Dr. Cathy Pratt, BCBA-D, is a Research Associate at the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community and the Irsay Institute focused on mental health and co-occurring autism spectrum disorders (ASD) and intellectual and developmental disabilities (IDD). She is the former Director of the Indiana Resource Center for Autism located at the Indiana Institute on Disability and Community, Indiana’s University Center for Excellence in Disabilities. Dr. Pratt also created and directed the Indiana School Mental Health Initiative. She writes and presents internationally on the following topics: autism spectrum disorders, ASD and co-occurring mental health, functional behavior assessment/positive behavior supports, applied behavior analysis, instructional approaches, evidence-based practices, systems change, and policy. Dr. Pratt has been honored with the Individual Achievement Award by the Autism Society, with the 2005 Princeton Fellowship Award, and with various awards through New York Families for Autistic Children, Inc., including recognition from the United States House of Representatives. In 2008, Dr. Pratt was awarded with the Distinguished Service Award by the Indiana Council of Administrators of Special Education. Dr. Pratt was the Shibles Distinguished Visiting Professor in the College of Education and Human Development at the University of Maine. In 2010, Dr. Pratt was invited to the White House to provide feedback on the president’s initiatives on autism spectrum disorders. In 2016, Dr. Pratt was awarded with the Charles Heineman Allied Professional Award through the Indiana Psychological Association. In 2022, she was presented with the OCALI Lifetime Achievement Award, and in 2023 with the Educator of the Year Award from the Indiana School Mental Health Initiative and the Distinguished Service Award through the Indiana Council of Administrators in Special Education.
