THE RESNICK SCHOLAR AWARD

The Midwest Chapter of the American Academy of Psychiatry and the Law (MWAAPL) created The Resnick Scholar Award to honor one of the greats in our field: Dr. Phillip Resnick.  Dr. Resnick is internationally known as an expert witness and forensic psychiatry educator.

The Resnick Scholar Award is a merit-based award annually bestowed upon residents who have demonstrated a strong record of achievement and interest in forensic psychiatry by virtue of elective rotations, scholarly projects, and teaching. In addition to forensic scholarly accomplishments, the committee will also highly value leadership experiences and work in the areas of policy, advocacy and organized medicine.  Although the residents do not need to have a connection to the Midwest to qualify for this award, we strongly encourage Midwest applicants. PGY3, PGY4 and non-forensic psychiatry fellows are eligible to apply.

This year’s Resnick Scholar Award stipend will cover the cost of the meeting registration and $250 to be used for travel and accommodations.

The application must include:

·      A cover letter indicating intent to apply for The Resnick Scholarship, current training program, training director, and training year.

·      ONE letter from his/her Training Director or Forensic Psychiatry Mentor nominating the resident

·      A statement by the resident (no longer than 500 words) detailing his/her interest and/or experience in forensic psychiatry including scholarly work and teaching.  The statement should also include leadership experiences, as well as, policy and advocacy work.  Finally, the committee wants to know the applicant’s long-term career goals.  If the resident has a Midwest connection (training in, or planning to do a fellowship or working in the Midwest post-graduation), it should be included in the personal statement.

·      The resident’s curriculum vitae

Award applications must be submitted to mwaapl.contact@gmail.com by January 6, 2026. Awardees will be expected to present a poster at the 2026 MWAAPL Meeting.  Questions about the award should be directed to Michelle Hume at Michelle.Hume@dhs.wisconsin.gov.