Upcoming


SWOMA 2023

November 2-4, 2023




SWOMA 2023 Virtual Conference Information


Here is what is in the works for SWOMA 2023


Conference Dates: November 2-4, 2023

Registration Fee: $100 for Professionals and $25 for Students, Paraprofessionals, and Family Members (Early Bird Pricing)

[Registration to begin at the end of July or early August]




Presenter and Session Lineup


Thursday, November 2nd


Linda Meyers and Alan Scott

Accessible Design for the Blind


Kate Beals, Occupational Therapist

Sensory Integration

Hand-Under-Hand Facilitation for Improved Intervention Outcomes



Friday, November 3rd


Sarah Duyck, Kathryn Roberts, Mara Turner

Leader Dogs for the Blind: DeafBlind Program


Beverly Jackson

Goalball and the ECC


Mary Shore and Kathi Garza

Teaching Foundational Concepts and Skills Through Collaboration in the Early


Shelby Glass

Walk Your Own Path: A Mobility Mural Starting a Conversation


Penny Rosenblum

Findings Wheels: A Tool to Promote Travel Knowledge of Teens and Those in Their Early 20s


Robbin Clark

Expanded Core Curriculum (ECC)


Brad Blair

Self-Advocacy and Transition


Darick Wright

Environmental Adaptation


Kerri Weaver

Individual O and M approaches in Australia


Shelby Zimmerman and Stephanie Herlich

What’s in Your Assessment Toolbox? The Latest and Greatest for ECC (including O&M!) Evaluation


Exhibit Hall: Virtual Rooms with Exhibitors



Saturday, November 4th


Mari Hubig

Babies, Toddlers, and Families—Oh My!


Naomi Feller

MSI Curriculum


Willem Van de Mierop

Cross with confidence - OKO has your back


Rabih Dow and Pat Pound

Who Let the Dogs Out: The Wild West of Fraudulent Service Dogs


DJ Dean

COMS and the FVE


William Koehler

Risk Assessment, Safety Supervision and Liability in Orientation and Mobility Instruction

Determining Instructional Minutes and Effectiveness of Various Instructional Arrangements for O&M: A Research-based Range That Aligns With O&M Career, College, and Community Readiness Standards 2.0


Toby Anne Penington and Charlotte Simpson

Football vs.Eyeball: How to Explain Vision Loss


Carolina Gonzalez and Heather Withrow

O&M Strategies and Communication Techniques When Working With Students Who are Deafblind




Post entered, 2023-05-31




SWOMA 2023 Call for Presentation Submissions is Open


SWOMA 2023 is scheduled for November 2-4, 2023; this year we will be presenting in a virtual format (odd numbered years will be virtual, and even numbered years will be in-person format).


Submissions due by March 31st, 2023


Please use the following link to launch the Google Form for submitting a presentation proposal: https://bit.ly/PresentSWOMA2023


Or you can use this QR code to launch the page:

QR Code for linking to the Google Form for SWOMA 2023 Presentation Submissions




Post entered, 2023-02-22




SWOMA 2023 Planning Has Begun


Planning for the 2023 conference is underway. The present plan is for SWOMA to operate on a two-year cycle, one year in-person followed by one year virtual; even numbered years will be in person and odd numbered years will be virtual. Some people prefer in-person, some prefer or need remote delivery of conferences; the plan for rotating between the two is an effort to meet those preferences as well as to realize the benefits that each style of conference affords in providing professional development to the community interested in orientation and mobility.


If you would like to participate in planning the annual SWOMA Conference, please reach out to Chris Tabb at tabbc@tsbvi.edu so he can include you in the email group for communicating about monthly planning meetings and other details.




Post entered, 2023-01-03 (updated 2023-02-22)





SWOMA 2022 Registration is full and registration is now closed.



Additional Conference Details and Downloads (session handouts and accessible versions of presentations will be included in session listing below)


SWOMA 2022 will be held November 6th - 8th (Sunday through Tuesday) in Round Rock, TX at Austin Marriott North (2600 La Frontera Blvd., Round Rock, TX 78681)


Please download the Conference Program; there will NOT be a print version provided at the conference.


Download the Conference Program for SWOMA 2022


Download the CEU Code Tracking Form in Grid Format


Download the CEU Code Tracking Form in List Format



SWOMA T-shirts

There was so much interest in the logo that David Hook designed for this year’s conference, that we made it available as a t-shirt. They will NOT be available for sale at the conference, but you can purchase one (five different colors available) online and have it shipped directly to you. All profits go to All Blind Children of Texas (ACBTX). The link for the shirts is:

https://www.bonfire.com/swoma-t-shirt-with-dog-guide-and-cane/



Registration

Registration Site Link


Registration Rates are $150 early bird (ending October 1st); $175 regular (professional); $50 students, paraprofessionals, and families



Conference Hotel Reservations

Hotel link for reduced rate of $102 per night




Who to Reach Out to for Questions

Brian Sobeck at sobeckb@tsbvi.edu

Toni Ericson at ericsont@tsbvi.edu

Chris Tabb at tabbc@tsbvi.edu



Sunday, November 6th, 2022 (Pre-Conference)


1:00 p.m. - 2:15 p.m.

The Development of the Human Visual System and Neuroplasticity in Visual Impairment (Session 40483): Dr. Lotfi Merabet

Handout for Session 40483



2:30 p.m. - 4:00 p.m.

Assessing Visual Processing Deficits in Cerebral Visual Impairment (CVI) Using Virtual Reality and Brain Imaging (Session 40484): Dr. Lotfi Merabet

Handout for Session 40484




Monday, November 7th, 2022


8:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. General Session I

The Pedestrian Safety Crisis in the U.S. (Session 40485): Angie Schmitt

Handout for Session 40485



10:30 a.m. - 11:45 a.m. General Session II

Winning Change from the Grassroots (Session 40486): Angie Schmitt

Handout for Session 40486



1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m. Breakout Session I

Trust Through Touch (Session 40487): Dr. Audra Bishop; Kelley Nicholson; Stephan Slawson

Handout for Session 40487


Microsoft Soundscapes (Session 40488): Danika Dunlap

Handout for Session 40488


Sounds of the Intersection Symphony (Session 40489): Andrew Bernet and Winford Haynes


Exploring Orientation & Mobility Options (Session 40490): Leslie Hoskins, Erica Ihrke, and Barry Stafford

Handout 1 (presentation) for Session 40490

Handout 2 (Juno) for Session 40490

Handout 3 (IGDF Standards) Session 40490



3:00 p.m. - 4:30 p.m. Breakout Session II

Texas 2 STEPS: Creating O&M Opportunities (Session 40491): Jill Brown, Marjie Wood, Debra Sewell, and Gema Nelson

Handout for Session 40491


Complimenting Traditional O&M Skills with Technology (Session 40492): Joel Zimba


Show and Tell strategies when working with students with multiple impairments (Session 40493): Carolina Gonzalez and Katie Barnes

Handout for Session 40493


New O&M Reinforcement Games for pre-K to transition (Session 40494): Marty Schultz and Jason Stewart

Handout for Session 40494



4:45 p.m. - 5:45 p.m. Additional Training Options

Blindfold Travel (Session 40552)


Hands on O&M Technology Experience from HumanWare (Session 40495)


Exhibit Hall (Session 40496)



6:00 p.m. - 9:00 p.m.

SWOMA Social




Tuesday, November 8th, 2022


8:30 a.m. - 10:00 a.m. Breakout Session III

Overview of “In the Driver’s Seat” (Session 40498): Chuck Huss and Cindy Bachofer

Handout 1 (presentation) for Session 40498

Handout 2 (Step by Step Pre-Driver Readiness) for Session 40498

Handout 3 (Large Print, Step by Step Pre-Driver Readiness) for Session 40498

Handout 4 (Curriculum for WV Bioptic Driving Program) for Session 40498

Handout 5 (Basic Bioptic Usage) for Session 40498

Handout 6 (4.0x Functional Vision Awareness) for Session 40498

Handout 7 (3.0x Functional Vision Awareness) for Session 40498

Handout 8 (2.2x Functional Vision Awareness) for Session 40498


Sound Travels: Kaycee Bennett and Chris Tabb (Session 40499)

Handout for Session 40499


BFF with PVC (Session 40500): Shay Utley

Handout for Session 40500


Football vs. Eyeball: How to explain vision loss (Session 40501): Toby Anne Penington and Charlotte Simpson



10:30 a.m. - 12:00 p.m. Breakout Session IV

Role of the O&M in Pre-Driver Readiness (Session 40502): Chuck Huss

Handout 1 (presentation) for Session 40502

Handout 2 (Preparing you visually impaired child for their future) for Session 40502

Handout 3 (Step by Step Pre-Driver Readiness) for Session 40502

Handout 4 (Large Print, Step by Step Pre-Driver Readiness) for Session 40502

Handout 5 (Curriculum for WV Bioptic Driving Program) for Session 40502

Handout 6 (Basic Bioptic Usage) for Session 40502

Handout 7 (4.0x Functional Vision Awareness) for Session 40502

Handout 8 (3.0x Functional Vision Awareness) for Session 40502

Handout 9 (2.2x Functional Vision Awareness) for Session 40502


Review of Evaluation Tools and Resources for Orientation and Mobility (Session 40503): Mary Shore and Chris Tabb

Handout for Session 40503


Innovative and Comprehensive Internship Experiences: New Responsive Practices (Session 40504): Lisa Lind and Beverly Jackson

Handout for Session 40504


Does Your Workload Seem Excessive? The New Workload Analysis Tool for Itinerant Vision Professionals, the VISSPA, May Help! (Session 40505): Rona Pogrund and Christy Householter

Handout for Session 40505



12:00 p.m. - 1:00 p.m. Luncheon (Optional)



1:00 p.m. - 2:30 p.m.Breakout Session V

Mapmaking Made Easy: Using an Online Tool to Make High-Contrast and Tactile Maps (Session 40507): Danika Dunlap and Abby Koroma

Handout 1 (presentation) for Session 40507

Handout 2 (Adjusting the Features on a Street Map for Users with Visual Impairments using the Google Maps Styling Wizard) for Session 40507

Handout 3 (Screenreader Adjusting the Features on a Street Map for Users with Visual Impairments using the Google Maps Styling Wizard) for Session 40507


Roadmap to an O&M Professional Learning Community (Session 40508): Rikilynn Layher and Anne Zanger

Handout (individual items linked inside file) for Session 40508


Usher Syndrome (Session 40509): Carolina Gonzalez

Handout for Session 40509


FUNctional Brl 4 COMS (Session 40510): Debbie "Cricket" Park and DJ Dean

Handout (individual items linked inside file) for Session 40510




Post updated 2022-10-19