2026 Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Wisconsin Award Nominations

The Individual Placement and Support (IPS) Wisconsin team is seeking nominations for the 2026 IPS Wisconsin Awards.

Five awards will be presented at the 2026 IPS Wisconsin Annual Meeting September 29, 2026, at UW-Stout Polytechnic in Menomonie.

IPS Employer Award: This award recognizes an employer working with an IPS site committed to collaboration with IPS, inclusion, and recovery in the workplace.
BEES (Be an Expert Employment Specialist) Award: This award recognizes an IPS employment specialist committed to the principles of IPS, engaging with job seekers, collaborating with other professionals, and advocating for employment and education goals.
IPS Collaboration Award: This award recognizes collaboration among vocational agencies, the Division of Vocational Rehabilitation (DVR), and county treatment teams demonstrating commitment to team integration, zero exclusion, and supporting the employment and education goals of shared job seekers.
Trailblazer Award: This award recognizes a vocational or behavioral health agency committed to making a significant change or transformation that led to improving the quality of services supporting the education and employment goals of job seekers.
IPS Champion Award: This award recognizes an individual committed to the principles of IPS and demonstrating a focus on quality improvement and implementation of IPS. This award is for a person in a leadership role who champions IPS in their agency.

Complete this form to nominate a person, agency, or collaboration for an award. Nominations are due by August 28, 2026.

Send questions about the 2026 IPS Wisconsin Awards to dhsdctsips@dhs.wisconsin.gov.

Information about you, the nominator

Your first and last name *This question is required.

The name of your agency *This question is required.

Your email address *This question is required. This question requires a valid email address.

Your phone number *This question is required.

Information about the nominee

Name (first and last, if applicable) of the person, people, or agency *This question is required.

Nominee's agency *This question is required.

Nominee's email address(s)? *This question is required.

Nominee's phone number(s)? *This question is required.

Select the award category for this nomination *This question is required.

How does this employer embody the spirit of IPS when hiring an IPS job seeker(s) in competitive employment. Please share two examples. Good examples may include describing actions when employing an IPS program participant, participating in an IPS Steering Committee, and/or supporting the search or job development process (150 word limit) *This question is required.

How does the employer show commitment to the IPS practice principles? Share two examples (150 word limit). *This question is required.

Share a time when the employer went above and beyond supporting inclusion and recovery in the workplace (150 word limit). *This question is required.

How does this employment specialist embody the spirit of IPS when hiring an IPS job seeker(s)? Share two examples. Examples may include spending most of their workday in the community and/or developing relationships with employers and treatment teams (150 word limit). *This question is required.

How does this employment specialist show commitment to the IPS practice principles? Share two examples (150 word limit). *This question is required.

Share a time when the employment specialist went above and beyond advocating for the employment and education goals of job seekers with other professionals or employers. Good examples could include how many people they helped obtain work or education in the last year and/or creatively addressing individual job seeker needs for support (150 word limit). *This question is required.

How long has this person been working as an IPS employment specialist? *This question is required.

What are the two agencies you are nominating? For example, a behavioral health treatment team and an IPS site or an IPS site and their Division of Vocational Rehabilitation representative. *This question is required.

How do these partners embody the spirit of IPS by ensuring exemplary collaboration with each other? Good examples could include shared meetings, collaboration between partners on plans for services, and a high percentage of shared clients (150 word limit). *This question is required.

Share at least two examples how the partners show commitment to the practice principles regarding team integration and zero exclusion (150 word limit). *This question is required.

Share a time when the partners went above and beyond in their collaboration efforts to support the employment and education goals of shared job seekers (150 word limit). *This question is required.

How has the agency or program made a significant transformation or change by embodying the spirit of IPS? Share two examples. Examples could include innovative use of resources, increasing fidelity, significantly growing their IPS team, or serving more treatment teams (150 word limit). *This question is required.

How does the agency or program show commitment to the practice principles? Share two examples. (150 word limit). *This question is required.

Share a time when the agency or program went above and beyond to support the employment and education goals of job seekers (150 word limit). *This question is required.

How does the leader support the growth or improvement of the IPS program? Share two examples. Good examples could include advocating for new programs or populations, devoting significant time to improving relationships with new or existing teams, and/or exploring ways to support employment specialists (150 word limit). *This question is required.

How does this leader show commitment to the practice principles when championing or sustaining implementation efforts? Share two examples (150 word limit). *This question is required.

Share a time when his leader went above and beyond in their work with IPS (150 word limit). *This question is required.