Awards & Grants

The Claire Chee Award and the Nurse Practitioner Award for Excellence in Child Neurology Nursing honor an exceptional nurse and nurse practitioner who have demonstrated distinguished service to the field of child neurology nursing.

Recipients exemplify:

• Commitment to children with neurological disorders and their families
• Compassion, leadership, and professionalism
• Clinical excellence, communication, and inspiration

Eligibility & Submission Details

• Nominees may be submitted by any ACNN or Child Neurology Society (CNS) member
• Nominators should be familiar with the nominee’s professional qualifications
• A current résumé/CV is required with submission

Award Benefit: Complimentary registration to the 2026 ACNN Conference

This award recognizes an ACNN member who has successfully developed and implemented an innovation in child neurology clinical practice.

Eligibility & Submission Details

• Open to current ACNN members in good standing
• Excludes Award Committee members and recipients within the past three years
• Nominations must be submitted by an ACNN or CNS member directly involved in the innovation
• Submission must include two letters of support

Award Benefits

• Complimentary registration to the annual ACNN Conference
• Invitation to present the project or submit a poster during the ACNN/CNS Poster Session

One ACNN member will be selected to receive a monetary award toward expenses for the CNS/ACNN Annual Meeting.

Eligibility:

• Applications are open to all current ACNN members in good standing, excluding Award Committee members and recipients of the award within the past three years.
• Only one (1) Board member per year may be eligible.

Funding:

• Funding for one (1) travel grant is provided by the Child Neurology Society in the amount of $750.

The travel grant can be utilized for any or all of the following expenses:

• Conference registration
• Travel to the conference
• Roundtrip coach airfare if ticket is purchased no less than 4 weeks before the start of conference. The amount will count towards the total amount of the award.
• Award recipient will be responsible for organizing their own travel arrangements.
• Car travel reimbursed at the current IRS rate
• Hotel accommodations at the meeting site

Reimbursement policy:

• Reimbursement will be provided after the conference ends.
• Only expenses with accompanying receipts will be reimbursed.
• Reimbursement requests must be submitted to the ACNN national office within 4 weeks of the end of the conference.
  

Through the Elizabeth F. Hobdell Research Grant Fund, ACNN funds nursing research projects focused on identifying and improving nursing practice and care in the pediatric neurosciences. The research grant is an opportunity for nurses to develop evidence-based care for neurology and neurosurgery patients and disseminate new knowledge to a wide population of nurses and nurse practitioners. The fund is open to applications throughout the year. Grants are for one year with final amount of award determined by ACNN. Reapplication will be necessary if the study exceeds one year.

Progress reports must be submitted to the research committee in writing each quarter. A final report will be required for presentation at the annual Board of Directors meeting (at the annual conference). If the study is not completed within the first year of receiving the award, a progress report will be submitted to the Board of Directors. The final report must be presented to the Board of Directors within two years of receiving the award. 

• Results must be presented at the annual ACNN meeting within two years of completing the study.
• Research should be submitted for publication within two years of the end of the project. The research committee should be in charge of choosing the applicant.
• Hobdell Nursing Research Grants that are funded will be posted on ACNN’s website. The posting will include the proposal title, primary investigator’s name(s), credential(s), contact information, and abstract. 

Funding is provided through donations from CNS and ACNN members.