Annual MCB Visions of Collaboration Conference 2019

Friday, March 22, 2019
7:30 a.m. - 3 p.m.

Address

Holiday Inn Hotel & Suites Marlborough, 265 Lakeside Avenue, Marlborough, MA 01752

Overview   of Annual MCB Visions of Collaboration Conference 2019

Focus on Skills for Success in Work and Life

Pre-Employment Transition Services for Students with Visual Impairments

Who Should Attend: 
TVIs, COMS, MCB Staff, Special Ed Directors, IEP Team Chairs, Guidance Counselors, Transition Professionals.

Please share with others who may be interested.

No cost to attend. Space is limited. Registration required.

Registration Deadline Friday, March 8th by 5:00 pm: 
https://www.eventbrite.com/e/annual-mcb-visions-of-collaboration-conference-2019-tickets-52721040050

Agenda

7:30 AM - 8:00 AM       
Registration

8:00 AM – 8:45 AM      
Networking and Continental Breakfast

Regional Collaboration
Seating suggested by regional location. 

Question Box:
Participants can submit questions to be addressed during working lunch.

8:45 AM - 9:15 AM     
Welcome
and Around the room introductions
MA Commission for the Blind (MCB)

Casey Hall, Director of Training

Opening Remarks

MCB Commissioner David D’Arcangelo
                                   

9:15 AM – 10:00 AM    
What Employers are looking for in an Employee: Knowledge, Skills and Abilities

Employer Panel Presentation

Moderator: John Oliveira, MCB Deputy Commissioner

Richard W. Curtis, Vice President | Workforce Development | Global Inclusion | State Street Corporation


10:00 AM – 10:15 AM 
MCB Partnerships for Pre-ETS Consumers

Joe Buizon, MCB Employee Services Supervisor


10:15 AM - 10:30 AM
Break


10:30 AM - 12:00 PM 
BREAKOUT SESSIONS-3 Choices A, B, C


A                     

Assistive Technology: How Much is Enough and How Much is Too Much

Rick Ely, PhD., TVI

William Hersh, M.Ed., MSLVR, CLVT, Low Vision Therapist/Assistive Technology Specialist

 

B

Being Ready for College

Panel Presentation

Moderator: Teri Turgeon, Director, Community Programs, Perkins School for the Blind

  1. What to expect for services

College Office for Disability

Paul Hastings, Director of Disability,

Boston University/Wheelock

 

  1. What are the Skills Needed for Success

Alan White, MCB Regional Director,

Vocational Rehabilitation

Meg Robertson, MCB Director, Orientation & Mobility

Carolyn Ovesen, MCB Supervisor, Rehabilitation Teaching

Alexander Pooler, MCB Director, Assistive Technology

 

C

Self-Advocacy & Buy-in

Panel Presentation

Moderator: Thomas Miller, Special Education & Training Consultant

Panel Representatives:

  • Tammy Reisman, M.Ed., C.A.E.S.

Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments

Newton Public Schools

TVI Program Coordinator, UMass Boston

  • O & M
  • Lisa L. Fournier, EdD., Transition Specialist, South Coast Educational Collaborative
  • Mayanne MacDonald-Briggs, MCB, Transition Counselor

12:00 PM - 12:45 PM  
Working Lunch

  • Moderator: Casey Hall, Director of Training
  • Table Hosts: Pre-ETS Program Providers, MCB Staff (AT, DBES, O & M, RDs)
  • Networking, Q & A & Opportunity to visit the resource tables.

 

12:45  PM – 1:00 PM
Q and A from question boxes

                        MCB Staff and Conference Committee Members

 

1:00 PM - 1:45 PM      
Our Stories: Challenges & Successes

Consumer Panel Presentation

Moderator: Alan White, MCB Regional Director, Metro West

  • Grace VanDyck, Senior, Dean College
  • Melisar Nambatya, Junior, UMass Boston


1:45 PM - 1:55 PM 
Cookies and drinks


1:55 PM – 2:45 PM      
Pre-Employment Transition Services (Pre-ETS)
Students with Visual Impairments

Moderator: Casey Hall, MCB Director of Training

MCB Pre-ETS Program Providers

Introduction to Pre-ETS Programs

  • What the programs have in common
  • How to apply/get in to any program

6 Program Providers

  • What is unique about their program
  • Where their program is located
  • When is their program offered

 (5 minutes to present, 5 minutes for Q & A)

Panel Members:

  • Carroll Center for the Blind

Dina Rosenbaum, M.Ed., Chief Program Officer

  • Lowell Association for the Blind

Elizabeth M. Cannon, Executive Director

  • Our Space, Our Place

Cheryl Cumings, Founder/Executive Director

  • Partners for Youth with Disabilities

Antonela Prifti, Mentoring Specialist

  • Perkins School for the Blind

Teri Turgeon, Education Director, Community Programs

  • The POLUS Center for Social & Economic Development, Inc.

Theresa E. Kane, Ph.D., Chief Operating Officer

 

2:45PM - 3:00 PM     
Closing

Program Evaluation and CEU distribution

Casey Hall, MCB Director of Training

 

CEUs

  • CRC
  • ACVREP
  • Certificate of Completion

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