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Two hundred speech-language pathologists and audiologists gathered on April 1-2, 2011, to attend MSHA's Annual Convention at the Sheraton Baltimore North hotel in Towson, Maryland . The convention was a great success with nationally known speakers, over 25 companies that displayed their products and services, and exciting 50/50 raffles and other prizes. Our raffles raised nearly $1000 for the MSHA scholarship fund.
Highlighted speakers included Dave Hammer who spoke on Childhood Apraxia of Speech, Dr Charles Haynes who spoke on written language, Ellayne Ganzfried, ASHA Fellow and Executive Director of the National Aphasia Association, Barbara Fernandes who spoke on integrating new technology into clinical practice, and the Traumatic Brain Injury team from Walter Reed Medical Center. These phenomenal speakers received rave reviews from participants and provided functional, practical information that was greatly appreciated by all who attended their sessions.
We had record participation from local universities with phenomenal presentations from Nan Ratner, chair at University of Maryland and Sharon Glennan, chair of Towson University. Lunch and learn sessions were developed for graduate students and those considering career changes and options in the field of Communication Sciences and Disorders. A successful poster session included a student poster competition with awards presented to students in the Master's program at Towson University.
In addition, three $1,000 scholarships were presented to graduate students in the state of Maryland . These students were given scholarship awards in the opening session of the convention. Breanne Reynolds from Loyola, Melissa Sechler from Towson, and Monica Joshi, also, from Towson were the student recipients of these scholarships. Other awards were presented including MSHA Honors which were bestowed upon Gloria Petit-Clair, the MSHA Service Award which was presented to Heather Starmer, and the MSHA Legislative Award was given to Angela Mezzomo. Family/caregiver awards were presented to the Fotta family for their advocacy for children with hearing impairment and Judi Snyder for her advocacy for individuals with aphasia.
As always, the MSHA convention committee appreciates the input of members and participants in order to improve convention each year. Look for a survey about future conventions in the near future to help us determine the optimal timing and location for our meeting. Plans are already underway for MSHA's 2012 Annual Convention which will be held in White Marsh, MD. If you are interested in joining the convention committee, please contact the MSHA office. We can always use new and enthusiastic members! Be sure to join MSHA or join our email list to be among the first to receive further information!
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