AAC at ATIA 2023: Presentations to Get Excited About
AAC stakeholders from around the US and beyond are looking forward to the ATIA 2023 Conference in Orlando this week. Those who can’t travel to Florida for this event can participate in the ATIA Virtual Conference. You can see the live-stream schedule for Feb 2-3 here.
Here are some of the sessions we’re excited about.
2023 Prentke AAC Distinguished Lecture
Ashley Mohesky will speak on The Intersect of Success and AAC on Friday, February 3 (11:30am-12:30pm ET). Everyone can view it live on YouTube here.
Spirit Of Joy Awardees
The Joy Zabala Spirit Award is awarded to speakers whose sessions have been selected as exemplifying the passion Joy brought to her work in AT and education. Several of the award winners are presenting on AAC and related topics.
- Lauren Enders and Shaun Pearson for AAC-48: Using Games to Foster Language Development, Connection, and Joy in AAC Learners
- Jessica Gormley, Maryjan Fiala, and Brittany Steinfeld for AAC-41: Space for Everyone: Co-Designing AAC Trainings with Families & Providers
- Hali Strickler for TWA-08: Stories of AAC and Adulting: Practice and Personal Perspectives
- Amber Skerry, Neha Sharma, Emily Macklin, and Ashley Leon for VHT-05: Foundational Communication: Individualizing Access for Deafblind Students
- James Whitney for ATPAP-06: Assistive Technology to Combat Social Isolation
- Judith Schoonover and Sally Norton-Darr for MWAT-06: EASY Does It: Revisiting LoTTIE Kits as Inclusive Learning Tools
This is a free event on Friday evening and is described as an ‘unconference’ devoted to k-12 special education issues and ideas with a focus on teaching all struggling learners and the use of assistive technology.
If hands-on learning is something you enjoy, you won’t want to miss the AT fun on Saturday at the 2023 Maker Day.
US Society for AAC Gathering
If you are an AAC stakeholder and live in the US, you are invited to learn more about the US Society for AAC. Join us on Thursday at 6:00 pm ET (Boca 2). We’d love to connect with you and share some of our activities, including various research projects, (free) support for AAC users and providers after a major disaster, mini-grants, hiring AAC users as speakers and guest lecturers through the AAC Speaker Connection, and the new Member Finder tool.
USSAAC is an organization dedicated to supporting the needs and desires of people who use AAC, as well as the family members, professionals, and manufacturers making up this community. USSAAC members join forces to improve the services, resources, and products used by children and adults who use and optimize AAC methods in order to communicate. USSAAC strives to enhance communication effectiveness and, ultimately, the independence of persons desiring access to an alternative communication system. In fact, USSAAC is the only national association specifically designed to address the needs of persons who are experience significant difficulty speaking and/or writing (communicating). The organization also addresses the needs of individuals who support the AAC community through therapy, special education, or the creation and manufacturing of technology.
Join us to connect with others who give back to the AAC community through volunteerism.
Filed under: Featured Posts
This post was written by Carole Zangari