Last week, APH hosted the Annual Meeting of APH Ex Officio Trustees (EOTs), EOT Census Assistants, TVIs, APH Staff, and a variety of professionals across the field. We were excited to welcome everyone back to Louisville, Kentucky, where attendees come each year to connect and learn from each other. This year’s theme was “Connect” which is at the heart of everything we do – connecting educators, families, vision professionals, members of our community and most importantly, students.

Preconference

This year’s Annual Meeting commenced with American Foundation for the Blind (AFB)’s Leadership Summit, a focused one-day event that brought together thought leaders, educators, practitioners and advocates to explore the future of services and supports for people who are blind or have low vision.

Related meetings took place with our friends in the field at the Council of Schools & Services for the Blind (COSB), and continued with forums from the National Prison Braille Network.

State of the Company

Dr. Craig Meador welcomed everyone to the official start of Annual Meeting with a state of the company address. His final address prior to his retirement, he spent his time on stage reflecting on the important roles connection and community have played throughout the many years he has served our field.

“I have a team, but more importantly, I have all of you: a community,” said Meador. “This is our community and it’s truly amazing. Communities like ours are very unique. It’s a community that’s tied together with a purpose. It welcomes everyone, gives you a purpose and gives you a cause.”

We celebrate Craig’s leadership and countless contributions to the field, reflected in his dedication to empowering students who are blind or low vision.

Award Winners

Following his speech, Dr. Meador recognized the recipients of the Horizon, Navigator and Wings of Freedom Awards.

The Navigator Award was presented to the American Council of the Blind (ACB) for placing audio description firmly in the mainstream of entertainment and education. ACB has been a steadfast and dedicated champion of audio description from the very beginning of the concept.

The Horizon Award was presented to Bryce Johnson, inclusive designer for Microsoft Windows + Devices, for his devotion to ensuring Microsoft products are accessible. His public championing of inclusive design as a whole helps level the playing field for all who want to simply work, play and participate.

The Wings of Freedom Award, the highest honor given by APH, was presented to Mike May. His pioneering work in creating accessible GPS tools for the blind is revolutionary and his contributions in the field of access and technology have significantly advanced the field of orientation and mobility, benefitting the lives of students and adults around the world.

Explore APH’s awards page to learn more about these honors and their recipients.

Concurrent Sessions and APH Solutions

Attendees spent time in sessions throughout the remainder of Annual Meeting, exploring products in the Solutions Hall and Tech Solutions Hall seeing demonstrations of products up-close.

Connection was a recurring theme throughout many of the sessions. General and breakout session topics included, but were not limited to: Connected Across Abilities: Engaging Complex Learners Through the APH Switch It Up Learning Suite and CViConnect, Hands on eBraille, Connecting the Past to the Future: Legacy Products on a New Path, Threads of Connection: Families, Educators, and the Power of Quota Funds, Connecting Access to Impact: A Deep Dive into the Paige Ecosystem, as well as a handful of Monarch Projects topics, such as: the PowerPoint App, Mathematica and TSBVI Focus Groups, RISE and so much more!

Other highlights included training for EOTs and Census Assistants, in addition to our streamlined Solutions Hall and Feedback Lab where attendees had the opportunity to see demonstrations of new and upcoming products, such as:  Apollo, a portable and customizable desktop magnifier based on a Microsoft tablet; Lotus, an new easy-to-use braille writer that revolutionizes braille typing; as well as a variety of exciting new Monarch apps and features.

The Dot Experience

These events culminated in the grand opening of The Dot Experience, the world’s first attraction where every exhibit, image, and artifact is fully accessible to everyone, and nothing is off limits. Tours for The Dot Experience ran in the afternoon everyday leading up to the grand opening held on Friday, October 30.

Looking Forward

Thank you to all of our attendees for spending the week with us as we learned more about the ways we can connect and build community as we work together toward a common goal. We hope to see you in Louisville again next year!