Samuel J. Meisels received the Plambeck Early Childhood Pioneer Award and gave a keynote speech at the University of Nebraska at Kearney-Community Early Childhood Conference on Oct. 21.

Samuel J. Meisels, the founding executive director of the Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska, received the Plambeck Early Childhood Pioneer Award at the University of Nebraska at Kearney-Community Early Childhood Conference on Oct. 21.  

Meisels, who plans to retire at the end of this year, also gave a keynote speech at the early childhood conference. The topic of his talk was “How Children’s Early Years Can Change Their Lives.”  

The award honors his 50-year career and dedication to children and families. It is named for LaVonne Plambeck, a champion for early childhood education in Nebraska.  

The Plambeck award is given to individuals like Meisels who are deeply invested in early childhood education. The award committee cited his inspiring vision to make Nebraska the best place in the nation to be a baby, his efforts to address early childhood workforce needs, and his ability to form strong partnerships to benefit babies, families, and educators.   

“Throughout Nebraska, with his leadership, the Buffett Institute has been involved in identifying and trying to remediate a system in which many families simply cannot afford high-quality early care and education for their young children, and a system in which early childhood teachers are paid poverty-level wages,” conference organizers said. “Through research, partnership, collaboration, and advocacy, Dr. Meisels has brought attention to several key areas of critical need, across all sectors of the Nebraska early childhood workforce.”