The Chicago School has named Willow Hozella, Ph.D., BCBA, LABA, its first Distinguished Alumni Award honoree of 2026. Dr. Hozella, who earned his Ph.D. in Applied Behavior Analysis in 2020, represents the university’s Washington, D.C., Campus. The award recognizes his work overseeing behavior analytic services at May Institute, advancing research in applied settings, and mentoring clinicians.
The Distinguished Alumni Award honors graduates who have made significant contributions to their professions or communities and who exemplify The Chicago School’s core values of education, innovation, community, and impact. For Dr. Hozella, those contributions span the programs he helps oversee, the clinicians he trains, and the research he shares with colleagues in the field.
Tyler Ré, Ph.D., BCBA-D, program chair and associate professor in the Applied Behavior Analysis Department of the College of Graduate and Professional Studies, nominated Dr. Hozella for the award. Dr. Ré cited Dr. Hozella’s support for autistic individuals and their caregivers, his approach to supervision and mentorship, and his record of publishing and presenting research.
“Willow is an amazing practitioner and supervisor that has impacted countless clinicians over the years,” Dr. Ré says. “He is a sought-after invited speaker due to his outstanding presentation and publication record.”
Bringing Research Into Practice
At May Institute, Dr. Hozella oversees how behavior analytic services are delivered and incorporated into learning and behavioral programming across program settings. He supervises and coaches staff as they develop and implement supports at two levels. Some practices are designed for use throughout a program, while others are tailored to the needs of an individual. His work involves helping staff apply the principles of applied behavior analysis in both kinds of programming.
Dr. Hozella became a board-certified behavior analyst in 2012, eight years before completing his doctorate. His publications have explored verbal behavior, how behavioral science is shared, and how clinicians are mentored. His conference presentations at the local and national levels have addressed topics ranging from strategies for reducing challenging behavior to teaching complex verbal skills to autistic individuals.
In “An Organizational Model for Supporting Behavior Analytic Research in Practice,” published in Behavior Analysis in Practice, Dr. Hozella and his colleagues examine how organizations can support research in the settings where clinicians deliver services. The article addresses a question—How can an organization make it possible for practitioners to study questions that arise while providing services?—that connects Dr. Hozella’s clinical and scholarly work. He has also contributed a chapter on supervision and mentorship to “The Clinical Handbook of Autism Intervention Training,” bringing his experience in clinician development to a resource for others who train practitioners.
Passing on the Mentorship He Received
Dr. Hozella traces his approach to mentoring researchers to his own doctoral training. Working with his dissertation committee gave him experience with the full process of publishing a study, from preparing a manuscript to submitting it and seeing it through to publication. He now draws on that experience when guiding interns and mentees through the same steps.
“My time at The Chicago School was of enormous importance to my growth as both a practitioner and a researcher,” Dr. Hozella says. “The guidance and mentorship of my dissertation committee allowed me to gain the experience of writing, submitting, and eventually publishing a manuscript in a way that I have been able to replicate with interns and mentees.”
The relationships Dr. Hozella formed with classmates have also continued beyond graduation. He credits that community with creating opportunities to publish, present, and collaborate with other practitioners and researchers. His doctoral program gave him both the experience of bringing his own research to publication and a group of colleagues with whom he could continue that work.
Dr. Ré pointed to the reach of Dr. Hozella’s teaching as part of the case for the award. His presentations share what he has learned with professionals outside his own organization, his supervision gives staff a chance to work through how to apply behavioral principles in their own programs, and his mentorship helps newer researchers learn how to share findings with the field.
In recognizing Dr. Hozella as its first Distinguished Alumni Award honoree of the year, The Chicago School is highlighting the connection between those contributions. His work at May Institute supports the staff who develop and deliver services, and his scholarship looks at how organizations can make research part of that work. Through mentorship, he passes on the guidance he received as a doctoral student to clinicians and researchers developing their own practices.