Pittsburgh Employment Conference for Augmented Communicators (PEC)
The Pittsburgh Employment Conference, considered by some to be the most significant event in the field of AAC, is the largest gathering of people who use AAC in the world.  PEC will be August 3-5, 2007 at the Sheraton Station Square in Pittsburgh.  The theme will be "Employment and Planning for the Second Half of Life." 

EMAIL:  SHOUT@SCICONICS.COM

or phone 412.885.8541

ANNOUNCEMENTS and EVENTS:

2007 PEC@ Registration Form

Fifth Symposium on AAC Evidence-Based Practice

August 2, 2007

for more information, go to:

AAC Institute

SHOUT
Jennifer Lowe, Executive Director

Statement:

Originally funded by Western Pennsylvania businesses and the Pennsylvania Office of Vocational Rehabilitation, SHOUT is diversifying its funding by approaching a range government agencies, philanthropic foundations, non-profit corporations, and additional corporate sponsors.   Its revitalized Board of Directors and its influential Board of Advisors are helping position SHOUT to grow in the future.    New initiatives -- the Urban Youth Camp, the Campaign for Connectivity – myself as the Executive Director, replication conferences in California and Canada, and strengthened liaisons with professional societies have made SHOUT a center of employment activity for augmented communicators.

In the 14 years of its existence, SHOUT has grown from strength to strength.   Capitalizing on its knowledge gained through finding employment for augmented communicators, SHOUT established a national conference, the Pittsburgh Employment Conference for Augmented Communicators.   PEC@ has played a unique role in the development of employment awareness by all the stakeholders in the field of augmentative and alternative communication – professional and consumer alike.  

In the words of Gus Estrella, an augmented communicator and a Policy Analyst at United Cerebral Palsy's national office in Washington, DC, “In the years I've attended PEC@, I've always left with a sense of encouragement…(the American dream) is there for our taking if we work hard enough.”

SHOUT, a 501( c )3 nonprofit corporation, has as its mission advocacy for employment of people who rely on augmentative communication.   As part of its mission, SHOUT has hosted eight, three-day Pittsburgh Employment Conferences for Augmented Communicators (PEC@) in the past 10 years.    With hundreds of attendees drawn from four continents, PEC@ is the only conference in the world focused on employment outcomes for people who use augmentative communication.

Tax Deductible donations can be sent to:

SHOUT

1000 Killarney Drive

Pittsburgh, PA  15234

*New Items 1&2

#1From Co-Executive Director about PEC '07

#2 From the Executive Director about PEC '07

•PEC@ 2005 Proceedings (download)

•Photos from PEC '05 Conference (download)

•Latest article on SHOUT from the Wabash Magazine

•AAC Institute (for evidence based practice in AAC)

•Broken Speech -- Saturday, morning at PEC-- The play explored the boundaries of a world based primarily on the spoken word.

--About the Cast and Directors of Broken Speech

ACOLUG (Augmentative Communication Online Users Group)

The next Pittsburgh Employment Conference for Augmented Communicators is schedule for August 3-5, 2007. 

The SHOUT Board of Directors would like to thank you all for your dedication in making this year's conference a success.

SHOUT's National and International Reputation

Throughout its 14 years of existence, SHOUT has been recognized by the field of augmentative communication both formally and informally for its work at PEC@ and its employment advocacy for people who use augmentative communication.

•              August, 1998, Dublin, Ireland, the PEC@ Chairperson received the Distinguished Service Award from the International Society for Augmentative and Alternative Communication (ISAAC).  

•              June, 2000, SHOUT was presented the Leadership Award by the Rehabilitation Engineering Society of North America (RESNA).  

•              July, 2001, SHOUT received the ACES Free Speech Now Award by the Institute on Disabilities, Pennsylvania University Center for Excellence, Temple University.  

•        ICE Canada 2005, April 8-9, has had a Town Meeting in addition to its the rest of its conference..  Discussion was chaired by an AAC user.  The main social event was the observational play Broken Speech performed by Speaking www.iceconference.ca/program.html.

  “The Pittsburgh Employment Conference for Augmented Communicators (PEC@) is the first place in my life where I felt I belonged,” said Dr. Bob Segalman, a non-speaking Ph.D. with cerebral palsy who originated the now famous Speech to Speech (STS) phone service available across the United States.   Bob's impression was no accident.   SHOUT designed PEC@ that way. The Pittsburgh Employment Conference for Augmented Communicators is more by and for, than about, the one million plus unemployed Americans who are unable to communicate using their own speech or traditional hand signs because of cerebral palsy, autism, brain injury, Lou Gerhig‘s Disease, and stroke.

Last update 3/14/07