National Child Passenger Safety Board honors team, technician and instructor of the year at Lifesavers Conference.
Baltimore – The National Child Passenger Safety Board, managed by the National Safety Council, presented the 2026 National Child Passenger Safety Awards on April 18 at the Lifesavers Conference on Roadway Safety.
The National Child Passenger Safety Awards recognize certified child passenger safety (CPS) professionals who have demonstrated an exemplary commitment to keeping children safe on the road through mentorship, innovation and lasting contributions to their communities.
“Properly installed car seats are a simple and vital tool to protect the lives of our youngest vehicle passengers,” said Nick Smith, NSC President. “As the lead organization of the National Child Passenger Safety Board, NSC is honored to celebrate these safety heroes who live out the mission of ensuring children are as safe as possible on the road.”
Three awards were presented to honor exceptional impact on child passenger safety:
Child Passenger Safety Team of the Year
Dell Children’s Medical Center of Austin, Texas, has been named the 2026 Child Passenger Safety Team of the Year. As Central Texas’ only Pediatric Level I Trauma Center, the Dell Children’s CPS Team conducts more than 1,000 car seat inspections annually, distributes more than 2,000 car seats to families in need and provides specialized services for children across a five-county region.
Child Passenger Safety Technician of the Year
Danae Hicks, an agent with the Texas A&M AgriLife Extension Service, has been named the 2026 Child Passenger Safety Technician of the Year. Hicks helped expand access to car seat education and inspections in Ellis County, Texas, while also supporting technicians statewide through mentoring, outreach and educational content.
Child Passenger Safety Technician Instructor of the Year
Kathy Vasilopulos, Indiana’s state Child Passenger Safety coordinator within the Indiana Criminal Justice Institute, has been named the 2026 Child Passenger Safety Technician Instructor of the Year. In 2025 alone, Vasilopulos trained more than 1,000 law enforcement officers and has been widely recognized for her engaging, innovative and impact-driven training approach.
Certified CPS technicians, instructors or teams can be nominated for the 2027 National CPS Awards. To submit a nomination or learn more about the Awards, please visit cpsboard.org/awards.
About the National Child Passenger Safety Board
The National Child Passenger Safety Board’s mission is to save lives and prevent injuries by promoting child passenger safety through education, mentorship, engagement and innovation. The Board works with key partners, including the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration, National Safety Council and Safe Kids Worldwide. For more information about child passenger safety or the National CPS Board, please visit the Board’s website: cpsboard.org.
About the National Safety Council
The National Safety Council is America’s leading nonprofit safety advocate – and has been for over 110 years. As a mission-based organization, we work to eliminate the leading causes of preventable death and injury, focusing our efforts on the workplace and roadways. We create a culture of safety to not only keep people safer at work, but also beyond the workplace so they can live their fullest lives.
With a century-long legacy, the National Safety Council is a global center for safety expertise. Let's work together to align resources. We look forward to learning about ways we can join efforts to expand safety everywhere!
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