The North Carolina Chapter of AER (NCAER) recently held their annual North Carolina Conference on Visual Impairments and Blindness on the campus of Governor Morehead School . The conference was well attended and by all measures a rousing success. Key-note speeches were given by the entertaining and thoughtful Beth Finke as well as Michael Hingson who presented a dynamic and thrilling account of his experiences as a survivor and hero during the events of 9-11. The conference was an opportunity for AER members to earn ACVREP CEU credits by attending the many sessions directly related to present issues that impact our students and clients. While each of us will remember a particular session or two as a favorite, we can all agree that this was a time to catch up with old friends and colleagues representing all areas of the state.
For NCAER, the conference was a chance to reenergize our membership roster. Through a successful campaign that offered new and renewing members a $50 contribution toward national AER membership dues, NCAER was able to add 26 new members to our role. With the addition of these wonderful members, NCAER's total membership currently stands at 109.
During the conference NCAER held a meeting for board members and new and continuing board member were presented. They are as follows: Gary Ray-President, Kathy Davis-President-Elect, Nancy Massengill-Treasurer, Joy Fleming-Secretary, Dion Ousley, Sandy DeLuca, Susan Purdy and William Tubilleja-Board Members. Bill Apple will remain on the Board as Past President. The Board thanked Jim Baker, Tom Winton and Mary Flanigan for their service.
NCAER continues to look for ways to benefit its members and is developing relationships with state resources to offer ACVREP CEUs through training in-services and workshops. Please continue to visit our web-site http://www.ncaer.net for postings on NCAER news, member benefits, and CEU opportunities. We look forward to seeing you again during the Super Conference 2007.