Now in its eighth year, Fargo’s annual Assistive Technology (AT) Expo is bringing the newest products and information to the public on April 27th-28th 2011 at the Ramada Plaza Suites.
Assistive technology is any product that makes living with a disability easier, from wheelchairs and vans to iPod applications and DVD courses.
The event was first conceived in 2003 by Rhonda Wilson, a non-profit worker who was trying to organize a training event related to disabilities. With help from Jeannie Krull of IPAT (Interagency Program for Assistive Technology), North Dakota’s assistive technology program, the first AT Expo was planned and launched in 2004.
The idea behind the expo is to have a place where people of every age and ability can find all the AT information and products they need in just one stop. Vendors come from across the United States and Canada for the expo, which also features AT educational opportunities.
The AT Expo aims to serve people who are considering AT for themselves, friends or family. It expands awareness of AT and allows people to try the products for themselves. Often attendees will look into equipment rentals, demonstrations and AT evaluations after a visit to the Expo.
Professionals looking to continue their education can earn credit by attending several concurrent learning events that happen during the Expo. There are currently fifteen educations sessions scheduled for the morning of April 28th between 8:00 a.m. and 11:00 a.m. Expo attendees can learn about various topics including Home/Vehicle Modifications, Assistance Dogs, Vision and Blindness programs and Adapting the iPad for Special Needs.
In 2009 a pre-conference day was added to offer more information about AT issues and new technology. The first year featured a lecture on home modification, while 2010 was a presentation on using Apple’s iPod touch as an assistive device. The lecture was popular enough that speaker Mark Coppin, of the Anne Carlsen Center, drew another large crowd the second time he presented.
This year’s pre-conference day featured Diana M. Straube, who spoke about ways to get AT funding in a lecture called “Funding through the Ages.” Straube works in Buffalo, NY, as a Staff Attorney with the Disability Law Unit at Neighborhood Legal Services. Since 2003 she has focused on Disability Law and AT issues, often dealing with children’s rights under Medicaid. Straube has appeared at several conferences in New York and the rest of the country.
The AT Expo also offers attendees the chances to visit a Self-Advocate workshop and pizza buffet on Thursday, April 28th, followed by a free dance from 7:00 p.m. to 9:00 p.m. The workshop offers free courses on how to improve one’s life. Last year 90 people attended and learned about topics including Employment 101, Preparing for Emergencies, From Enrage to Engage-Moving from Self Advocacy to Leadership, Voter Rights and more.
The dance after the workshop has also been a hit with Expo attendees, with 150 to 200 people attending previously.
When the Expo started in 2004 it attracted 23 vendors. That number has since grown to nearly 60 each year.
“We have over 47 vendors signed up so far,” said Connections of Moorhead’s Ronda Blake, one of the event collaborators, in an interview earlier this month. “We expect 60 total, as in previous years. We’re thinking the flood [has prevented] people from signing up early.”
This year will feature several new vendors including ThinkingMoves, a company that produces a DVD called “MeMoves” for children with autism. Best Buy will have e-readers on hand and EZ Step, a company that produces specialized canes for negotiating steps, will make their first appearance. Also, the Fraser special needs group will be visiting from Minneapolis, along with representatives from the Gillette and Shriner’s children’s hospitals.
“We are featuring vendors on the demonstration stage doing 15-minute overviews of their products,” Blake explained.
Also visiting the Expo this year will be CTV North Suburbs, a non-profit group that creates public access television programs for the northern suburbs of Minneapolis/St. Paul. The group will be filming footage for two one-hour episodes of their “Disability Viewpoints” program at the Expo.
The AT Expo is made possible each year by collaborations with local agencies and businesses. Without help from the groups, the Expo would likely not have lasted so long. Currently the event planning committee organizations are: Connections of Moorhead, IPAT, Anne Carlsen Center, Family Voices of ND, Fargo Public Schools, Fraser, LTD., Job Service North Dakota, MN STAR, ND Protection & Advocacy Project, SEHSC Regional Aging Services and West Fargo Public Schools.