Date: Monday, March 3, 2014
Category: Conference News

RESNA, the Rehabilitation Engineering & Assistive Technology Society of North America, has now opened on-line registration for its annual conference, which takes place June 11-15 in Indianapolis, IN. 

The theme of this year’s conference, “Racing Towards Excellence in AT,” not only references the city’s famous Indy 500, but also the quality and diversity of the instructional courses, plenary speakers, and workshop offerings scheduled for the organization’s 34^th annual gathering.

For the pre-conference session, RESNA will offer the two-day introductory course “Fundamentals in Assistive Technology” on June 11 & 12, and nine other full-day and half-day instructional courses on June 12.

The general conference kicks off with the grand opening of the exhibit hall, a general reception, and small group orientations on Thursday evening June 12. The three days of general conference (June 13-15) include daily plenary sessions, over 40 workshop sessions, research-oriented platform and poster sessions, daily social events and an annual awards luncheon. 

This conference, the only one of its kind representing professionals working in all areas of assistive technology, remains a bargain with registration fees staying the same as the previous two years.  Included in conference registration are several meals, social events, and free CEUs (continuing education units) for attendees.  Early-bird registration fees (ending May 10) are: 

• General Conference (June 13-15):  RESNA Member $390, Non-Member $520, Student $300
• Instructional Courses – Full Day:  RESNA Member and Student $195, Non-Member $260
• Instructional Courses – Half Day, 1 Course:  RESNA Member and Student $135, Non-Member $180
• Instructional Courses – Half Day, 2 Courses:  Same as Full-Day Instructional Courses
• Fundamentals in Assistive Technology:  RESNA Member and  Student $345, Non-Member $460

RESNA is authorized by IACET to offer CEUs for conference educational sessions. The amount of CEUs awarded depends on the number of educational sessions attended.  Full details are available on the RESNA website.  To register, visit www.resna.org/conference/registration/.

The full schedule of general conference workshop sessions is available at www.resna.org/conference/program.  More details and workshop abstracts will be posted in the coming days, but here are just a few highlights:  

• Philanthropist, entrepreneur, and former Indy 500 racecar driver Sam Schmidt is the opening plenary speaker.  Schmidt is the owner of Sam Schmidt Motorsports, the most successful racing team in the history of the Firelight Indy Lights Series, and an AT user after a tragic crash in 2000 rendered him a quadriplegic. 
• The internationally award-winning documentary, Fixed: The Science/Fiction of Human Enhancement, will screen on Saturday night.  Fixed asks the question: if you could augment your body’s abilities in any way imaginable, would you? Noted researcher, scientist and bioethicist Dr. Gregor Wolbring, who appears in the movie, will speak at the conference earlier in the day and attend a Q&A after the screening.
• Pediatric mobility futurist Dr. Cole Galloway will speak on Sunday, June 15 about his ground-breaking research project, “Go, Baby Go,” which has increased understanding about the importance of early independent mobility for very small children, and has fostered innovation and new technologies in power mobility for toddlers.
• The National Agrability Project, based at Purdue University, will conduct an all-day course on “AT & Safety in Agriculturally-Related Workplaces” on June 12. This unique course will include off-site visits to an AT manufacturer that specializes in agricultural equipment and a working farm where AT is used. 
• CanWheel, the Canadian government-funded research project dedicated to improving wheeled mobility for older adults, will host an open meeting at RESNA on Thursday afternoon, June 12. The CanWheel team, which consists of computer scientists, engineers, epidemiologists, gerontologists, occupational therapists, rehabilitation-medicine physicians and sociologists, will provide an overview of its multiple research projects and share findings.

For more details, and to sign up for the conference e-newsletter, visit www.resna.org/conference.