2023 Lifetime Achievement Award

Max Wiznitzer, MD

Max Wiznitzer, MD, is a pediatric neurologist and interim chief of pediatric neurology in the neurologic institute at University Hospitals Rainbow Babies and Children’s Hospital in Cleveland, Ohio. He is a professor of pediatrics and neurology at Case Western Reserve University School of Medicine. Dr. Wiznitzer completed a pediatrics residency and a fellowship in developmental disorders at Children’s Hospital Medical Center, Cincinnati, Ohio, and a fellowship in pediatric neurology at Children’s Hospital of Philadelphia, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. He completed his postdoctoral training as a National Institutes of Health National Research fellow in higher cortical functions at Albert Einstein College of Medicine, Bronx, New York. His special interests include ADHD, autism spectrum disorders, developmental and behavioral disorders, and pediatric neurology. Dr. Wiznitzer earned his medical degree from Northwestern University Feinberg School of Medicine. He serves on CHADD’s board of directors, co-chairs its professional advisory board, and is on the editorial advisory board of Attention magazine. He is on the editorial board of Lancet Neurology and the Journal of Child Neurology and lectures nationally and internationally about various neurodevelopmental disabilities.

2023 CHADD Hall of Fame Award

Ari Tuckman, PsyD, CST, MBA

Ari Tuckman, PsyD, CST, MBA, began volunteering for CHADD in 2000, when he ran the adult support group for Northern Virginia CHADD. After moving to Pennsylvania, he ran the teen support group for Chester County/Mainline CHADD. He has also served on CHADD’s national board of directors and currently serves on the organization’s media spokesperson team. Since 2010, he has been involved in the conference committee, serving as a co-chair since 2015. Dr. Tuckman has been a psychologist in private practice since 1999, first in McLean, Virginia, and now in West Chester, Pennsylvania, where he sees kids, teens, adults, and couples. He is a popular speaker and has given more than six hundred presentations and podcast interviews across the United States, as well as for international audiences. In addition to writing multiple articles for CHADD’s Attention magazine and for ADDitude, he is the author of four books: ADHD After Dark; Understand Your Brain, Get More Done; More Attention, Less Deficit; and Integrative Treatment for Adult ADHD. As an expert in ADHD, he has been widely quoted in national media, such as The New York Times, Washington Post, USA Today, and many others. As busy as he is, he loves what he does and who he does it with.

2023 CHADD Chapter of the Year

CHADD of Seattle

CHADD of Seattle in-person meeting, October 2023; from left to right: Denisa Aitonean (new member), Beth Bardeen (founder and director), Jessica Hespelt (co-coordinator and parents’ support lead).

Founded just one year ago, CHADD of Seattle is rapidly making a difference to the ADHD community it serves in the metro Seattle area. The chapter’s excellent programs and rapid growth are due largely to the efforts of Beth Bardeen, the founder and co-coordinator. She is a full-time advocate consultant for adults newly diagnosed with ADHD, dyslexia, and autism who brings more than forty years of executive-level management in the tech industry to bridge the gap between neurodiverse individuals and the world we live in. When she learned about CHADD’s chapter system, she knew the power of CHADD could help build what she was looking for in Seattle. Over the past eighteen months, the chapter has held close to 48 meetings, serving 70 paid members, approximately 225 meeting attendees, and 573 subscribers, and answering 235 emails and/or requests for support. Its programs engaged twelve speakers to address seventeen topics important to the ADHD community. Examples include: 30-Second Activism for ADHD, Back to School Success Strategies, How to Work with an ADHD Coach, Money and Emotions, Strategies for the Neurodiverse Living in a Neurotypical World, Finding Free Support from Local Government, ADHD & Organization for Families, ADHD and Nutrition, Diagnosis and ADHD Medications—and many more. With all they’ve accomplished during their first year, the future looks brilliant for this active and growing dynamo of a chapter!

2023 CHADD Volunteer Leader of the Year

Chrissy Mathis

Chrissy Mathis has served on the board of BuxMont CHADD since May 2018 and as the chapter’s programming coordinator since 2019. She is co-coordinator of CHADD’s Northeast Regional Center. She joined CHADD after her eldest son’s ADHD diagnosis in order to educate herself and become a better advocate for him. Less than a year later, she received her own formal diagnosis. She brings this experience as both a parent of a child with ADHD and adult with a late diagnosis to help others manage the disorder. She lives in Warminster, Pennsylvania, with her husband, three children, and three dogs.

2023 Educator of the Year Award

Tanya Beyer

The 2023 CHADD Educator of the Year is Tanya Beyer, a special education teacher, consultant, and Section 504 coordinator at Redding Elementary School in Redding, Connecticut. She collaborates with colleagues and parents to help children with ADHD maximize their potential by identifying challenges, developing solutions, and providing support. She helps people understand how to better support students with ADHD, and encourages these children to excel. Beyer was a critical team member in the formation of the Junior Bridge program at Redding Elementary School. The program empowers students with ADHD through access to educators and support staff, tools to regulate, and a place for team members to coordinate. It also allows younger children with ADHD the opportunity to develop strategies earlier in their school career, a critical time to promote engagement with learning.

2023 CHADD Young Scientist Research Awards

The 2023 Young Scientist Research Awards were announced in the October 2023 issue of Attention magazine. See the awardees’ summaries of their research in this issue in the “Innovations in ADHD Research” article.