Graduate Travel
Professional Travel Grants for Graduate Students
VSRA Conference
8 years
What an incredible way to spend a weekend! Not only did I learn about the most widely used resources in literacy, but I also rediscovered my first love, students. Many times we can grow weary in our well-doing, and this conference rekindled my passion, not just for reading, but for the kids I serve. On Thursday, I met Marcia Invernizzi of Words Their Way fame, and heard her present to a packed hall, while grinning from ear to ear. Later, Our Longwood family met on Thursday night and set the tone of circumspect celebration for this weekend. As our cohort nears May graduation, I was pleased to be part of this time of refreshing and rebuilding the inspiration that began our journey. The most remarkable opportunity I had in Roanoke was to meet the Literacy Coach for a juvenile detention center in Northern Virginia. I started a similar position on Monday March 20, and the insight I received during her presentation (and after) have proven to be invaluable as I begin this new journey. VRSA was a rare opportunity to consider my work as an educator as a personal investment in the future. Perhaps kick-off presenter, Mr. Turban, put it best when he said, “Teaching is a life well lived.” Thank you, Longwood RLL and College of Graduate Studies, for the chance to remember and revisit my first love.
VSRA Conference
8 years
Hello! I had the pleasure of attending the 50th Annual Virginia State Reading Association conference at the Hotel Roanoke and Conference Center on March 17th, 2017. This conference was a first for me, and I can say with sincerity that it was an amazing experience to be surrounded by such knowledgeable and passionate educators in the field of literacy. The keynote speaker, Dr. Steven Layne, enthralled us all with an amazing read-aloud from Sold by Patricia McCormick as well as a great discussion about his discoveries during the process of writing his book In Defense of Read-Aloud. This text is now on my must-buy list because Layne brought together an “army” – as he calls it – of professionals and researchers to prove once-and-for-all, to reluctant administrators and teachers who are not believers, that read-alouds are necessary and advantageous for all students K through 12.
The break-out sessions throughout the afternoon were just as engaging and informative! My favorite session was with Keith Polette, a professor from the University of Texas, who provided teachers with concrete examples to implement direct instruction with grammar in meaningful and authentic contexts. Instead of drilling our students with worksheets, they simply need to learn the 17 basic elements of grammar and be given opportunities to apply them in their own writings. His humorous approach to this concept helped many of us to clarify our own misconceptions and walk away with a fresh outlook on teaching grammar.
Attending this conference has helped me to gain insight and resources to help prepare me for my upcoming first year of teaching!
VSRA Conference
8 years
On March 16th-18th, I attended the 50th Annual Virginia State Reading Association conference in Roanoke, Virginia. The conference had sessions on every aspect of literacy imaginable. One of the great highlights of the conference was key note speaker, Steven Layne. He was there to discuss his newest book, In Defense of Read-Aloud. The lecture was both motivating and informational as he shared his arguments for the case of the read-aloud as being an essential practice for students in grades in grades K-8. I also attended a hands-on session that modeled how to combine literacy with STEM by providing students with opportunities to collaboratively solve problems that were presented in picture books. In addition, I learned how to build student comprehension by teaching them to predict, question, clarify, and summarize while reading. I came home with not only new ideas, but also some great (and free!) materials to use in my classroom. Overall, the conference was an enriching experience and I look forward to attending next year!
AT Symposium CollaborATe: A Transdisciplinary Approach to Assistive Technology through the Lifespan
8 years
On March 11th, I had the opportunity to attend sessions and present at the poster session during the second annual AT Symposium CollaborATe: A Transdisciplinary Approach to Assistive Technology through the Lifespan at VCU’s Children Hospital of Richmond. While at the conference, I was able to learn more about a variety of assistive devices that can be used to communicate and to complete other daily tasks. The conference included a presentation from a teenage assistive technology (AT) user and her mother. The mother shared many personal stories about the teenagers experiences with AT which included sharing ideas of how to create and construct assistive devices with inexpensive materials. Additionally, I learned about devices that involve low to no technology but are still assistive devices for communication. I met several representatives from various non-profit organizations that allow people in need to trial products and purchase the supplies with a payment plan. Furthermore, I was honored to have our group’s poster selected to be presented at the conference. I met other professionals in the field of speech-language pathology and discussed various aspects of working as a speech-language pathologist. I am thankful to have had the chance to use the CGPS travel grant to attend and present at the AT conference.
VACES Conference
8 years
Thanks to Longwood the College of Graduate and Professional Studies, I was able to attend and present at the Virginia Association for Counselor Education and Supervision (VACES) conference! This was a one day conference in Norfolk, VA at Old Dominion University where all presenters were counseling students. It was a great experience to see the work my peers were doing and to experience presenting professionally for the first time. Unfortunately, I pulled the earliest time slot to present but we made it through! My work was entitled: Advocating for Atheist Clients in the Counseling Profession and is a presentation I hope to take to other conferences and have published as well. Thank you Longwood, CGPS, and all of the Counseling Department for your support and this opportunity.
Assistive Technology Symposium 2017
8 years
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n Saturday, March 11, 2017, I attended and presented at the Assistive Technology Symposium called CollaborATe: A Transdisciplinary Approach to Assistive Technology through the Lifespan at Children’s Hospital of Richmond at VCU. As a speech-language pathology student, I focus a lot on assistive technology as augmentative and alternative communication and forget about other types of technology that can help individuals. I liked being able to hear from a teenager who uses several types of assistive technology and from her mother about cheap, effective ways to create assistive technology for her daughter. I also attended a session on GoogleChrome extensions that can be used in the classroom to help those with reading and writing difficulties. This was an interesting perspective because using extensions allows for more flexibility and variety than some of the standard software programs. Finally, I presented a poster, titled Accuracy of Speech Recognition Software (Apple versus Samsung): A Pilot Study, along with four of my peers. This project was conducted during our augmentative and alternative communication course, so it was nice to be able to share our results with professionals.
VAASL Conference 2016
8 years
Recently I was fortunate enough to attend the Virginia Association of School Librarians (VAASL) conference in Norfolk, VA. The conference took place over the course of three days with a wide variety of breakout sessions each day. Some of the sessions were for professional development while others were to help guide new librarians, such as myself. I learned about great apps to use with students in math and science, the importance of diverse books in the library, how to create student centered libraries at the elementary level, ways to engage students in the library, the importance of inquiry based learning, the future of school libraries and these were just a small fraction of the numerous breakout sessions available to attendees. There were amazing authors who shared their love of writing and books with us, and also keynote speakers who engaged us and talked of the future of school libraries. It was an honor to be able to attend this conference and be amongst this awesome group of individuals. I look forward to attending many more conferences in the future and continuing to learn and grow professionally from this group.
ASHA Convention 2016
8 years
This year I had the privilege of attending the 2016 American Speech-Language-Hearing Association’s annual conference. The conference was held in Philadelphia, PA at the Philadelphia Convention Center. I was in attendance from Thursday, November 17th to Saturday, November 19th and was able to sit in on 7 different seminar sessions.
Each of the sessions was very informative and full of new information to learn. A few of the topics discussed included behavioral regulation, core vocabulary, eliciting /r/, and strategies for articulation therapy. I enjoyed each session, but especially the one on behavioral regulation and how important it is for a child to obtain before academic gains can be made. The presenter was very knowledgeable and gave us several real-life scenarios in which we could use the techniques she was discussing.
I also presented a case study poster about a previously served client with three of my CSD peers. Our poster was titled, “Supporting Intelligibility in a Russian Speaking Adult with Repaired Cleft Palate.” I am very grateful for the opportunity to present at ASHA and look forward to similar opportunities in the future.
I am excited to return to the ASHA Convention for many years to come!
American Speech Hearing Association Convention
8 years
This past weekend, at the annual American Speech Hearing Association (ASHA) Convention in Philadelphia I had the privilege of presenting two posters. In-between presenting my posters, I had time to go to multiple sessions, explore the overwhelming exhibit hall, talk to future possible employers about my professional interests, and even explore some of Philadelphia. It was inspiring and exciting to be surrounded by so many energized people who share the same interests I do. It was also encouraging to listen to experienced professionals talk about specific articulation therapy targets that I struggle treating at my externship placement. I learned new strategies to help 3rd grade and older students acquire the challenging “r” sound. I look forward to implementing these new strategies with my clients. I will be sure to attend the ASHA convention again in the near future!
ASHA Conference 2016
8 years
My name is Moriah Chapman and I am a second year graduate student in the Communication Sciences and Disorders program at Longwood University. I recently went to the American Speech-Langauge-Hearing Association (ASHA) Convention in Philadelphia, PA. I along with other graduate students presented at the Poster session. Our poster was titled “Supporting Intelligibility in a Russian Speaking Adult with Repaired Cleft Palate”. We completed the research over the course of six months at the Speech, Hearing, and Language Services clinic at Longwood University.
During the ASHA Convention, I attended many lectures and sessions regarding different issues that were related to speech-language pathology. One session that I found helpful was about the correct production and remediation of the “r” sound. I found all of the sessions and lectures to be helpful and I gained some helpful information from them. Overall, I greatly enjoyed my experience at the ASHA Convention!