Kentucky/Tennessee/West Virginia Chapter Meeting May 28, 2025
12:45 PM - 5:00 PM ET | Live, Virtual
3.5 ADED Contact Hours | Members $17.50/Non-Members $35
Registration Closes 5/26/2025 at 5 PM ET

Meeting Agenda (Subject to Change)
12:45pm - Opening 
1:00pm - 2:00pm: Initial Training in Learning to Spot with A Bioptic. Presenter(s): Brenda Eadens, CRC, CDRS and Jennifer Dumas, COMS
2:00pm - 3:30pm: Partnering with Law Enforcement: Educating and Building Community Relationships. Presenter: Raechaell Corbett, MS OTRL, CDRS, CDI, Easter Seals Mobility Center
3:30pm - 3:40pm: Break
3:40pm - 4:40pm: Checklist for low tech fittings. Presenter: Matt Abisamra, OTR/L, CDRS, Shepherd Center
4:40pm - 5:00pm: Wrap up.  

Initial Training in Learning to Spot with A Bioptic  

Have you ever wondered what is the O&M’s role in the bioptic driving process? How do you teach someone to spot with a bioptic? How can I teach other O&M’s to teach spotting.  

Learning Objectives
•  How to tell if the bioptic is aligned correctly. 
•  What are the biggest mistakes that learners make when using the bioptic? 
•  What are the 4 exercises when teaching to spot? 
•  How can students practice while waiting to begin driver training? 
•  What if the student is not progressing during training? 

Presenter Bios: Jennifer Dumas has over 15 years’ experience as a Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist.  She joined the Office of Vocational Rehabilitation (then OFB) in 2007 and obtained her M.Ed. from the University of Louisville in 2009. Jennifer is stationed in Lexington, but her travels take her all over the Eastern half of the state teaching adults the skills they need to maintain their independence. She is a strong advocate for her consumers and often works with employers, state, and local officials to improve the lives of individuals living with visual impairments.

Brenda Eadens has over 38 years’ experience in the field of Rehabilitation and has worked as a Rehabilitation Counselor, Job Placement Specialist, Assistive Technology Specialist and Bioptic Driving Instructor.  She is employed by the Kentucky Office for Vocational Rehabilitation as a Bioptic Driving Instructor a position she has held since August of 2005.  She earned her Master’s in Rehabilitation Counseling from the University of Kentucky in 1997.  Brenda is a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) and Certified Driver Rehabilitation Specialist (CDRS). Brenda is an active member of the Association for Driver Rehabilitation Specialist (ADED), and the National Rehabilitation Association (NRA) including its state affiliate Kentucky Rehabilitation Association (KRA). 

Partnering with Law Enforcement: Educating and Building Community Relationships 

The purpose of this in-service is to educate Driver Rehab professionals on how to partner with local Law Enforcement and collaborate to plan community events.   

Learning Objectives:
• Participants will be provided with a framework on the steps to “get a foot in the door” to be able to collaborate with local Law Enforcement Officers.
• Participants will learn the perspective of the Law Enforcement Officer when encountering individuals within the Neurodivergent community as well as elderly drivers, and drivers utilizing adaptive equipment. 
• Participants will gain a basic understanding of Law Enforcement best practice with traffic stops and at accident scenes. 
• Participants will learn how to plan and facilitate workshops with Law Enforcement to address the Neurodivergent community, elderly drivers and drivers utilizing modified vehicles with adaptive equipment. 
• Participants will feel empowered and confident to approach their local Law Enforcement agencies and other stakeholders in their communities including Fire Fighters and EMS. 

Presenter Bio: Raechaell Corbett has been an Occupational Therapist for 18 years and joined the world of driver rehab in 2018. She received her CDRS in 2020 and is currently the Supervisor of the Driver Assessment Program in Meriden, CT. Raechaell has experience working in a multitude of settings including in-patient rehab, acute care, sub-acute rehab, and outpatient orthopedics/neuro. She also assisted Lions Low Vision of Fairfield and New Haven counties to create Lions Low Vision Centers at Saint Mary’s Hospital and Easterseals. Raechaell is currently using all of her experience to provide comprehensive driver assessments and driver training to individuals of all ages. She is currently a member of ADED’s education committee and ADED’s Speakers Bureau. Raechaell has also been accredited to educate EMS in CT to assist with improving interactions with the Neurodiverse community and drivers of modified vehicles. She works with Easterseals to partner with various organizations throughout CT including police departments, local rehab hospitals, vocational rehab, mobility equipment dealers, local universities, etc to be able to provide a team approach to driver rehab.

Checklist For Low Tech Fittings

This course is designed to go over a basic checklist for a CDRS for low tech vehicle fittings where hand controls, automatic lockdowns or left foot accelerators are installed in clients’ vehicles. 

Learning Objectives
• Participants will be able to identify 3 typical installation considerations for hand control placement/installation at vehicle fittings
• Participants will be able to list 3 things to look for with a left foot accelerator placement at a vehicle fitting.
• Participants will identify two important considerations for setting the automatic lockdown placement.
• Participants will identify two types of non-OEM mirrors and verbalize how to set them for client’s best visibility.
• Participants will list five tasks for the on-road drive for the typical adult/licensed driver fitting

Presenter Bio: Matt Abisamra, OTR/L, CDRS, has practiced in the field of Driver Rehabilitation at the Shepherd Center in Atlanta since 2006 where he currently is the driving program supervisor. He is skilled in training, evaluation, and vehicle fittings for all types of disabilities. He served as the Secretary for the SC/GA ADED Chapter in 2006 and as the chapter’s president from 2010-2012. He has been the AOTA network chairperson for driving for the physical disabilities special interest section. Matt has presented multiples times on disabled driving at the national level for AOTA, NMEDA and ADED conferences.

Attendance at the entire event is required to earn contact hours, no partial hours are awarded. Registration confirmation and payment receipts are e-mailed to the attendee. All cancellations must be made in writing to the ADED Executive Office by May 21, 2025 11:59 PM ET; a 20% handling fee will be charged. Refunds will not be issued after this date or for “no-shows.” Partial refunds will not be granted. ADED reserves the right to modify content, timetable, change speakers, or cancel events due to unforeseen/unavoidable circumstances at any time. If ADED cancels an event, a full refund will be provided to registrants. All complaints relative to the content, instructor, and registration procedures are to be directed to the ADED executive office: 200 1st Ave NW #505 Hickory NC 28601 or via email eLearning@aded.net

ADED's Education Code of Conduct applies to this and all ADED education.