National Federation of the Blind FOURTEENTH ANNUAL REHABILITATION AND ORIENTATION AND MOBILITY CONFERENCE Contemporary Issues In Rehabilitation and Education for the Blind Rosen Centre Hotel 9840 International Drive Orlando, Florida 32819 July 5, 2015 7:30 a.m. - 7:00 p.m. W202C, Convention Center, Level 2 Agenda Registration 7:30 a.m. - 8:30 a.m. Location: W202C, Convention Center, Level 2 Foyer Continuing Education Credits (CEC) are available for conference registrants Morning Session 8:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Location: W202C, Convention Center, Level 2 8:30 Welcome from our Sponsors. Fredric K. Schroeder, Ph.D., President, National Blindness Professional Certification Board (NBPCB), Vienna, VA; Eric Guillory, President, National Organization of Professionals in Blindness Education (PIBE), Ruston, LA; and Edward Bell, Ph.D., Director, Professional Development and Research Institute on Blindness (PDRIB), Louisiana Tech University, Ruston. 8:40 The Progress Made by the Organized Blind in 75 years of Shaping the Field of Rehabilitation and Education. Mark Riccobono, President, National Federation of the Blind, Baltimore, MD. 9:00 Quiet Cars: Establishing Meaningful Standards for Safe Travel. Fredric K. Schroeder, Ph.D., First Vice-President, World Blind Union, Vienna VA. 9:20 Opportunities for Personnel Development. Teaching Blind Students, Laura Bostick, M.A.Ed., NCUEB; Orientation and Mobility, Darick Williamson, M.A., NOMC; Rehabilitation Teaching for the Blind, Edward Bell, Ph.D., Professional Development and Research Institute on Blindness, Louisiana Tech University, Ruston. 9:45 Unified English Braille: An Update on Validation and Testing Opportunities. Maria Morais, NCUEB Coordinator, National Blindness Professional Certification Board (NBPCB), Ruston, LA. 10:00 The Journal of Blindness Innovation and Research: From Practice to Publish. Moderator: Matt Maurer, Ph.D., Associate Editor, JBIR, Indianapolis, IN; Lou Ann Blake, J.D., Managing Editor, JBIR, Baltimore, MD. 10:30 Structured Discovery Training Centers: An Update from the Field. Dan Wenzel, Executive Director, Blindness: Learning In New Dimensions (BLIND), Inc., Minneapolis, MN. Julie Deden, Executive Director, Colorado Center for the Blind, Littleton. Pamela Allen, Executive Director, Louisiana Center for the Blind, Ruston. Dean Georgiev, New Visions Supervisor, Ho`opono Services for the Blind, Honolulu, HI. Carol Jenkins, Orientation Center Supervisor, Nebraska Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Lincoln. 11:10 Providing Effective Rehabilitation Services: An Update from the Field. This panel is an opportunity for orientation centers around the country who are working towards implementation of Structured Discovery Methods and Principles to provide an update on current progress, announce job opportunities, and share successes. 11:55 Questions and wrap up. 12:00 Adjourn. 12:00-2:00 Lunch on your own. 2:00 - 5:00 p.m. Concurrent Sessions 2:00-3:15 Session I Structured Discovery Cane Travel Methods and Principles. Jeff Altman, NOMC, Instructor, Nebraska Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Lincoln; Darick Williamson, NOMC, Instructor, Louisiana Tech University, Ruston. Teachers, parents, and professionals are welcome to come and learn more about Structured Discovery Cane Travel (SDCT)T: its methods, principles, and techniques. NOMC-certified instructors will be on hand to provide one-to-one and small group lessons for novice, intermediate, and advanced cane users. Learn about becoming an O&M instructor, how the National Orientation and Mobility Assessment is conducted, and how to advocate for mobility services. Location: Salon 16 Rehab Teaching and Access Technology. Eric Guillory, President, PIBE; and Jack Mendez, Director of Technology, Louisiana Center for the Blind, Ruston. This will be a hands-on workshop for professionals and consumers to learn about the profession of Rehabilitation Teaching for the blind, access technology, and consumer products. Participants will have hands-on lessons with IOS devices, Duxbury, and will be able to ask novice, intermediate, and advanced computer questions of experts in the field. Location: Salon 17 National Certification in Unified English Braille: Official Examination (Time: 2:00-6:00). Maria Morais, NCUEB Coordinator, National Blindness Professional Certification Board (NBPCB), Ruston, LA. Preregistration is required. All participants must be preregistered for this event prior to June 15. Questions regarding registration should be directed to braille at nbpcb.org <mailto:braille at nbpcb.org> . Location: Salon 18 3:30-5:00 Session II Structured Discovery Cane Travel Methods and Principles. Jeff Altman, NOMC, Instructor, Nebraska Commission for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Lincoln; Darick Williamson, NOMC, Instructor, Louisiana Tech University, Ruston. Teachers, parents, and Professionals are welcome to come and learn more about Structured Discovery Cane Travel (SDCT)T: its methods, principles, and techniques. NOMC-certified instructors will be on hand to provide one-to-one and small group lessons for novice, intermediate, and advanced cane users. Learn about becoming an O&M instructor, how the National Orientation and Mobility Assessment is conducted, and how to advocate for mobility services. Location: Salon 16 Rehab Teaching and Access Technology. Eric Guillory, President, PIBE; and Jack Mendez, Director of Technology, Louisiana Center for the Blind, Ruston. This will be a hands-on workshop for professionals and consumers to learn about the profession of Rehabilitation Teaching for the blind, access technology, and consumer products. Participants will have hands-on lessons with IOS devices, Duxbury, and will be able to ask novice, intermediate, and advanced computer questions of experts in the field. Location: Salon 17 NBPCB Awards Reception 5:00 - 7:00 p.m. Location: Salon 9, Level 2 * Speak with the day's presenters in a less formal setting. * Network opportunity for job seekers and employers * Meet our newest NOMC certificants/recertificants * Meet our newest NCUEB certificants * Awards and recognition * Cash bar and light snacks will be available Sponsored by: National Blindness Professional Certification Board (NBPCB) Fredric K. Schroeder, President www.nbpcb.org admin at nbpcb.org National Organization of Professionals in Blindness Education (PIBE) Eric Guillory, President www.nfb.org/divisions <http://www.nfb.org/divisions> ericguillory at aol.com <mailto:ericguillory at aol.com> Professional Development and Research Institute on Blindness (PDRIB), Louisiana Tech University Edward Bell, Director www.pdrib.com ebell at latech.edu Edward C. Bell, Ph.D., CRC, NOMC Director, Professional Development and Research Institute on Blindness Louisiana Tech University 210 Woodard Hall PO Box 3158 Ruston LA 71272 Office: 318.257.4554 Fax: 318.257.2259 (Fax) Skype: edwardbell2010 <mailto:ebell at latech.edu> ebell at latech.edu <http://www.pdrib.com> www.pdrib.com ************************************************************** "I am somehow less interested in the weight and convolutions of Einstein's brain than in the near certainty that people of equal talent have lived and died in cotton fields and sweatshops." -- Stephen Jay Gould