At the May 2026 AGM, the MASP Award of Excellence was presented to Linda Sander for her outstanding contributions to school psychology, mentorship, and clinician development across Manitoba. Linda is a school psychologist with the Louis Riel School Division and is widely respected for her dedication to students, colleagues, and the profession.

A graduate of the first cohort of the University of Manitoba's Faculty of Arts School Psychology program (2007), Linda brought 12 years of education experience to the role, including teaching in Oxford House, supporting middle years students in a transition program, and serving as a resource teacher and guidance counsellor.

Linda's commitment to mentorship is truly province-wide. She became a school-based supervisor in 2010, but her reach extends well beyond her own division. She has been contracted by other school divisions, both rural and urban, to supervise new graduates in situations where no acting supervisor was available. She began teaching at the U of M in 2008 providing various courses to graduate students in the program. She then became the university-based practicum supervisor at the University of Manitoba in 2018. As the current acting practicum supervisor for the university, she has provided guidance, consultation, and report review to students moving through their practicum placements. This includes Northern practicum experiences and all placements throughout Manitoba. She is known for providing caring and thoughtful feedback, consultation, mediation between placement and students, and mentorship to every student and site placement she supports. Linda stated that she knows every student who has graduated from the program in the last five years and genuinely loves fostering the growth of the next generation of school psychologists and watching them thrive in their careers.

In her current role at Louis Riel, Linda also completes over 40 psychoeducational assessments annually while supporting school teams and her colleagues across the entire division, meaningfully improving access to timely services. As she put it, "I know how important a psychoeducational assessment is and I know the change it can make in a student's life."

Through assessment, teaching, mentorship, and private practice, Linda consistently demonstrates professionalism, compassion, and genuine passion for the field, making her an exceptionally deserving recipient of the MASP Award of Excellence.