2021 Texas Symposium on Deafblind Education
This symposium took place throughout the month of March 2021 and included participants and speakers from around the world. For the first time, this event was a virtual, collaborative project developed and delivered by Texas Deafblind Project, Deafblind International Network of the Americas, and the National Family Association for Deaf-Blind staff along with other partners from state and national deafblind organizations and agencies.
Presenters during the live portion of the event included:
- Nilam Agrawal, Parent and NFADB Board Member and Outreach Committee Co-Chair, Little Elm, TX
- Kittrell R. Antalan, M.Ed., Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist and Certified Teacher of the Visually Impaired, Katy ISD, Katy, TX.
- Maurice Belote, Project Coordinator of California Deaf-Blind Services, San Francisco, CA
- Edgenie Bellah, Family Engagement Coordinator, Texas Deafblind Project, Austin, TX
- Kaycee Bennett, Deafblind Education Consultant, Texas Deafblind Project, Austin, TX
- Robbie Blaha, Deafblind Consultant, Texas Deafblind Project, Austin, TX
- Hayley Broadway, ProTactile Consultant, Austin, TX
- David Brown, Freelance Education Consultant, San Francisco, CA
- Kate Borg, Outreach Programs Director and Texas Deafblind Project Coordinator, Austin, TX
- Dr. Judy Cameron, Professor of Psychiatry and Clinical Translation Science, Institute, University of Pittsburgh
- Suzanne Chen, Family Engagement and Outreach Coordinator, New York Deaf-Blind Collaborative, Queens, NY
- Rachel Collins, TDHH, TVI, TDB, Round Rock, TX
- Charlotte Cushman, Consultant for TSBVI Outreach and Perkins School for the Blind, Oracle, AZ
- Sandra Felefli, Parent, Texas
- Adam Graves, Deafblind Education Consultant, Texas Deafblind Project, Austin, TX
- Diana Griffen, Parent and NFADB Board Member, Exton, PA.
- Mary Gyori, Parent and NFADB Board Member and Development Committee Chair, Townsend, VT
- Dr. Paul Hart, Head of Research and Practice, Sense Scotland
- Vivecca Hartman, Parent and Co-Founder of Touch Base Center for the Deafblind, Spring Branch, TX
- Heather Hickman, Specialist Teacher of the Deafblind and Educational Coordinator of Deafblind Resource Services and Outreach Programs with the Ministry of Education in Ontario, Canada.
- Jacqueline Izaguirre, Treasurer, Finance Committee Chair and Policy, Information, and Education Committee Co-Chair for NFADB, Harker Heights, TX
- Melanie Knapp, NFADB Secretary and Policy, Information, and Education Committee Co-Chair, Sugarland, TX
- Jennifer Magee, M.S., Teacher of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing and Educational Diagnostician, Katy ISD, Katy TX
- Linda Mamer, Deafblind Consultant, and Secretary/Treasurer, Canadian Deaf-Blind Association – B.C. Chapter, Vancouver, BC
- Diana Martinez Oveido, Parent, Katy, TX
- Patti McGowan, President, Adult Life Committee Chair, and Membership Committee Chair, National Family Association for Deaf-Blind, Pittsburg, PA
- Barbara Miles, M.A, Deafblindness Consultant, Bristol, Vermont
- Cyral Miller, Outreach Consultant, Texas Deafblind Project, Texas School for the Blind & Visually Impaired, Austin, TX
- Carolyn Monaco, President, Canadian Deaf-Blind Association National Board of Directors, Burlington, Ontario Canada
- Chris Montgomery, Deafblind Consultant, Texas Deafblind Project, Texas School for the Blind & Visually Impaired, Austin, TX
- Stephanie Mowery, Teacher of Students who are Visually Impaired and Deafblind Specialist, Wylie ISD, Wylie, TX
- Dr. Jude Nicholas, Clinical Neuropsychologist and Researcher, Statped Vest Center for Special Needs Education, Bergen, Norway
- Deanna Peterson, Deafblind Early Childhood Consultant, Texas Deafblind Project, Austin, TX
- Marianne Riggio, Regional Coordinator for the Africa and Asia & Pacific Regions, Perkins’ Educational Leadership Program, Watertown, MA
- Elaine Robertson, M.Ed., Instructional Officer for Deaf Education, Vision, and Assistive Technology, Katy ISD, Katy, TX
- Gloria Rodriguez-Gil, MEd, Latin America Regional Director, Perkins International, San Francisco, CA
- Carolyn J. Samson, M.Ed., Certified Teacher of the Visually Impaired and Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist, Katy ISD, Katy, TX
- Wanda Schellenberg, Parent and Board Member for Canadian Deafblind Association (National and British Columbia), Vancouver, British Columbia
- Donia Shirley, Parent and NFADB Board Member, Miami, FL
- Amita Srinavasan, Student at UT Austin and President of DeafBlind Citizens in Action, Austin, TX
- Nicholas Trotter, COMS/CTVI, Texas Sensory Support Network (TxSSN) Lead at Texas Education Agency, and Texas Deafblind Project Grant Coordinator, Austin, TX
- David Wiley, Transition Consultant, Texas Deafblind Project, Austin, TX
- Heather Withrow, Parent, COMS, Austin, TX
Presenters for the asynchronous portions of the symposium included:
- Oriana Donoso Araya, Teacher of Differential Education with a major in Visual Impairments, Metropolitan University of Educational Sciences, Ñuñoa, Chile
- Dr. Eugene Bourquin, COMS / DHA, New York, NY
- Mike Fagbemi, Transition Initiative Lead, National Center on Deafblindness, HKNC, Sands Point, NY
- Sue Gawne, Deafblind Consultant, Canadian Deafblind Association – BC Chapter, New Westminster, British Columbia
- Carolina Gonzalez, COMS, Texas School for the Blind & Visually Impaired, Austin, TX
- Julianne Lemman, Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments and Teacher of Students who are Deafblind, Texas School for the Blind & Visually Impaired, Austin, TX
- Julie Maier, Education Consultant, California Deaf-Blind Services, San Francisco, CA
- Allison Mail, Early Intervention Program Deafblind Consultant, Canadian Deaf-Blind Association – BC Chapter, New Westminster, BC
- Marina McCormick, Ed.D., Region 4 Regional Day School Program for the Deaf Coordinator, Houston, TX
- Flavia Daniela dos Santos Moreira, Professor at the Benjamin Constant Institute, PhD in Education at the State University of Rio de Janeiro
- Pamela Lattapiat Navarro, Teacher of Special Education with Mention in Hearing and Language Disorders, Metropolitan University of Educational Sciences, Ñuñoa, Chile
- Gloria Rodriguez-Gil, MEd, Latin America Regional Director, Perkins International, San Francisco, CA
- Sarah Steele, Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments and Teachers of Students who are Deafblind, Texas School for the Blind & Visually Impaired, Austin, TX
- Theresa Tancock, Family Services Coordinator, Canadian Deafblind Association – BC Chapter, Westminster, British Columbia
- Maria Antonia Vasquez, Consultant, Research as a Work Strategy and Follow-up in the Development of Educational Projects in Latin America, Perkins International
- Heather Withrow, Parent, COMS, Austin, TX