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2013 NBASLH Convention
NBASLH: Achieving Our Mission, Vision and Purpose
April 18-21, 2013
L'Enfant Plaza Hotel
Washington, DC |
This year’s Convention is starting early with visits to Capitol Hill.
If you plan on attending, following are some items you will need to know:
Plan to meet in the in the L'Enfant Plaza Hotel lobby at 7:45am
NBASLH will leave as a group for the metro at 8am
There will be a 8:30am briefing in the Hall of States (444 N. Capitol St) Room 231 with ASHA's Federal & Political Advocacy Office
Please bring your ID in order to enter the building
If you have meetings on Capitol Hill, please be sure to attend the Issue Briefing to receive materials on "talking points" with your Members of Congress
Once you’ve scheduled your appointments, please be sure to log them here:http://asha2.capwiz.com/asha2/lrm/feedback.tt?event=42147&mode=appointment . This allows the planners to see what appointments have been made and create meeting feedback forms for you which include information on the location and time of your appointments.
New this Year -
Speaking Out Conference
ASHA Receipt ion - At the ASHA National Office
Dear Colleagues, Friends, Special and Honored Guests,
On behalf of the Association, we invite you to attend the 35th National Black Association of Speech-Language and Hearing (NBASLH) Annual Convention in the historic city of Washington, D.C.! This year’s theme is NBASLH: Achieving our Mission, Vision and Purpose.
Every five years, NBASLH is committed to returning to our “birth place.” Washington, D.C. gives attendees the opportunity to honor our founders, our mission, vision and purpose, to explore, and experience our nation’s capital.
The Convention will be full of educational sessions, exciting clinical ideas and intellectual presenters. As in our previous conventions, you can expect the opportunities to network with a diversity of colleagues from a variety of institutions. The conference registration includes events such as Opening Session and Reception, Annual Membership Meeting, the Student Chat Session and Annual Awards Dinner. Attendees should also register for the annual Student-Mentor luncheon cosponsored by ASHA and NSSLHA, where mentors and students have the opportunity to get up close and personal with leaders of both ASHA and NBASLH. Have lunch with your mentor or meet a new mentor. This luncheon sells out every year, so register early! We are pleased to have an exciting trailblazer and colleague as our Opening Session speaker, Ms. Barbara Fernandes, and a historic member of NBASLH as our keynote speaker, Mr. Gene Wiggins for the Awards Dinner. Also, special conference additions including NBASLH’s Day on Capitol Hill, Speaking Out with Ellayne Ganzfried, and the NBASLH Closing Reception (sponsored by ASHA) at the ASHA National Office, are sure to add to an already exciting NBASLH Convention experience!
We are asking attendees to GET THERE EARLY this year, because conference sessions and events will begin Thursday morning! In addition to allowing you to fully experience the Convention and all Convention events; this will give you the opportunity to experience the diverse culture, history and sights that Washington, D.C. has to offer.
If monuments and historic landmarks are your interest, make sure you visit the Martin Luther King, Jr. Memorial, Lincoln Memorial or Washington Monument. If you are looking for culture and history check out the many museums. If you are looking to unwind a bit or for some nightlife, head on over to U Street, or to 14th Street and check out Busboys and Poets or dine at Eatonville (a restaurant in honor of Harlem Renaissance author Zora Neale Hurston). Perhaps you will even get lucky enough to spot the first African American President and the First Lady at the White House! Whatever your taste, D.C. is sure to have something to please.
This year’s Convention will be hosted at the L’Enfant Hotel and Plaza, situated in the heart of downtown D.C. with quick access to the Metro, giving attendees easy access to the city.
The 35th NBASLH Convention offers our association the chance to honor where we have been and celebrate where we are going. Once you get there, we guarantee that you will witness that we are truly ACHIEVING our MISSION, VISION and PURPOSE!
NBASLH 35 … DON’T MISS IT!!!!!!!!
See you there,
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On behalf of the NBASLH Board of Directors, it is with excitement and great pleasure that I welcome you to the 2013 NBASLH Convention as we also celebrate our 35th Anniversary in the great city of Washington, D.C.
In the celebration of the re-election and inauguration ceremony of the first Black President (Barack Obama) of the United States, NBASLH comes to the capital city with the theme NBASLH: Achieving Our Mission, Vision and Purpose. NBASLH has been at the forefront of efforts to increase the numbers of Black professionals in communication disorders and improving the quality of speech-language pathology and audiology services in the Black community, for three and a half decades. Today we have that same focus but it has been expanded to include increasing the number of culturally competent professionals and improving the quality of services in all underserved communities.
There is a great ‘golden’ treasure in NBASLH. The many professionals and students that have been a part of NBASLH for the past 35 years have refined this Association into a dynamic organization that is “unashamedly Black” and unapologetically professional; while openly welcoming new members from other ethnic and social groups. NBASLH is an inclusive Association that will continue to partner with like Associations that strive to “enhance the professional lives of our members and, through us, the lives of individuals with communication disorders” (Chabon).
Our Convention Co-Chairs, Doanne Ward-Williams and Jamila Perry Foreman, have put together a program befitting of our 35 years of achieving our mission, vision and purpose. In Washington D.C., on the campus of Howard University 35 years ago, it was proposed that, “concerned Blacks in the speech and hearing community should meet to consider and act upon the feasibility of building and sustaining a national association of Black Speech-Language Pathology and Audiology professionals” and NBASLH was formed and incorporated. NBASLH comes back to Washington D.C. 35 years later with our purposes.
It is Convention time so let us celebrate our achievements in true NBASLH fashion draped in our culture and history. Let us feast on the joy of learning and drink the wine of scientific discovery. Let us dance to the music of understanding and sing a song of harmony. NBASLH, look at what we have accomplished. Look at where we are now. Look at where we are headed.
Arnell Brady, MA
NBASLH Chairman, National Board of Directors
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Barbara Fernandes, MS
Ms. Fernandes is the founder and director of Smarty Ears. She received her masters degree in Speech and Language Pathology with an emphasis in bilingualism from Texas Christian University. Barbara speaks three languages (English, Spanish and Portuguese), and she has worked with children from a variety of ethnic backgrounds and native languages in several countries. In addition to her passion for working with bilingual children, Barbara’s passion for technology has led her to become an active blogger known as GeekSLP for www.geekslp.com and the blog of the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association known as the AshaSphere. As GeekSLP, Barbara has been invited as a guest speaker in universities and International conferences, and given workshops and presentations around the world on how technology can be implemented to improve the speech and language skills.
Paul Rao, PhD
Dr. Paul Rao is the 2011 ASHA President and is the Vice President of Operations at the National Rehabilitation Hospital (NRH) in Washington, D.C. Dr. Rao is a Visiting Professor at the University of Maryland, and in 2000, became a Certified Professional in Healthcare Quality and a Certified Healthcare Executive. Dr. Rao received his Bachelor’s Degree in philosophy from St. Vincent College in Latrobe, Pennsylvania, his master’s in speech pathology from Catholic University in Washington, D.C., and his PhD in hearing and speech science from the University of Maryland in College Park, Maryland. Dr. Rao has published numerous articles and chapters on such topics as customer service, policy and procedures, supervision, health literacy and management. He serves on the editorial board of Topics in Stroke Rehabilitation and Advance for Directors. Dr. Rao is a Fellow in both ASHA and the American College of Healthcare Executives.
Tommie L. Robinson, Jr., PhD
Dr. Robinson is director of the Scottish Rite Center for Childhood Language Disorders in the Children’s Hearing and Speech Center at Children Hospital in Washington, D.C. and is an associate professor of pediatrics at The George Washington, University School of Medicine and Health Sciences. He specializes in communication disorders in children, with a specific focus on children who stutter. Dr. Robinson’s research and writings have focussed on normal fluency behaviors in children and adults as well as service delivery to children from culturally and linguistically diverse backgrounds. Dr. Robinson received his AA degree from Coahoma Community College in Clarksdale, Mississippi, BA and MS, degrees from The University of Mississippi in Oxford, Mississippi and his PhD degree from Howard University in Washington, D.C.
Cathy Runnels, MS
Ms. Runnels, president and lead SLP of Accent on Speech, LLC, brings multiple years of experience gained in corporations, non-profit, medical, and educational settings. Ms. Runnels is presently a faculty associate at Johns Hopkins University and a national consultant for Western Psychological Services (WPS). She is a former Chair of the Board of the National Black Association for Speech-Language and Hearing and former Board of Ethics member for the American Speech-Language-Hearing Association. She was a featured Alumnus of the Year for Syracuse University (2011-2012). Ms. Runnels works with professionals to modify their accents and to improve their public speaking skills. She also maintains a clinical caseload of students from independent schools with mild to moderate communication needs. Ms. Runnels is a graduate of Chapman University for undergraduate studies and Syracuse University for the master’s degree.
Gene Wiggins, MS
Mr. M. Eugene Wiggins is former Director of the Speech and Hearing Clinic at the University of the District of Columbia (UDC). He earned his BS from Hampton University and his MS from the University of Michigan. He is a founding member of NBASLH and initially served as its Administrative Assistant and Financial Manager before taking on the position of Executive Director, which he held from 1988 to 2002. During his tenure, Mr. Wiggins implemented a variety of proceedings with a focus on multicultural issues in speech-language pathology and audiology, which included spotlighting issues related to the recruitment and retention of African American students in communication disorders programs, generally, and the underrepresentation of blacks in the professions, specifically. Mr. Wiggins also created NBASLH’s PRAXIS Review Course. He received the William T. Simpkins, Jr. Service Award from NBASLH; he is an ASHA Fellow, and a recipient of the ASHA Certificate of Recognition for Special Contributions in Multicultural Affairs. He also served as a delegation member of the People to People Citizen Ambassador Program that included connecting with communication sciences and disorders professionals and students in South Africa. He is a recipient of the Paul Phillips Cooke Lifetime Achievement Award from UDC. He served as a grant reviewer for the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services, and was project director (and co-director) of numerous federally funded programs. Mr. Wiggins retired from UDC in 2008.
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Thursday, April 18
Thursday Morning Capitol Hill Visits - Join us for a day on Capitol Hill!
The 2013 NBASLH Convention taking place in Washington, D.C., provides for an excellent opportunity for NBASLH members to meet with their Members of Congress and advocate for their profession. A personal meeting is one of the most effective ways to get to know your lawmakers and their staff, establish or maintain relationships, and communicate your viewpoints. With new legislators taking office in January and many competing interests out there, it is extremely important for your Members of Congress to hear about the importance of our professions and to have us in mind when deciding important legislation. NBASLH will provide materials on the issues and guidance in setting up meetings with your legislators. We hope you will be able to join us!
Opening Session, Featuring Ms. Barbara Fernandes
6:00 pm – 7:00 pm
Ms. Fernandes will proudly kick off this year’s Convention by sharing her compelling story of moving to the United States from Brazil. While studying in the US to become a speech therapist, she simultaneously taught herself both English and Spanish. Later after graduating, she became an innovator in her field by developing a successful business of more than 50 apps for speech therapists around the world.
Opening Reception
7:00 pm – 9:00 pm
After enjoying the Opening Session, unwind with colleagues of old, and meet new ones, while enjoying music and light hors d’oeuvers.
The Opening Reception is sponsored by EBS Healthcare.
Friday, April 19
Annual Membership Meeting
8:00 am – 9:00 am – NEW TIME!
Join the NBASLH Executive Board for the Annual Meeting at its new time! This will be your opportunity to share in the achievements of the past year. Also gain insight on the new and exciting ventures for the upcoming year.
NBASLH Annual Awards Dinner
7:00 pm
Featured Presenter: Mr. Gene Wiggins, presenting Making A Difference
Enjoy Desserts and Dancing after the Awards Dinner, sponsored by Howard University.
Saturday, April 20
Speaking Out Conference
9:00 am to 4:30 pm
NBASLH is pleased to team up this year with the National APHASIA Association to present the National Aphasia Association’s Regional Speaking out Conference.
This Conference offers the expertise of leaders in the field of aphasia rehabilitation who will be presenting the latest perspectives on aphasia research, community aphasia programs and living with aphasia through presentations and hands-on demonstrations. The Conference offers a unique integration of views from professionals and people living with aphasia.
The National Aphasia Association is pleased to offer NBASLH attendees a reduced rate for this conference. The fee includes breakfast and lunch. See the registration form for pricing.
This program is being offered for .50 CEUs.
Student Mentor Luncheon
12:30 pm – 2:00 pm
Sponsored by ASHA and NSSLHA
The Student-Mentor Luncheon devotes a special time for students and mentors to enjoy a gathering specifically designated for students. During the luncheon, the Student Research Award recipient will present a synopsis of their research.
Special Invitation ASHA National Office
5:00 pm – 8:00 pm
The American Speech-Language-Hearing Association (ASHA) cordially invites NBASLH Convention participants to attend a reception celebrating NBASLH’s 35th Anniversary at The ASHA National Office.
Transportation and tours of the ASHA National Office to be provided. Space is limited; register for this event on the enclosed registration form.
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Currently the L'Enfant Plaza Hotel is full booked.
Hotel Accommodations have been obtained at the Holiday Inn Capitol.
550 C Street,
SW
Washington, DC 20024
This is one block from the L'Enfant Plaza Hotel.
Room rate for Wednesday, April 17, 2013 is $229
Room rate for Thursday, April 18-Sunday, April 21 is $159
You may make reservations directly on line by clicking on the weblink below.
NBASLH
Or by calling 1800 HOLIDAY and referencing booking code B5A.
Credit card information is needed at time of reservation. Individual cancellation policy is 72 hours prior to date of arrival to avoid one night's room plus tax cancellation charge on credit card provided. Please call 1-800 HOLIDAY and reference your confirmation number. Please obtain a cancellation number when cancelling a reservation.
Deadline date to make reservation is Friday, April 5, 2013. Reservation requests received after the deadline date will be subject to availability and prevailing rate.
L'Enfant Plaza Hotel is located directly above the L'Enfant Plaza Metro stop and steps from the Capitol Hill. NBASLH has obtain a special group rate of $139 for the Convention
You can make a reservation by either of the following methods:
Phone - Reservations made be made by calling 800-635-5065. identify yourself as being with the NBASLH Convention and use the code NBS417
On-Line - Click Here and use the code NBS417
Click here for more information on the L'Enfant Plaza Hotel.
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