Family Leadership Conference
17th Annual Family Leadership Conference
May 13th and 14th, 2022
Embassy Suites
1000 Woodward Place NE, Albuquerque, NM, 87102
This annual Family Leadership Conference helps families improve their skills in advocating for their children and impact the systems that affect them. The event includes networking opportunities with participants from around the state and curated workshops that provide important and applicable information and perspectives to both families and professionals.
SOME OF THE TOPICS THAT THE CONFERENCE WILL ADDRESS:
- Information about Early Childhood, Special Education, Healthcare, Parent Engagement and Transitions
- Engaging parents in leadership
- Building advocacy skills
- Laws, regulations, policies, and best practices for increasing parental involvement
- Skills and strategies for communication, sharing stories, and record-keeping
- The value of family-to-family networking and ways to make it happen
- Tips on creating connections with local and statewide resources
- Methods for creating and/or maintaining strong partnerships between families and professionals
- Leveraging individual identity (culture, language, family uniqueness, and more) to become a stronger advocate for children, family, and community
- Select sessions will be presented in Spanish
Meet Our Keynotes!
Why Not You?
Jordan Toma ’12 wasn’t supposed to succeed. A learning disability had sparked an avalanche of issues: failing grades, low standardized test scores, high anxiety, and shattered confidence. The high school wrestler was rejected by 15 colleges before a counselor put him in touch with Centenary University. The University accepted Toma under the condition that he complete STEP Ahead; its intensive summer residential program providing specialized support for students who face academic, social, or emotional challenges transitioning to college. It changed his life. While at Centenary, Toma had to work twice as hard as his peers. His hard work paid off. Toma received his degree in psychology, earning a 3.3 GPA. Now, Toma is a superhero to kids who struggle in school. Recently, he founded I’m Just a Kid with an IEP, LLC and began touring the country to encourage students with learning disabilities.
“I want to get in front of every student who feels so alone, like I did, and make sure not one of them falls through the cracks.”
7 Pillars for an Awesome Life!
Tim Harris believes that he has the power to live the best version of himself that he can. He believes that everyone has that power. With his big heart and contagious smile, Tim will share his seven steps to living an awesome life.
Tim Harris has been a very active member of the New Mexico community. He had his own restaurant in Albuquerque called Tim’s Place for several years where hugs were a part of the menu. He has participated in Special Olympics over the years, and just recently wrote and published his own book, titled The Book of Hugs.
Registration
Registration is NOW OPEN for this 2-day Family Conference. Registration gets you and your registered family members into all conference sessions and events. Meals (breakfast and lunch) are included each day, plus a fun Friday evening with dinner and dancing. Learn from disability self-advocates and support organizations, connect with other families, and find understanding and support for your unique situation. Doors will open at 8:00 am each day. For the duration of the conference, there will be a sensory space provided for attendees to take breaks, when needed, as well as an accessible room for personal care use.
Exhibitor Booths Are now Full!
Traveling in for the Conference? We have discounted hotel rooms available. If you would like more information, please contact us at 505-247-0192 or conference@parentsreachingout.org.
Scholarship opportunities
Scholarships are reserved for families. They are available on a first-come, first-served basis.
lEADERSHIP aCADEMY
The goal of the Leadership Academy pre-conference session is to help you see your own leadership potential and how you can make a difference for families with disabilities in your community. By attending this pre-conference session, you will have the opportunity to explore the different aspects of leadership and how you can make a difference. We are looking for you to help lead our community by sharing information, answering questions, and learning more about the disability community. The Leadership Academy is limited to 30 Parents / Guardians & 10 Youth participants and is taking place at Embassy Suites, Albuquerque, NM on May 12th, 2022 from 1:00 pm-5:00 pm. The application deadline is April 20th, 2022.
For additional information or to sponsor the 2022 Family Leadership conference, contact us at 505-247-0192 or conference@parentsreachingout.org.
Thank you to Our Sponsors:
Sponsor the Family leadership Conference
The Family Leadership Conference (FLC) is pleased to offer opportunities for corporate sponsorship of conference events and materials. Sponsorship offers you additional on-site visibility.
