The National Association for Adults with Special Learning Needs

Issue 35, Fall 2013
NAASLN Membership News & Views, an outgrowth of NAASLN's Vision to offer a centralized hub of information, professional development, technical assistance, communication on issues and trends, and advocacy initiatives on behalf of adults with special learning needs.

Stay tuned-in and connected by renewing your membership.

Click here for more on membership.

In this issue:
• President’s Message
• Membership Update
• NAASLN Webinar Series
• "Cooper Rules:" Bringing NAASLN to a World Audience
• Advocacy: Senator Calls for Transition Action Plan
• From The Field: What is PIAAC & Why Does It Matter to You?
• Calendar of Events
• We want to hear from you!

Richard Cooper, NAASLN President

On behalf of the NAASLN Election Committee, it is my pleasure to announce the 2013-2015 NAASLN Board of Directors. The NAASLN Board now has representatives from Alabama, California, Illinois, Iowa, Kentucky, Michigan, Minnesota, New York, Ohio, Pennsylvania, Rhode Island, South Carolina, and Wisconsin. We look forward to convening the new board and meeting the challenges of the next two years.

New Board Members

▪ Leanne Baumeler, MI
▪ Cheryl Hagerty, OH
▪ Stephen Hannum, AL
▪ Kathy Houghton, NY
▪ Christine Yankee, RI
▪ Debbie Yoho, SC

Click here to learn more about our New Board Members

______________________________________________________

Returning Board Members

▪ Richard Cooper, PhD, PA
▪ Linda Casenhiser, MI
▪ Nell Eckersley, NY
▪ Kate Fergus, OH
▪ Fran Holthaus, OH
▪ Joan Hudson-Miller, CA
▪ Peg Kennedy, IL
▪ Connie Leading, OH
▪ Lori Leininger, MN
▪ Anne Murr, IA
▪ Meryl Becker-Prezocki, KY
▪ Jeanne Brunette-Tregoning, WI
▪ Debra Watkins, IL
▪ Laura P. Weisel, PhD, OH

Click here to learn more about our Returning Board Members

NAASLN Member Services and Recruitment Report Fall 2013
Fran Holthaus, M.S., NAASLN Vice-President and
Membership & Recruitment Committee Chair

NAASLN is ready to start the 2013-14 fiscal year. Our members have elected a new board. Returning board members will be working with new ones to initiate them and answer any questions. Board members are reviewing our committees and the work we need to accomplish. It looks to be an exciting year.

This summer the Webinar Committee lined up some great speakers for the year and we have also been working on reviewing our archived webinars. Both have their own advantages and are filled with a wealth of information.

Just remember—with NAASLN membership, you are eligible for a significant discount on webinars. This is a wonderful way to participate in professional development from the convenience of your office or home. This is a great opportunity and you really do not want to miss it.

Meanwhile, we will be contacting NAASLN State Representatives to invite them to continue to serve. We will also be recruiting NAASLN State Representatives from various states. If you are a member and would consider being a state representative or would like to recommend someone, please contact me at 937-726-6133 or naaslnvp@yahoo.com to get more information. I would love to talk to you.

This fall we will organize our committees and we encourage all of our members to get involved. As adult educators, especially concerned with adults with special needs, we face many challenges. It is important to speak as a group rather than a single voice and NAASLN is the only organization that represents educators who work with adults with special needs.

We encourage all of our members to get more involved in NAASLN by participating in our webinars, live or archived, joining one of our committees, or considering becoming a NAASLN State Representatives. By our joint involvement, we can better serve Adults with Special Learning Needs.

If you are not a member, consider joining. If you are a member, be sure to renew your membership this fall and take advantage of all of our member opportunities.

NAASLN is offering an exciting new series of terrific, timely webinars, 2013 - 2014.

The fall webinar line-up includes:

October 22: Successfully Building Career Pathways Into Your Adult Education Program... Starting NOW!
Facilitated by Jeffrey Fantine, Adult Education & Career Pathways Consultant, Ohio

November 12 & 19: Two Part Webinar: Part I—Computer Test Taking and General Test Taking Anxiety; Part II—Breaking Avoidance Patterns
Facilitated by Richard Cooper, PhD, University Faculty and Learning Specialist, Pennsylvania

December 11: Looking at Brain Injury Through a Different Lens—Discover Minnesota’s Disability Website
Facilitated by Lori Leininger, Director, PANDA, Minnesota

January 21: Reinventing Reinvented Adult Education
Facilitated by Lennox McClendon, PhD, Executive Director, National Adult Education Professional Development Consortium

January 28: Preparing Students for Using Accommodations and Adaptations on GED® 14
Facilitated by Kate Fergus, Program Specialist, The Ohio State University

February 3 & 4: Mental Health Issues—What to Look for, How to Manage, and When to Call for Help
Facilitated by Laura Weisel, PhD, Research & Innovation, The TLP Group

March 4: Preparing Students For Success on GED® 14
Facilitated by Tonya Crum, Director, Adult Education & Workforce Training, KET

Webinar Registration Fees:
The Registration fee per each 90-minute webinar session: $60* NonMember / $35 Member

Registration fees can be paid by purchase order, check or credit card. All credit card payments will include a small additional processing fee.

*Non-Members: The $60 webinar registration fee includes a one year NAASLN membership. That way, all of your future webinar registrations can be at the discounted member rate!

NAASLN Members: To get this discounted fee of $35 when you register online, use your "Members Only" code. If you don’t have your code, contact us at NAASLN@kocmemberservices.com and we will send it to you. See website for additional details.

For information and registration, click here
or go to http://www.naasln.org/webinars.htm

Pat Walsh, Education Consultant

When Rich Cooper talks, people listen. Not just his students, colleagues, and NAASLN membership, but now educational professionals from Canada, Ireland, and other countries, too.

They like what he does and how he does it. He has gained an international reputation for abandoning PowerPoint presentations in favor of hands-on demonstrations of Tic Tac Toe Math, Mnemonic Devices, Using Patterns To Learn, or Teaching Fractions to Adults with Poor Math Skills (the subject of an August NAASLN webinar).

His quirky presentation style, which includes starting sessions on time, caught the attention of the World Congress on Special Needs Education (www.wcsne.org).
NAASLN has signed on as one of the sponsors of World Congress on Special Needs Education (WCSNE-2014), which will be held in Pennsylvania, August 11-14, 2014.

Click here to continue...

Michelle Diament, Disability Scoop
www.disabilityscoop.com/2013/07/16/senator-transition-plan/18319/

A new proposal in the U.S. Senate would allocate federal dollars to develop a national plan to help those with developmental disabilities transition to adulthood.

Sen. Robert Menendez (D-NJ) has introduced a bill that would fund research to determine the most effective interventions and support services for young people aging out of the school system. The legislation calls for the creation of a national strategic action plan and would provide grants to train “transition navigators” who would help youth with disabilities access the supports they need to live independently. Currently, many individuals with disabilities lose access to needed services when they finish high school.

Click here to continue...

From the National Coalition for Literacy

On October 8, 2013, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) will release the Program for the International Assessment of Adult Competencies (PIAAC) Report.

PIAAC is the first survey of adult literacy impacting the United States in nearly a decade. PIAAC assesses key cognitive and workplace skills in twenty-four participating countries and regions, including the United States. It provides a new and rich international comparison of the adult workforce that will enable the United States to better understand its global competitiveness and benchmark how well education and training systems are meeting emerging skill demand.

The report will have significant implications for organizations serving adults in the U.S. It’s up to us—non-profits and advocates concerned about social issues—to explore PIAAC findings and coordinate a cross-sector response.

Learn more about PIAAC and how the U.S. Department of Education and the National Coalition for Literacy (NCL) plan to respond. Identify how PIAAC is relevant to your constituents. Explore how your organization can take part in raising awareness of adult and family literacy issues that impact our country’s economic and social well-being.

For more information, sign up to the NCL e-list

USCAL - U.S. Conference on Adult Literacy: Washington D.C.
October 31 - November 2, 2013
Be sure to attend NAASLN supported sessions at USCAL

Autism Society National Conference and Exposition: Indianapolis, Indiana
July 23-26 2014

World Congress on Special Needs Education: Pennsylvania
August 11-14, 2014

NAASLN Road Trip Tracks

Watch the NAASLN Website Calendar for more information on events where NAASLN will be presenting special tracks, pre-conferences, or sessions. As they are confirmed, they will be posted on our website: www.naasln.org/calendar.htm.

If your state organization wants to feature a NAASLN-on-the-Road track, please contact Laura P. Weisel at powerpath@aol.com. It’s a great way to add a national angle to your local professional development conferences.

Did you enjoy this issue? Do you have ideas on how you would like to better network with other members? Are you a success story? An adult who overcame a special learning need? Are there other features you would like to see in this Newsletter and on our website?

Help us meet your needs. Recommend or submit an article, event announcements, book reviews, and web sites links. Send to newsletter@naasln.org or leave a message on at 888-5NAASLN (888-562-2756).

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Please forward this newsletter to other educators and interested parties.

If this newsletter was forwarded to you and you would like to become a member of NAASLN and a regular subscriber, send an email to info@naasln.org for membership information or visit our website: www.naasln.org/membership.htm.

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NAASLN Membership News & Views editors: Joan Hudson-Miller, Pat Walsh