View the conference schedule, presenters bios, and family testimonials below.
Agenda
Saturday, October 10th
7:30 - 8:45 am
Registration / Breakfast / Vendors
8:45 - 9:00 am
Childcare drop-off
9:00 - 9:15 am
Welcoming Remarks
Presenter: Erin Kline - DeafBlind Program Coordinator, DE Statewide DeafBlind Program
9:15 - 9:30 am
iCanConnect
Presenter: Allison Berdoulay - Project Coordinator, DE Assistive Technology Initiative, UD
9:30 am - 11:30 pm
(with a 10 min break)
"An Individualized & Personalized Approach to Communication & Literacy Development"
Presenter: Dr. Susan Bruce, Special Education Consultant & Professor Emerita, Boston College
11:30 - 11:45 pm
Childcare pick-up
*Childcare staff will be unavailable from 11:45 - 1:15
11:45 - 1:15 pm
Lunch / Vendors
1:15 - 1:30 pm
Childcare drop-off
1:30 - 2:30 pm
DeafBlind Caregiver /
Parent Panel
2:30 - 4:30 pm
(with a 10 min break)
"Access, Meaning, and Participation: CVI Informed Approaches for School & Home"
Presenter: Jonathan Hooper, M.Ed., CTVI & ATP Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments, Assistive Technology Professional & Disability Advocate
4:30 - 4:45 pm
Childcare pick-up
*Childcare staff will be unavailable after 4:45 pm
6:00 - 9:00 pm
Dinner & Family Networking Dance Party
"An Individualized & Personalized Approach to Communication & Literacy Development"
Presenter: Dr. Susan Bruce, Special Education Consultant & Professor Emerita, Boston College
"An Individualized & Personalized Approach to Communication & Literacy Development"
Presenter: Dr. Susan Bruce, Special Education Consultant & Professor Emerita, Boston College
"An Individualized & Personalized Approach to Communication & Literacy Development"
Presenter: Dr. Susan Bruce, Special Education Consultant & Professor Emerita, Boston College
"An Individualized & Personalized Approach to Communication & Literacy Development"
Presenter: Dr. Susan Bruce, Special Education Consultant & Professor Emerita, Boston College
"An Individualized & Personalized Approach to Communication & Literacy Development"
Presenter: Dr. Susan Bruce, Special Education Consultant & Professor Emerita, Boston College
Presenter: Erin Kline - DeafBlind Program Coordinator, DE Statewide DeafBlind Program
Presenter: Erin Kline - DeafBlind Program Coordinator, DE Statewide DeafBlind Program
Location Breakfast: Ballroom - Brandywine & Chirstiana
Location Vendors: Conservatory
Location: Lavender, Rosemary or Parlor 180
Location: Le Chameleon
Location: Le Chameleon
Location: Le Chameleon
Location: Lavender, Rosemary or Parlor 180
Location Lunch: Ballroom - Brandywine & Christiana
Location Vendors: Conservatory
Location: Lavender, Rosemary or Parlor 180
Location: Le Chameleon
Location: Le Chameleon
Location: Lavender, Rosemary or Parlor 180
Location: Le Chameleon
Saturday
Presenters
Dr. Susan Bruce
Jonathan Hooper, M.Ed., CTVI & ATP
Allison Berdoulay
Dr. Susan Bruce is a Professor Emerita, Boston College. Much of Dr. Bruce’s research has focused on communication development and intervention with children who are deafblind or visually impaired with additional disabilities. She has more than 110 publications, with 90 being about learners who are deafblind or visually impaired with additional disabilities. Dr. Bruce continues to be an active researcher as well as conducting assessments and providing consultation to schools and families.
Jonathan Hooper has over a decade of experience working with learners with visual impairments, including cortical visual impairment (CVI), blindness, low vision, deafblindness, and complex needs. He is a certified Assistive Technology Professional (ATP), bringing specialized expertise in selecting, implementing, and training teams on accessible technology solutions.
Although he began his career as a reading teacher, Jonathan has taught in specialized schools for the blind, public and private schools, early intervention programs, and general education classrooms. After teaching in New York City for 12 years, he joined Dr. Christine Roman-Lantzy’s team in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, to support children with CVI and collaborate with educational teams and families to improve access to learning.
A graduate of Vanderbilt University, Jonathan has published research in the Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness and Exceptional Children on evidence-based braille instruction and the use of tangible symbols as augmentative and alternative communication (AAC). He is deeply committed to ensuring students with visual impairments receive equitable, meaningful, and accessible educational experiences.
As the project coordinator for CDS’s Delaware Assistive Technology Initiative (DATI), Allison oversees the operations of the DATI program. She manages its Assistive Technology Resource Center (ATRC) equipment inventory for the lending libraries that serve all residents of Delaware, and administers equipment programs such as the Tobin Fund, the Borrow to Own Low-Vision Devices (BOLD) program and iCanConnect. She also represents the Center in collaborative ventures with other organizations, including other service providers and grantors.
Originally from northern New Jersey, Allison is a UD alumna and has been an active member of the Newark Rotary Club since 2003 (President 2023-2024). She enjoys camping – well, glamping, riding her E-bike and kayaking. An enthusiastic crafter and artist, Allison specializes in Pysanky egg decorating. She lives in Nottingham, PA., with her husband, daughter, three cats and a small flock of chickens.