Thursday Events!!!

Hey y'all, I'm reporting live and lost somewhere in the 41.7 acres that the Gaylord Opryland Hotel sits on in Nashville, Tennessee!

The 2009 Hearing Loss Association of America Convention has officially kicked off at the Gaylord Opryland Resort & Convention Center in Nashville, TN! The masses are trickling and grabbing up their lanyards and registration bags! The Exhibit Hall is buzzing with fifty some vendors just waiting to pump you full of information about different emerging technologies and products. Don't forget the Exhibit Hall is opened to the public. It is just a plane, train or car ride away. :)

Below, I have shared some of the events that will be happening here today. If you would like more information about these events or workshops - click to download the green version 2009 HLAA Convention Program Guide sponsored by Verizon. I am sure I will be finding myself unknowingly repeating their famous catch phrase, "Can you hear me now?", quite a few times this weekend. :) In addition to the program guide, you can download the Convention Workbook which features all presentation slides for the different workshops.

8 a.m. – 4 p.m.

• Registration & ALD Distribution

9 a.m. – 12:30 p.m.

• State Organization Presidents, Directors and State Chapter Coordinators attend Board of Trustees and Annual Business Meeting

11 a.m. - Noon

• Newcomers' Orientation

11 a.m. – 2 p.m.

• Food Concessions Open
  

11 a.m. – 4 p.m

• Exhibit Hall Open

1 p.m. – 4 p.m.

• State Organization Presidents, Directors and State Chapter Coordinators Meeting

2:30 p.m. – 4 p.m.

• Hearing Aid Manufacturers Panel

Moderator: Mark Ross, Ph.D.
Panelists: Representatives from Hearing Aid Manufacturers — Oticon, Phonak, Unitron and Widex

4:30 p.m. – 6 p.m.

• Exhibit Hall Grand Opening and Reception:

Sponsored by

6 p.m. – 7:30 p.m

• Opening Session and Keynote Speaker featuring Vinton Cerf, Ph.D.
  

Sponsored by

8:30 p.m. – 11 p.m.

• Get Acquainted Party (This is going to include Karaoke - hold on to your ear's people!)

Sponsored byWORKSHOPS

1 p.m. – 2:15 p.m.

• Understanding Your Hearing Loss

Presenter:

Rose Aird Minette, M.A., Program Specialist in the Office for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services at the Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services

• Learn Sudoku and Fill In the Blanks

Presenter:

Teri Wathen, M.Ed., Hearing Loss Resource Specialist in the Office for Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services at the Texas Department of Assistive and Rehabilitative Services

• Completing the Hearing Aid

Presenters:

Scott Peyton

Margaret "Peg" Sass-Simon, M.A., CCC,

Terry Simon

• Advocacy 101—Where to Begin?

Presenter:
Joan Haber

• The Wireless Industry: What's New? What's Available? What's Right for You?

Presenter:
Matthew Gerst, J.D., Counsel, External and State Affairs, CTIA–The Wireless Association®

2:30 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.

• Masks of Hearing Loss (Bluffing 101)

Presenter:
Gael Hannan, Director, Canadian Hard of Hearing Association; Manager of Programs, Hearing Foundation of Canada

• Keeping Current with CART, Captioning Services and the National Court Reporters Association

Presenters:
Deanna Baker, Registered Merit Reporter, Fellow of the Academy of Professional Reporters, National Court Reporters Association (NCRA),
Colin Cantlie, Special Advisor to the President of the Canadian Hard of Hearing Association.

• Wireless Technology Made Simple

Presenters:
Tina Childress, audiologist,
Abbie Cranmer, HLAA Convention 2009 "blogger"

• Consumer Rights and Hearing Aids

Presenter:
Shannon Smith, MBA, MBA/HRM, MBA/GBM; State of New Mexico, Commission for Deaf & Hard of Hearing Persons

• Dare to Be Different

Presenter:
Susanna Dussling, Co-president of the HLAA Houston Chapter

Stay tuned folks!