Established in 1996, the award honors Bill Ellis, a great humanitarian, educator and visionary who served as NCLD’s director of professional services from 1991 until his death in 1995.

It was Bill’s vision in the field of learning disabilities that framed much of what NCLD has become. He led the organization by collaborating with other learning disabilities organizations and establishing a growing presence on a national level; he recognized the importance of early intervention for children with learning disabilities; he valued the roles that general educators play in the lives of children with learning disabilities; and he helped create the first of NCLD’s highly respected national summits: The 1994 summit, an event that presented learning disabilities to the highest levels of government.

In May 1996, Bill’s last great undertaking was realizing NCLD’s National Summit on Teacher Preparation. Although sadly, Bill was not able to attend the summit, it was his idea and dream to establish a forum where general and special educators could join together to shape the future of teaching.

Bill saw beyond the world of learning and attention issues and recognized the need to reach all educators.