmingham; and Cathleen Odar, University of Kansas. The Student Paper Award went to Christopher Fitzgerald, Marquette University. Finally, the Diversity SIG awarded their Student Diversity Research Award to Erin Brannon, Oklahoma State University.
The consistent interest and attendance at the regional meetings has contributed to the society’s decision to host a national meeting every year. With this decision that reflects the growth, stability, and commitment of the field, it appears that we close the curtain on the Midwest Regional Meeting. Many thanks to all the people who have contributed to this meeting over the past quarter century.