National Family Conference
Keynote Speakers

Deborah D. Hatton, Ph.D.
Deborah D. Hatton, Ph.D. has experience as a teacher and administrator in programs serving individuals with and without disabilities ages birth through adult. Her research interests include blindness/visual impairment and fragile X syndrome. Currently, she is a senior scientist at FPG Child Development Institute, Director of the Early Intervention Training Center for Infants and Toddlers with Visual Impairments, and Director of the Research Registry of the UNC Neurodevelopmental Disorders Research Center at the University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill. She received her Ph.D. from the University of North Carolina, her M.S. from Florida State University, and her B.S. from Auburn University.

Kevin O'Connor, CSP
Kevin O'Connor has been an executive consultant coach for the past 22 years, working exclusively with technical professionals. Kevn's specialty is working with engineers, information technologists, physicians, attorneys, reseach pharmacists, and other professionals promoted to leadership who have to elicit cooperation (and results) from their former peers and teams. Kevin also speaks professionally. He is one of only 450 persons in the world to hold the Certified Speaking Professional (CSP) designation for speaking excellence. This is the highest earned designatioin in professional speaking.

Kevin has been involved in the field of visual impairment for 15 years after his son's diagnosis with Leber's. Kevin has worked with AFB, AER, ACB, the Jo Taylor conference, and many of the schools for students who are blind or visually impaired around the country. Kevin's talk is titled: "Taking the Lead for Your Child and Yourself", and from it parents can learn that we teach best when we model for our children. Leadership, initiative, advocacy, and self-care are essentials for our children...they start with us.

Conference Speakers  (more coming soon!)                                                         

Kelly M. Brown, M.Ed.                                                                                
Visually Impaired Preschool Services, Inc.

Charles "Burt" Boyer                                                                             
American Printing House for the Blind, Louisville, KY

Susan M. Dalton                                                                                
TransVision Program, Marengo, IL

Theresa Duncan
Guide Dogs for the Blind

Ginger Irwin, COMS
Hadley School for the Blind, Winnetka, IL

Nafisa Rene Keels
Hadley School for the Blind, Winnetka, IL

Sandra Lewis                                                                                
Florida State University, Tallahassee, FL

Lauren J. Lieberman, Ph.D.                                                                               
SUNY Brockport, Brockport, NY

Cyral Miller                                                                                
Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired, Austin, TX

Tristan G. Pierce                                                                               
American Printing House for the Blind, Louisville, KY

Karen Poppe                                                                                
American Printing House for the Blind, Louisville, KY

Marianne Riggio                                                                                
Hilton/Perkins Program, Perkins School for the Blind, Watertown, MA

Emily Simone
Guide Dogs for the Blind

Jay Stiteley                                                                                
The Seeing Eye, Morristown, NJ

Suzette Wright
American Printing House for the Blind, Louisville, KY

Rich Zabelski
Illinois Association for Parents of Children with Visual Impairments

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