NBA Conference Wrap-Up
Dallas, Texas
Spring 2008

We had a BIG TIME down south, because as they say, “Everything’s bigger in Texas.”  The Spring 2008 Professional Development Conference returned to Dallas, Texas, on April 2-5, and was a great time of learning and fun all rolled into a whirlwind few days. 

Those in attendance were greeted at the registration desk with a Welcome Bag containing “conference survival items,” the most popular of which were: the stress-busting, Jellyfish Yo-Yo and the pain reliever packets for the long days of rigorous, brain-straining, braille sessions.  The bags were provided by Visual Aid Volunteers of Garland, TX, and we thank them for their hard work in putting them together for us! 

Next, it was off to the Pre-Conference sessions where participants were trained in using NIMAS files with the three braille software programs: Braille2000, MegaDots and Duxbury.  Following the two-day NIMAS training sessions, it was time for the real fun to begin.  Workshops began Thursday afternoon and ran through Saturday afternoon.  That sounds normal, right?  Wrong!  This year we added something new to the mix… Vendor Sessions.  Enabling Technologies, HumanWare and Duxbury Systems presented two workshops providing unique information not previously available to our members.  Enabling Technologies covered connecting an embosser to a home network; and HumanWare and Duxbury discussed using the BrailleNote mPower to reinforce the Nemeth Code and braille format of electronic text.  Both sessions were well-received and we hope Vendor Sessions will continue to be a part of our conference schedule for years to come.

Not only was there a lot of learning going on, but there was a lot of fun, as well.  We had a lot of laughs as our President put together an impromptu choir from the crowd of unsuspecting members and guests.  That’s right… several employees of the Texas Department of Criminal Justice were drafted to join other “volunteer” members as they led the rest of the group in that wonderful southern classic, “Deep in the Heart of Texas”.  In addition, Friday night saw the conclusion of the successful Silent Auction where winners spent a whopping $1,680 on the 53 donated items, and it was all done without any bruises or broken bones, although there were a couple of close calls. 

As always, NBA is tremendously thankful to all of the guest presenters, exhibitors and board members who helped make this conference such a success!  Also, a Texas-size thanks to everyone who came from far and near to participate in the conference.  Our efforts would be in vain if you didn’t make the effort to come, so THANK YOU!  And those of us from Texas want to say just one last thing… “Y’all come back now, ya hear?”