Career Development

Wednesday, July 6, Regency Room
7:00 AM: NIB Breakfast $10 ($15)
Join National Industries for the Blind for a discussion about employment and the AbilityOne program.

Guide Dogs

Tuesday, July 5, Regency Room
7:00 AM: Guide Dogs for the Blind Alumni Breakfast
GDB grads connect with friends and staff; those considering the guide dog lifestyle welcome.

Advocacy Issues

Monday, July 4, Great Lakes Ballroom
7:00 AM – 8:15 AM: AFB Breakfast $10 ($12)
The American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) cordially…

Audio Description Project
Joel Snyder, President, Audio Description Associates
Sunday, July 3 through Tuesday, July 5, Lakeshore Ballroom A
1:00 PM – 6:00 PM: Audio Description Conference $149 ($149).  Audio description enthusiasts hear presentations on the latest developments in the field.  Includes a gala awards luncheon on Day 3 with a guest speaker.

Wednesday, July 6 through Friday, July 8, Lakeshore Ballroom A
9:00 AM – 5:00 PM: Audio Description Institute $495 ($495).  Interactive sessions to build skills for the audio describer; use of audio…

Advocacy Committee

Chair: Jeff Thom

Tuesday, July 5, Mirage
2:45 PM – 4:00 PM: Tools for Tomorrow $6 ($8)
Strategies for affiliates to influence state / local programs and legislation well beyond just rehab.  Presenters: Anthony Stephens, ACB Director of Advocacy and Government Affairs, Alexandria, VA; Rebecca Bridges, Chair, Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired State Rehabilitation Council.  Co-sponsored by Advocacy Committee and Rehab Issues Task Force.

DKM First-Timers Committee

…

ACB Board of Directors

Saturday, July 2:
9:00 AM: Pre-convention Board Meeting – Minnehaha

Board of Publications, Chair: Denise Colley

Sunday, July 3:
10:30 AM – 12:00 PM: BOP Meeting, Minnehaha

Tuesday, July 5:
5:45 PM – 7:00 PM: BOP Candidate Forum, Mirage
Hear from and ask questions of this year’s candidates.

Thursday, July 7:
1:15 PM – 2:30 PM: BOP Editors’ Workshop, Greenway BCD

Constitution and Bylaws Committee

Chair: John Huffman

Saturday, July…

American Council of the Blind
55th Annual Conference and Convention
Theme: ACB: Land of 10,000 Dreams

Sunday, July 3: Nicollet Ballroom

6:30 PM: Entertainment: Bruce Cottrell, Burnsville, MN

7:00 PM: Call to Order: Kim Charlson, President, American Council of the Blind, Watertown, MA

Invocation: Father John Sheehan, Executive Director, Xavier Society for the Blind, New York, NY

Presentation of Colors: Color Guard for the University of Minnesota, Naval Reserve Officers Training Corp (NROTC), Minneapolis, MN

"The Star…

Adopted by the ACB Board of Directors, May 2009

1. Each debatable issue before the convention shall be limited to approximately twenty (20) minutes with a three-minute time limit per speaker, alternating between affirmative and opposing speakers, unless a majority of the members agree to extend debate for an additional period of time.

   A.    Motions to close debate will not be recognized by the chair during the first debate period. After the first debate period, properly moved motions such as "I call for the question" or "I move the previous question" will be…

Thanks to a generous donation from MD Support and their partner Macular Degeneration Foundation, indoor navigation technology will be available once again to attendees at this year's ACB conference and convention in Minneapolis.  The guidance system works by sending audible instructions and location descriptions to iDevices (iPhone 4S or later and iPad 4 or later).  The information is electronically transmitted by beacons placed at meeting rooms, restrooms, elevators, and other venues.

If you are planning to use MD Support's new LowViz Guide at this year's convention, you…

Saturday, July 2

6:00 PM – 7:00 PM: Roman Catholic Mass, Greenway B
Father John Sheehan, Jesuit Priest, Xavier Society for the Blind, New York, NY

Sunday, July 3

9:00 AM: Jewish Service, Skyway
Rabbi TBA

10:00 AM: Interdenominational Service, Greenway B
Reverend Michael Garrett, Missouri City, TX

10:00 AM: LDS Sacrament Service, Skyway
Bishop TBA

Monday, July 4

7:15 PM: Gospel Sing, Nicollet Ballroom
Marian Haslerud, Minneapolis, MN and Alison and Michael Smitherman, Jackson, MS

Monday, July 4

9:30 PM: BPI caucus, BPI suite

Wednesday, July 6

2:45 PM: GDUI Caucus, Greenway G
5:45 PM: Midsouth Caucus, Greenway F
5:45 PM: New England, Maryland, Florida Caucus, Greenway D

Thursday, July 9

7:00 AM: Washington State Breakfast (WCB members only), Greenway A

You can show your support for ACB in several ways:

Convention Sponsorships:

Stop by ACB / Microsoft registration in Lakeshore Ballroom B and become an individual or corporate ACB Convention Sponsor.  Individual sponsorships are bronze ($25), silver ($50), gold ($100), platinum ($250), and titanium ($500); sponsors receive special ribbons to wear on their convention badges, and are recognized both in general session and in the newspaper.

For information on corporate sponsorships, including pearl, coral, topaz, onyx, ruby, emerald, diamond and double diamond,…