Dr. David Penn, a Linda Wagner Martin Distinguished Professor of Clinical Psychology, is the recipient of the 2019 Psychosis and Schizophrenia Spectrum (PASS) Special Interest Group (SIG) Trailblazer Award.
Ever year, the PASS-SIG identifies and celebrates a clinical scientist and/or mental health provider who has made a pioneering impact on the knowledge and treatment of serious mental illness. This trailblazer presents their work at the SIG meeting during the Association for Behavioral and Cognitive Therapies (ABCT) Annual Convention.
As this year’s trailblazer, Dr. Penn presented his experience and career trajectory at the PASS-SIG Meeting during the 53rd Annual ABCT Convention in Atlanta Georgia in November 2019. Highlights of his speech included a commemoration of his primary research mentors (Drs. Kim Mueser and Will Spaulding) and a thoughtful description of the influence his graduate students have made on his professional and research interests, including a transition from stigma to social cognition as well as the development of novel psychosocial treatments for persons with schizophrenia spectrum disorders. At the close of the meeting, Dr. Penn was presented with an award acknowledging his achievements as well as a collection of messages from his students and colleagues expressing their gratitude for his support, encouragement and collaboration over the years.