20240518 2024 Bay State Council of the Blind Spring Convention

Bay State Council of the Blind
2024 Spring Conference and Convention Agenda
Grousbeck Center, Perkins School for the Blind, Watertown, MA

Morning Session

Welcome From Our Host, Perkins School for the Blind
Opening Remarks
David Kingsbury, President, BSCB
Overview of Massachusetts Commission for the Blind Activities
John Oliveira , Commissioner, MCB
Participant Introductions
State Government Initiatives to Improve Accessibility
Ashley Bloom, Chief Information Technology Accessibility Officer, Executive Office of Technology Services and Security
Updates from Two of Our Committees
Ambassador Program: Pam Loch, Membership Committee chair
Healthcare Resources web page: Nona Haroyan and Jerry Berrier, Advocacy Committee co-chairs
First Reading of Proposed BSCB Code of Conduct Policy
Brian Charlson and Jennifer Harnish
lection of BSCB Officers
Brian Charlson (to explain voting procedures)
Mary Haroyan( to announce slate of nominees recommended by the Nominations Committee)
Sharon Strzalkowski to chair election of President
David Kingsbury to chair election of other officers

Afternoon Session

Announcement of Election Results
David Kingsbury
Short comments by newly elected Officers
Debate and Adoption of Proposed Code of Conduct Policy
Brian Charlson
Experience as a Book Author
Andrew Leland, author of “The Country of the Blind,” interviewed by Kim Charlson
Announcement of BSCB Awards
Awards Committee: Kim Charlson (chair), Pam Loch, and Jerry Berrier
Tips for Getting a Handle on Your Personal Finances
Moe Carpenter, Penny Forward
News from the Tech World
Jeff Bishop, ACB Blind Information Technology Specialists affiliate President: Overview of BITS training activities and other member benefits
David Kingsbury, Demo of the new JAWS PictureSmart with Generative AI feature for describing digital images
Overview of Recent Perkins Library Activities
Kim Charlson