2024 TASH Conference: Full Schedule

Welcome to the official website for the 2024 TASH Conference!

Each year, the TASH Conference brings together our constituents to share resources and success stories, learn about field-driven best practices, and network within a community engaged in shared values. The Conference is attended by passionate leaders, experts, and advocates from every corner of the disability community. Conference attendees are influential in their fields and communities, and play an important role in the provision of services and supports for individuals and organizations around the world; and include professors and researchers from leading institutions; those involved in local, state, and federal governments and public policy; special and general educators, and school administrators; self-advocates, adult service providers; students, family members, and many others. This year’s conference theme is Celebrate Together: Let the Good Times Roll!

Click on the "Registration and More" tab for additional information about our Conference location, registration, reserving a guest room, sponsorship and exhibitor opportunities, and more! The full Conference schedule is now available for viewing. Registered attendees will receive an invitation to log in and create a personalized schedule.

11:15am CST

Benefits of Collaborative, Multidisciplinary Approaches to AAC Training in Schools

Friday December 6, 2024 11:15am - 12:15pm CST

Imperial 8

A multidisciplinary approach involving speech-language pathologists, educators, occupational therapists, and other professionals leads to improved communication outcomes for individuals using Augmentative & Alternative Communication (AAC) systems (McNaughton & Light, 2013). Despite this knowledge, AAC training opportunities for school staff often focus only on SLPs and less frequently on the direct support professionals assisting students on a daily basis. Our session focuses on the benefits of a multidisciplinary training approach, which facilitates the generalization and maintenance of communication skills across different settings and communication partners. This collaboration promotes communication and inclusion in a wider range of contexts (Millar et al., 2019). Multidisciplinary collaboration provides valuable opportunities for professional development and knowledge exchange among team members, enhancing AAC service delivery in educational settings (Beukelman & Mirenda, 2013).

Presenters

Lisa Mihalich Quinn

Executive Director, Reach Every Voice

Lisa Mihalich Quinn, M.A / M.Ed. is a licensed special educator with more than 15 years of experience making academic content accessible for neurodiverse students and learners who use Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC). She is a former Public Schools teacher and the... Read More →

Friday December 6, 2024 11:15am - 12:15pm CST
Imperial 8 Hyatt Regency, 601 Loyola Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70113

Breakout Sessions

Primary Topic Communication Access
Themes of Interest Capacity Building for Inclusion
Key Words Augmentative and Alternative Communication, Teacher Training, Multidisciplinary Approach, Professional Development
Presentation Type Research

2:15pm CST

Preparing Teachers to Support Children Who Use AAC

Friday December 6, 2024 2:15pm - 3:10pm CST

Imperial 11

Preparing teachers to effectively support students with extensive support needs and complex communication needs who require Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) necessitates collaboration with speech pathologists, Board Certified Behavior Analysts, parents, and families. Training should cover AAC methods, Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles, and practical experiences and should be taught through coursework and meaningful clinical experiences. Collaborative partnerships ensure educators gain insights into best practices and access resources, and ongoing professional development keeps teachers aware of current best practices. Cultivating a school culture that values diversity in communicative expression is crucial for creating inclusive learning environments where all students can thrive academically and socially.

Friday December 6, 2024 2:15pm - 3:10pm CST
Imperial 11 Hyatt Regency, 601 Loyola Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70113

Breakout Sessions

Primary Topic Communication Access
Themes of Interest K-12 Education
Key Words Augmentative and Alternative Communication, Communication Access, Teacher Peparation, Inclusion, Training
Presentation Type General

5:45pm CST

Communication Opportunities for Preschoolers with Disabilities and Complex Communication Needs

Friday December 6, 2024 5:45pm - 7:15pm CST

Storyville Hall

For children, social interaction plays a critical role in overall social, emotional, and cognitive development, however, not every child has equal opportunity to engage socially with their peers. Specifically, children with disabilities and complex communication needs (CCN) have limited meaningful opportunities to interact with their peers in inclusive educational spaces. To better support young children with CCN in early childhood educational settings, it is imperative to understand what opportunities exist naturally for social interaction and communication. This observational study investigates these naturally occurring communication opportunities for students with disabilities and CCN as well as other contextual factors that may impact social communication in inclusive classroom settings.

Presenters

Jenna Hurlburt

The Ohio State University

Friday December 6, 2024 5:45pm - 7:15pm CST
Storyville Hall Hyatt Regency, 601 Loyola Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70113

Poster Presentations

Primary Topic Communication Access
Themes of Interest Assistive Technology & Apps
Key Words Social Communication, Augmentative, Alternative Communication, Early Childhood, Inclusive Education
Presentation Type Research

3:00pm CST

Creating Student-Designed Space for Nonspeaking/Minimally-Speaking Learners

Saturday December 7, 2024 3:00pm - 4:00pm CST

Foster 2

Nonspeaking and minimally-speaking learners are among the most marginalized students in school settings. Historically, students without spoken communication have been segregated to self-contained learning environments that offer students little to no choice in their education. While families and advocates still routinely have to fight for access, inclusion, and equity in schools, communities like ours have come together to build learning environments that meet the expressed needs of our nonspeaking and minimally-speaking students. By listening to and learning from these individuals, Reach Every Voice has designed multiple learning environments that our students describe as â€œa space created with disability celebrated [that] feels like a friendâ€™s hug folding me in its warmth.â€ This presentation explores how communities around the nation have successfully designed learning environments driven by the voiced desires of their nonspeaking and minimally-speaking students.

Presenters

Lisa Mihalich Quinn

Executive Director, Reach Every Voice

Saturday December 7, 2024 3:00pm - 4:00pm CST
Foster 2 Hyatt Regency, 601 Loyola Avenue, New Orleans, LA 70113

Breakout Sessions

Primary Topic Community Living
Themes of Interest Autonomy
Key Words Augmentative & Alternative Communication, Student-Directed Learning, Presuming Competence, Person-Centered Planning, Self-Advocacy
Presentation Type General

3:00pm CST

Effects of Using Video Modeling In Teaching AAC to Individuals with ASD

Saturday December 7, 2024 3:00pm - 4:00pm CST

Imperial 5B

The presentation will discuss a single case study. The study examined if using video modeling (VM) is an effective method for teaching augmentative and alternative communication (AAC) to children with autism spectrum disorders (ASD). Three children with ASD took part in the study. A multiple-probe across participants design was used. Participants' responses (task analysis) were used as dependent variables, and VM (short video clips) presented on an iPad was used as an independent variable. Baseline, intervention, and 1-week maintenance conditions were conducted to collect data. Results of the study indicates that using VM can help children with ASD effectively acquire communication skills and maintain the acquired skills.

Moderators

Breakout Sessions

Primary Topic Communication Access
Themes of Interest Assistive Technology & Apps
Key Words Video Modeling, Augmentative and Alternative Communication, Autism, ASD, Assistive Technology
Presentation Type Research

2024 TASH Conference

11:15am CST

Lisa Mihalich Quinn

2:15pm CST

5:45pm CST

Jenna Hurlburt

3:00pm CST

Lisa Mihalich Quinn

3:00pm CST

Minkowan Goo

Brandi Hines

Renee Gonzalez