National Disability Provider Association Names OHI employee 2025 DSP of the Year for Maine
April 02, 2025
Recognition honors professionals exemplifying workforce that empowers community inclusion for people with intellectual, developmental disabilities
BANGOR ME – ANCOR, the leading voice in Washington for community-based disability services providers, has announced that Shawna Ferris, a direct support professional at OHI, has been named the recipient of the 2025 DSP of the Year for Maine.
Ferris joins 53 other honorees in the 2025 edition of American Network of Community Options and Resources’ annual Direct Support Professional of the Year Awards program. This year’s awards garnered over 500 nominations from across the nation, a record-breaking total.
“OHI is so proud of Shawna. We are thrilled to celebrate her award, which represents her incredible work. More importantly, we recognize that her dedication enables true community inclusion for the people we support” said Mindy Ward, OHI president and chief executive officer. “Her supports are an example of the transformative power of community-based, person-centered supports and services. We’re grateful that ANCOR has recognized Shawna with this national honor.”
Since 2007, ANCOR’s annual DSP of the Year awards recognize outstanding direct support professionals who deliver long-term services and supports to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The awards celebrate the important role DSPs play in ensuring people with I/DD have what they need to thrive and be included in the community.
These awards also seek to raise awareness about a direct support workforce in crisis. Inadequate investments in this essential workforce have led to a decades-long severe shortage of DSPs, which risks being exacerbated significantly as Congress weighs substantial cuts to Medicaid, the program that funds the vast majority of services delivered by the direct support workforce.
“I began my career as a direct support professional, and so I have witnessed firsthand just how powerful a difference a qualified and committed DSP can make in the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities,” said Lori Kress, president of ANCOR’s Board of Directors and CEO of Dungarvin in Mendota Heights, Minn. “But DSPs of Shawna’s caliber truly raise the bar on what it means to deliver world-class support.”
Barbara Merrill, chief executive officer for ANCOR, added, “It is truly a pleasure to hear stories day in and day out about the magic that DSPs make possible as they deliver services that are nothing short of transformative for people with I/DD. It’s the very reason ANCOR began the DSP of the Year Awards program nearly two decades ago, and it’s why we are very much looking forward to celebrating the outstanding professionals like Shawna in San Diego next week.”
Shawna and the other 2025 honorees will be recognized during an awards ceremony in San Diego, Calif., on Wednesday during ANCOR Connect ’25, the association’s annual conference.
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About ANCOR
For more than 50 years, ANCOR has been a leading advocate for the critical role service providers play in enriching the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). As a national nonprofit trade association, ANCOR exists to advance the future of supports and services for people with I/DD.
OHI is a local nonprofit agency providing supports and services to adults with intellectual disabilities and mental illness in six Maine counties. In addition, OHI owns and operates the Brewer Area Food Panty at 222 North Main Street, and the Eagle’s Nest Clubhouse at 412 High Street in Ellsworth.
BANGOR ME – ANCOR, the leading voice in Washington for community-based disability services providers, has announced that Shawna Ferris, a direct support professional at OHI, has been named the recipient of the 2025 DSP of the Year for Maine.
Ferris joins 53 other honorees in the 2025 edition of American Network of Community Options and Resources’ annual Direct Support Professional of the Year Awards program. This year’s awards garnered over 500 nominations from across the nation, a record-breaking total.
“OHI is so proud of Shawna. We are thrilled to celebrate her award, which represents her incredible work. More importantly, we recognize that her dedication enables true community inclusion for the people we support” said Mindy Ward, OHI president and chief executive officer. “Her supports are an example of the transformative power of community-based, person-centered supports and services. We’re grateful that ANCOR has recognized Shawna with this national honor.”
Since 2007, ANCOR’s annual DSP of the Year awards recognize outstanding direct support professionals who deliver long-term services and supports to people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. The awards celebrate the important role DSPs play in ensuring people with I/DD have what they need to thrive and be included in the community.
These awards also seek to raise awareness about a direct support workforce in crisis. Inadequate investments in this essential workforce have led to a decades-long severe shortage of DSPs, which risks being exacerbated significantly as Congress weighs substantial cuts to Medicaid, the program that funds the vast majority of services delivered by the direct support workforce.
“I began my career as a direct support professional, and so I have witnessed firsthand just how powerful a difference a qualified and committed DSP can make in the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities,” said Lori Kress, president of ANCOR’s Board of Directors and CEO of Dungarvin in Mendota Heights, Minn. “But DSPs of Shawna’s caliber truly raise the bar on what it means to deliver world-class support.”
Barbara Merrill, chief executive officer for ANCOR, added, “It is truly a pleasure to hear stories day in and day out about the magic that DSPs make possible as they deliver services that are nothing short of transformative for people with I/DD. It’s the very reason ANCOR began the DSP of the Year Awards program nearly two decades ago, and it’s why we are very much looking forward to celebrating the outstanding professionals like Shawna in San Diego next week.”
Shawna and the other 2025 honorees will be recognized during an awards ceremony in San Diego, Calif., on Wednesday during ANCOR Connect ’25, the association’s annual conference.
###
About ANCOR
For more than 50 years, ANCOR has been a leading advocate for the critical role service providers play in enriching the lives of people with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD). As a national nonprofit trade association, ANCOR exists to advance the future of supports and services for people with I/DD.
OHI is a local nonprofit agency providing supports and services to adults with intellectual disabilities and mental illness in six Maine counties. In addition, OHI owns and operates the Brewer Area Food Panty at 222 North Main Street, and the Eagle’s Nest Clubhouse at 412 High Street in Ellsworth.
Contact:
Rich Romero, Resource Developer
rromero@ohimaine.org, (207) 605-1218
