In 2005, UXPA (formerly UPA) began formally honoring those who contribute in special ways to UXPA and to the profession. Recognition by a professional association is an important way to acknowledge both individual and chapter achievements, and to publicize the best projects we undertake.
This year we awarded the President’s Award, Usability Service Award, and the Volunteer Service Award. Learn more about these awards below.
The President’s Award
This award gives special honors to an individual whose work has been important in furthering both the organization and usability in general.
Organizations thrive on the work of “unsung heroes” who put in extra effort to start, revitalize or sustain UXPA activities. They often devote extraordinary effort, beyond normal volunteer work, whether on a specific project or in a general sustained effort.
Volunteer Service Award
This award is in recognition of volunteer commitment to UXPA International for multiple years.
2026 The President's Awardees
Sara Mastro
In recognition of her serving the UX community as a board member from 2016 to 2019 and as the president of UXPA International from 2019 to 2025, we present the UXPA President’s Award to Sara Mastro.
Sara Mastro has been responsible for planning, conducting, and managing user–centered research projects and products for over 20 years. Her extensive background in design and research is the basis for a strong methodology that creates smart user experiences. Sara has worked with a variety of companies and organizations throughout her career including Discovery Channel and Texas Instruments.
Sara has been leading the UX research and design team at Perceptronics Solutions (an AI/ML company focused on government contracts) for almost 8 years, in addition to managing several of their product initiatives.
She is an active member of UXPA (User Experience Professionals Association) and is the past President of UXPA International.
Jennifer Romano, PhD
In recognition of her serving the UX community as a board member from 2014 to 2016 and as the president of UXPA International from 2016 to 2018, we present the UXPA President’s Award to Dr. Jennifer Romano.
Jen Romano is an award-winning UX Leader, with 15+ years experience: in industry, academia and government; as manager, director, and individual contributor; strategist and executor. Jen has led teams and projects at Google, Facebook, Instagram, speaking, teaching and being a keynote speaker at top UX conferences in the world (e.g., UXPA, WUC, HCII). She is the founder of UXR Coach, she teaches at UC Berkeley, Pratt Institute, and University of Maryland and has published more than 30 articles, chapters, and books, including Usability Testing for Survey Research, Eye Tracking in User Experience Design, and Modern Socio-Technical Perspectives on Privacy.
2026 Usability Service Awardees
Claudia Gutiérrez
In recognition of her significant contributions to the UX field and her commitment to serving on the UXPA Magazine as Managing Editor.
Claudia is a UX strategist, educator, and AI systems designer working at the intersection of human-centered design, content strategy, and emerging technology. Her work focuses on how agentic and context-aware AI can extend the capabilities of designers, researchers, and product teams transforming workflows without compromising creativity, ethics, or empathy. With over 2 decades of experience in digital design and strategy, she has led UX and innovation initiatives across sectors including SaaS, healthcare, banking, and higher education. Claudia’s projects bridge research, design systems, and intelligent automation, helping organizations build design practices that are both data-informed and deeply human.
Bill Albert, PhD
In recognition of his significant contributions to the UX field and his commitment to serving on the Journal of User Experience as co-editor in chief.
Dr. Bill Albert is the Founder and Principal of Greenlight Idea Lab, a leading global agency at the forefront of new product validation and innovation. With a career spanning leadership roles in world-class organizations, Bill has consistently driven transformational impact in the fields of customer experience and user research. Before founding Greenlight Idea Lab, he served as Senior Vice President and Global Head of Customer Experience at Mach49, a Silicon Valley agency focused on innovation and venture-building. Prior to that, he was the Executive Director of Bentley University’s User Experience Center, where he led UX research and design initiatives for over 100 clients, including Fortune 500 companies.
A pioneer in quantitative UX research, Bill co-authored Measuring the User Experience: Collecting, Analyzing, and Presenting Usability Metrics (3rd edition), the groundbreaking book that ignited the quantitative UX movement. His innovative contributions to the field are further reflected in his extensive publication record, with more than 20 articles on human-computer interaction, UX methodology, and data visualization, and through his role as Co-Editor-in-Chief of The Journal of Experience, the only peer-reviewed journal in UX research.
Bill has shared his expertise on global stages, delivering over 50 presentations at renowned conferences, and his work continues to shape how organizations measure and optimize customer desirability for groundbreaking solutions. He holds a PhD from Boston University and completed a postdoctoral fellowship on cognitive systems, focusing on the complex demands of navigation technologies.
James R. Lewis, PhD
In recognition of his significant contributions to the UX field and his commitment to serving the Journal of User Experience as co-editor in chief.
Jim is a Certified Human Factors Professional with a PhD in Experimental Psychology (Psycholinguistics) and MA in Engineering Psychology (minor in applied statistics). Jim has published influential papers on the assessment of perceived usability and a sample size estimation for usability studies. Before joining MeasuringU, Jim worked at IBM for nearly 40 years where he was the lead UX designer for a number of mobile products, including the product now widely regarded as the first smartphone, the Simon, then spent 20 years consulting in all areas of speech system usability. He is an IBM Master Inventor (> 90 US patents) and has published over 100 articles and papers. He is the co-editor in chief of the Journal of User Experience and, in 2021, was inducted into the Academy of Science, Engineering, and Medicine of Florida.
2026 Volunteer Service Awardee
Adrienne Guillory, MBA
In recognition of her significant contributions to the UX field and her commitment to serving the UX community as a UXPA International Conference Chair in 2024 and 2026.
Adrienne Guillory is an expert in Human-Centered Design, Design Thinking strategy, facilitation, and generative User Experience research. She leads research training, development, and operations as the Chief Operating Officer at Usability Sciences. Adrienne co-founded and operates Dallas Black UX, a networking and educational organization for people of color in the Dallas/ Fort Worth area, and teaches the Foundations of Design Thinking at the University of Texas, Arlington. When she’s not working, Adrienne enjoys Mommy/ Son adventuring with her son, traveling, and spending time with friends and family.