FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

DR. JOE L. FROST
2006 PATTY SMITH HILL AWARD RECIPIENT
Internationally known authority on children's play environments honored by colleagues

Olney, MD, April 13, 2006 — Dr. Joe L. Frost, former President of ACEI (1979-81) and an ACEI member since 1960, received the prestigious Patty Smith Hill Award at the 2006 ACEI International Conference & Exhibition Business Meeting in San Antonio, TX. The Patty Smith Hill Award is the Association's highest honor, recognizing outstanding long-term members who have demonstrated a deep commitment to improving children's lives and fulfilling ACEI's goals.

Often called the contemporary father of play advocacy, Dr. Frost was chosen for this honor based on his national leadership in the education community, his groundbreaking work on children's play, and his role within the organization. He is a Parker Centennial Professor Emeritus at The University of Texas at Austin.

Dr. Frost's landmark work on the subject of the importance of children's play is hailed as "extensive and admirable" by his professional associates. His research into quality play environments has focused national attention on the important concern of playground safety. He is an award-winning design consultant for children's playgrounds, with over 30 years of work on early childhood and children's play environments. The Joe L. Frost Children's Play and Play Environments Research Collection, housed at the University of the Incarnate Word, San Antonio, Texas, is arguably the largest research collection of its kind in the United States.

Colleagues enthusiastically describe Dr. Frost as "a model leader," a "great advocate for children," and a "great mentor." Citing his wisdom and devotion to his work, one associate referred to him as "a national treasure."

Frost is an everyday hero who advocates for such qualities as integrity, humility, and courage for our children. "Find a way to serve others and ignore those who say that people of integrity and humility are wrong; that they are weak, not strong. We must seek, honor, and emulate models of integrity and courage," he challenged the students of the University of the Incarnate Word during his commencement address in the spring of 2005.

Being honored as a Patty Smith Hill recipient goes beyond name recognition this award is deeply embedded in historical significance for Dr. Frost. "For almost a half century I have been involved in the work of ACEI", says Dr. Frost. "I began as a student working with professors at two universities who knew Patty Smith Hill, and guided their students in her pioneering paths. I later secured her books, explored her history, and was influenced by her emphasis on creativity, natural instincts, social living, and moral training. Indeed, these themes reinforced by professors helped to pattern my career in child development and early childhood education. We who spend our careers working for children, and all members of ACEI, owe a great debt to Patty Smith Hill, who was a founding member of the International Kindergarten Union, later ACEI, and who championed profound directions for educating young children," says Frost. "I am extremely pleased and honored to receive the Patty Smith Hill Award and will cherish her contributions and my memories of many ACEI friends and colleagues who carry on her proud tradition."

Dr. Frost has been the director of research on children's play and playgrounds for 25 years. He is past President for the American Association for the Child's Right to Play. Frost has published 15 books and more than 100 articles and reports on early childhood education, child development, children's play and play environments, and child safety. He has been an editorial consultant and member of the editorial advisory board for 13 professional journals and yearbooks, and he has directed more than 60 doctoral dissertations. Dr. Frost is a consultant to childcare centers, public and private schools, playground equipment manufacturers, Operation Head Start, universities and government agencies. He has also served as a consultant to law firms throughout the United States and to the U.S. Department of Justice on child injuries and fatalities. Frost was the director of the Annual Institutes for Directors of Air Force Child Care Administrators for ten consecutive years, in the United States and Germany. Dr. Frost was selected Teacher Educator of the Year by the Texas Association for the Education of Young Children and was the recipient of the Fifth Annual Dean's Distinguished Faculty award, College of Education, The University of Texas at Austin. He is former chairman of the Department of Curriculum and Instruction, The University of Texas at Austin.

Media Contact:
Jana Pauldin, ACEI Public Relations Manager
(301) 570-2111 Fax (301) 570-2212
jpauldin@acei.org www.acei.org

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About the Patty Smith Hill Award: A former president of the International Kindergarten Union (ACEI's predecessor), Patty Smith Hill was a classroom teacher, administrator, university professor, and author. Criteria for nomination and selection of the ACEI Patty Smith Hill Award honoree includes having exemplary, consistent contributions to the organization; achievements in the field of childhood education that have brought recognition to ACEI; and having held membership in the organization for 20 years or more.

About ACEI: The Association for Childhood Education International is the oldest professional organization in the world dedicated to the development of the whole child, from birth to early adolescence. Founded in 1892, ACEI is an organization of teachers, teacher educators, and parents whose primary purpose is to promote the inherent rights, education, and well being of children in the home, school, and community. ACEI publishes the award-winning publication Childhood Education, as well as the Journal of Research in Childhood Education.

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These pages are copyright 2006 by the Association for Childhood Education International. Please send any comments to Jana Pauldin at jpauldin@acei.org.