Concurrent Session C
10:00-11:00 Sunday Concurrent Session C - Part 1
- GDMI - AI-powered Guide Dog Trainers’ Decision Support Israel Guide Dog Center for the Blind - Israel Guide Dog Center for the Blind
ROOM: TBA (Presented once only!)
Recognizing the potential of AI technologies for guide dog training, the Israel Guide Dog Center (IGDC) partnered with the Tech4Animals Lab at the University of Haifa to develop an AI-powered decision support system tailored for guide dog professionals. The predictive model is integrated in a user-friendly AI Companion in Guide Dog Training - a chatBot that allows trainers not only to predict suitability of dogs for guide dog work/breeding, but also to chat naturally with the database. It can answer any question about a dog’s history (BCL, comments, health, training records). It also enables statistics such as comparison of a dog to others, making patterns visible that might otherwise remain hidden.
 Accessibility at Beaverton Transit Center: Improving Public Transit Through Participatory Design - Amy Parker, Katja LaFlamme, Cleo McClintock, Kirsten Hille, Rhianna Baldree
ROOM: TBA (Presented once only!)
Through a partnership with a regional transit provider, PSU engaged in an applied research project to explore how a complex public transit station could be made more accessible for people who are blind, have low vision or are DeafBlind for wayfinding.
- Overcoming O&M Challenges and Broadening Service Access - Brad Welling, Jeannine Penzone
ROOM: TBA (Repeated at 11:15)
This presentation explores how Leader Dog breaks down barriers, addresses service gaps, and delivers empowering programs that support people who are blind or visually impaired in achieving greater independence.
- Tactile Tech in O&M: Engaging Learners Through 3D Printing and Laser Cutting - Maddie Goswick
ROOM: TBA (Repeated at 11:15)
This session introduces 3D printing and laser-cutting materials and demonstrates how custom tactile materials can enhance students’ understanding of key O&M concepts. Participants will explore how these tactile models support skill development, from basic concepts to complex intersections, increasing engagement and improving learning outcomes.
- ECC: Not a Curriculum but a Compass - - Susie Drake
ROOM: TBA (Repeated at 11:15)
The Expanded Core Curriculum is essential, yet it lacks the structure to function as a true curriculum. Without scope, sequence, or measurable standards, our language doesn’t match our practice. This session examines whether the ECC should be reframed as a framework or intentionally developed into a full curriculum across all nine areas.
- Moving Together: The Power of Collaboration - Amy Hayslette
ROOM: TBA (Repeated at 11:15)
Come get excited about building a dream-team for student success through collaboration between O&M Specialists and other professionals (TVIs, Hearing, PT, OT, Speech, Teachers, Aides) in the schools! We will also present how the Children’s Vision Rehabilitation Program in WV has approached collaboration with community members and businesses over the years.
- Cross to Win: An O&M Game - Linda Hinkle
ROOM: TBA (Repeated at 11:15)
Looking for a fun way to teach, review, and/or evaluate skills? Need some ideas for lessons during inclement weather? Then this session is for you! Cross to Win is a game designed for intersection crossings, cane skills, vocabulary, procedures, and more! It is adaptable for most ages and skill levels. Come check out the fun!
- Effective School, Family, and Community Engagement for Today’s World -
Courtney Forman, Edgenie Bellah, Hex Lightfoot, Yolanda Shaw
ROOM: TBA (Repeated at 11:15)
Join us for an informative session designed to reflect on and transform how we partner with schools, families, and communities. Explore how authentic partnership drives improved outcomes for all stakeholders. Practical strategies to strengthen engagement will be shared and discussed.
- Community O&M for School Aged Children-Overcoming Obstacles and Creative Solutions - Stephanie Hardwick, Tara Bowie
ROOM: TBA (Repeated at 11:15)
Getting school-aged students into the community for meaningful instruction can be challenging. This session explores practical solutions for planning and implementing community-based lessons and provides opportunities to collaboratively brainstorm creative, realistic strategies that increase student independence and access beyond the school setting.
- Drivers' yielding: A systematic review of responses to pedestrian behaviors - Eugene Bourquin
ROOM: TBA
This presentation will review 15 years of research into drivers' yielding to pedestrians and presents new meta-analyses that provide insights from O&M, social sciences, and traffic engineering examine O&M techniques that reduce (or do not reduce) yielding to pedestrians who are blind at crosswalks.
11:15-12:15 Sunday Concurrent Session C - Part 2
- Beyond Technique: Psychosocial Feedback Loops in Orientation & Mobility - Alex Livingston
ROOM: TBA (Presented once only!)
We'll look at case studies where clients are disoriented or immobilized not by a lack of navigational skill or cane technique, but by factors like crowd anxiety, fear of falling, or embarrassment about their long cane. This session offers a simple way to map how psychosocial factors and travel behavior interact through feedback loops, helping us recognize patterns that keep clients stuck, avoid quick fixes that backfire, and ultimately choose instructional and communication strategies that are evidence-informed to support meaningful, real-world progress.
- Overcoming O&M Challenges and Broadening Service Access - Brad Welling, Jeannine Penzone
ROOM: TBA (Same as presented at 10:00)
- Tactile Tech in O&M: Engaging Learners Through 3D Printing and Laser Cutting - Maddie Goswick
ROOM: TBA (Same as presented at 10:00)
- ECC: Not a Curriculum but a Compass - Susie Drake
ROOM: TBA (Same as presented at 10:00)
- Moving Together: The Power of Collaboration - Amy Hayslette
ROOM: TBA (Same as presented at 10:00)
- Cross to Win: An O&M Game - Linda Hinkle
ROOM: TBA (Same as presented at 10:00)
- Effective School, Family, and Community Engagement for Today’s World - Courtney Forman, Edgenie Bellah, Hex Lightfoot, Yolanda Shaw
ROOM: TBA (Same as presented at 10:00)
- Community O&M for School Aged Children-Overcoming Obstacles and Creative Solutions - Stephanie Hardwick and Tara Bowie
ROOM: TBA (Same as presented at 10:00)
- Drivers' yielding: A systematic review of responses to pedestrian behaviors - Eugene Bourquin
ROOM: TBA (Same as presented at 10:00)
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