Dr. Connie Taylor admits she’s rarely at a loss for words, but the Midland University Psychology professor was left speechless after finding out she was receiving the Nebraska Association for Applied Behavior Analysis 2025 Award of Excellence during the annual conference last month in Omaha.
The award acknowledges outstanding achievement, dedication, and a relentless commitment to excellence in all aspects of their work.
“I was sitting at a table with my students and I was very excited to see who was going to get the award,” Taylor said. “I was stunned when I heard my name. I’m someone who’s hardly ever at a loss for words, but this was one of those times.”
Alex Nielsen, President of the NEABA, remarked, “What sets Connie apart is not just her ability to achieve remarkable results, but the way she inspires students to pursue career interests. She challenges her students to pursue excellence, to push the boundaries of what’s possible, and to hold ourselves to the highest standard. She has shown unwavering commitment to the education and training of future behavior analysts through her work at Midland.”
Taylor is in her 27th, and final year, as a Psychology professor at Midland and has been an ABA-certified analyst for nearly 30 years. “When my husband (Steve) and I moved to Nebraska in 1996, there were only three ABA board-certified analysts in the state, and we were two of them,” she said. “We weren’t sure if we wanted to continue our certification because maybe this wasn’t a place where behavior analysis would be supported and thrive.”
But thanks to support from Dr. James Tremain (former psychology professor at Midland) and Jim Reynolds (former academic vice president at Midland), ABA was added as a minor at Midland in 2007, thus beginning a long-running partnership with the Munroe-Meyer Institute in Omaha where more than 70 Midland students have completed internships in the past 18 years. Midland added ABA as a major in the fall of 2021..
“We felt very supported in our efforts and our ability to partner with Munroe-Meyer has provided incredible opportunities for so many of our students,” Taylor said. “They opened a clinic in Fremont recently and one of the primary reasons was because of our relationship with them.”
Taylor was blessed to have many current and former students with her during the conference.
“Receiving this award has allowed me to reflect on my time at Midland and the ability to run a program that has impacted so many students, and subsequently so many families as well,” she said. “It really put it in perspective for me that we’ve been able to produce a lot of Behavior Analysts in the state who are continuing to do great work.”
