31. Sound Travels: Collaboration of Audiology, Orientation & Mobility, and Special Education Teams
Speaker: Chris Tabb, M.A., COMS; Kaycee Bennett, M.Ed.
Session Handout:
*These speakers will be presenting in person at the Penn Stater.
**This session is available for in person and virtual attendance.
This session presents a collection of tools and strategies that Orientation and Mobility Specialists can use in the evaluation and development of their student’s auditory skills. We’ll examine ways to build strong working relationships with the student's audiologist, specialist for the auditory impaired and the speech and language pathologist (SLP) as we work to better understand the environmental hearing needs of our students and clients with a dual sensory loss.
Credits: Act 48, ASHA, ACVREP
Audience: Teachers who work with students who are Deaf-Blind; Orientation and Mobility Specialists
Speakers' Bios:
Chris Tabb is an Orientation and Mobility Specialist working to advance the independence of students and clients, provide training opportunities and knowledge exchange for professionals and families, and bring accessible information to the community. He is presently employed at Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI), Outreach Programs, as Statewide Orientation and Mobility Specialist. Chris has worked as an Orientation and Mobility Specialist in California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, and Texas, providing services in residential programs, as an itinerant, an outreach specialist providing technical assistance, and as a private contractor. He enjoys working with all age groups, including infants and toddlers, school age students, adults, and senior populations. Chris’ greatest professional interests are all things Orientation and Mobility, as well as Assistive Technology.
Email: tabbc@tsbvi.edu Website: https://www.tsbvi.edu/
Kaycee Bennett joined the Texas Deafblind Project in 2019 after working with school districts in the North Texas area as an auditory impairment specialist where she worked with teachers and their students who are deafblind on a regular basis. Her passion is creating better programming, access, and communication for these students and the staff supporting them. Kaycee is a certified Teacher of Students who are Deaf or Hard of Hearing and has a graduate certificate and master’s degree in deafblind education from Texas Tech University. She worked as a classroom teacher and an itinerant teacher for 10 years before joining the Texas Deafblind Project. Kaycee received the Marty Murrell Excellence in Education Award for her work teaching and assisting deafblind students and their teachers, representing the top honor in her profession in the state in 2019. Currently Kaycee is involved in developing training to improve instruction for students who are deafblind and considered proficient communicators.
Email: bennettk@tsbvi.edu Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/txdeafblindproject Twitter: @TXDBProject
Website: https://txdeafblindproject.org/