In Focus - Articles - Teaching Idea - Service Tip - Profile - Upcoming Events

Cristian Makes a Smooth Transition - Pathfinder to ECO-14

When Cristian Orbe (February 2007 Profile of Success) received his new ECO, Karen Baca, a family friend, asked him what he thought of it and Unity 144. His response was "I like it. It is my favorite."

Karen said, "Cristian has been using Unity 128 sequenced since the age of six. Once he understood how to use the icons together, the race was on as he quickly began to teach himself where to find vocabulary. Unity has given him so much freedom to express his thoughts and desires. Now, I can converse with him about the girl he has a crush on, his latest interest in skateboarding, and all those things that are so important to a 12 year old boy. "

In February 2007, Cristian was chosen as the Profile of Success.

SpringBoard Lite Giveaway Winners

As part of the introduction of the new SpringBoard Lite, PRC created an online contest with the winner receiving a new SpringBoard Lite. The contest ran through the months of January and February.

Because of the large number of registrants, PRC is naming three contest winners. A new SpringBoard Lite will be awarded to Susan Berkowitz of San Diego, CA; Mishelle Rudzinski of Portland, OR; and Teresa Grimes of Longwood, FL . Congratulations to each of you!

Click here for more product information on the SpringBoard Lite.

Dale Osborn speaks at Evansville University

Advice to Medical Professionals (223 KB .PDF)

Schuyler's Monster: A Father's Journey with his Wordless Daughter

The author, Robert Rummel-Hudson's own words as printed in Good Housekeeping. Read the full article (200 KB .PDF).

PRC Receives the 2007 Pillar Award

Medical Mutual and Smart Business Magazine honored Prentke Romich Company as a 2007 Pillar Award winner for Community Service in December 2007. PRC was given this award for the 40 for 40 program in which 40 devices were given to individuals who lacked funding assistance and would have otherwise not been able to obtain a communication aid. Click here to read the press release or watch a video interview regarding the 40 for 40 program.

Shown at the Pillar Award ceremony:
(front row) Deb Monaghan, PRC ESOP Communication Committee member and Stockroom Supervisor; Nancy Crisafulli, PRC Marketing Specialist Coordinator; Angie Neveadomi, ESOP Communication Committee member and PRC Funding Coordinator; and Cherie Weaver, PRC Marketing Coordinator; (back row) Mark Dodez, PRC Purchasing Manager; Kathryn Ritter, Account Executive for Gianfagna Marketing and Communications; Paul Richey, ESOP Communication Committee member and PRC Service Technician; Barry Romich, co-founder of PRC; and Dave Moffatt, PRC President.

Many Stories - One Voice Writing Contest is a feature of the 2008 International AAC Awareness Month

Write a short story, poem or essay for children or adults, which features AAC within it (such as a character who uses AAC, a character learning about AAC, or AAC as a theme in the storyline). All stories will be compiled into an online publication and available to be read by people who use AAC around the world during 2008 International AAC Awareness Month events in October. Selected stories will be highlighted in August at ISAAC's 13th Biennual Conference in Montreal, Canada. Read contest details.

Whitney Richardson: Designer of PRC's 2007 Holiday Card

Whitney Richardson is an artist. Whitney entered the PRC "Design a Holiday Card" contest and won with her painting of a Christmas tree. Whitney expressed her joy about her art being selected for PRC's 2007 holiday card.

My name is Whitney Richardson. I am very happy to win the contest. When I was at Authentic Voices of America camp, it was the first time I wanted to become an artist. My friend's mother is an artist and she lives in New York. She was an inspiration to me.

My speech-language pathologist is a professional in communication devices. She suggested that I needed one. She used to go to Whitewater for college. She used to teach people how to use Pathfinders. She wanted me to go to camp so I could see how people who have Pathfinders use them more.

The art teacher at school helped me with my art project. She gave up her free time to help me. Her name is Ms. Deck. She was very helpful. I think I want to take her art class. I want to say thanks to her. I really appreciated her time.

Thank you for picking me.
Whitney Shardae Richardson

Zachary's Story

Zachary appears to be learning the power of language. His ability to make jokes ("Stop bugging me!"), make requests ("Drive trucks, please!"), make comments ("I feel hungry"), and respond to questions... Read full article (1.14 MB .PDF).

Zachary with Courtney Gus, MS, CCC-SLP

Staffing Announcement - Monica Stevens

We are pleased to announce that Monica Stevens, M.S., CCC-SLP, M.A., CCC-A, is now serving you as the Regional Consultant for the Prentke Romich Company (PRC) in the Cincinnati and Dayton areas.

Monica Stevens earned her Bachelor of Science degree in Hearing and Speech Sciences from Ohio University, and completed her Master's Degree in Clinical Speech Pathology in December of 1982 at Miami University of Oxford, Ohio. Following her Masters, Monica specialized in the field of sensory and cognitive disorders, as well as assistive technology and augmentative/alternative communication serving a variety of children and adults with disabilities who use speech generating devices and other assistive technology. In her most recent position, she was responsible for the evaluation and development of communication options for workshop and day programs participants, and residential facilities serving children of all ages. Monica has experience providing training and technical support to clinicians, teachers, and families of device users.

In her role as Regional Consultant for PRC, Monica provides demonstrations and in-services on PRC products, including the Springboard, Vantage, Vanguard, Pathfinder and ECO, along with our Unity vocabulary software. She can provide your assistive technology team with consultative information that will assist in the decisions regarding appropriate products for your clients, serve as a reference for implementation ideas and current practices in AAC, and provide phone support to answer your questions about PRC products. Her role also includes presentations to university students and other groups and participation in area conferences and exhibits.

To schedule an appointment with Monica, please contact PRC toll-free at 1-800-848-8008.

AAC Summer Camps 2008

Are you interested in attending an AAC camp this summer? Our 2008 AAC Camps List is now available! If you would like your AAC Summer Camp listed, then please send an e-mail to This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it .

Employment

Seeking Regional Consultants
We are currently seeking Regional Consultants for the following areas:

• Position to cover Wisconsin (based in the Milwaukee-Madison area) and Northwestern Illinois
• Eastern Pennsylvania and Southern New Jersey, also including Binghamton and Ithaca, New York, preferably based in Eastern Pennsylvania
  

Please click here to explore all of our options.

AAC Articles of Interest

Read articles of interest to the AAC Community!