Helping Families & Professionals Connect with Information, Training and Resource Since 1969
 
Click Here to Return to the Home Page

Our 33rd Annual State Conference Was So Insightful!

“Informative and well organized - Best conference I have ever attended!”   
“A well spent day.  It was worth the long drive!”
“Wonderful Bookstore and Exhibits…the free samples were great!”
“I loved the conference…I’ll come back!”
“I am so pleased that there are people who have a passion to help people with learning disabilities!”
Click Here to view the Conference Program.

These were the gracious comments from participants that attended our
33rd Annual State LD & ADHD Conference on Friday, November 9th,
2007 and our conference committee would have to agree!  Several
hundred regular and special education teachers, college students
working toward special education degrees, parents, and a variety of
other professionals came together for a great day of learning.

Our Opening and Closing Keynote speaker, Dr. Sydney Zentall from
Purdue University shared her expertise in the fields of LD and ADHD.  
Professor Zentall gave insightful presentations on evidence-based
interventions and factors that relate to academic success, as well as
positive behavioral supports that can be used at school and home.
In addition to our keynote, the
breakout workshops were
presented by a great group of
professionals, covering a
variety of topics relating to
raising and educating students
with LD and ADHD.
To round out the day, attendees were able to checkout and view over four dozen exhibits and ad’s from local, state
and national resource and service providers, organizations and businesses that showcased their products, programs
and services, plus a large selection of books and videos by Barnes and Noble Bookstore.  Thanks to the wonderful
donations by the exhibit and advertising vendors, over 30 lucky participants went home with a great Door Prize.
Click Here for Vendor List
From left to right:   
Outstanding Service Award: Cathy Weinman, Indianapolis,
 Teacher of the Year: Gary Wittmann, Forest Park High
School, Jasper,  Parent of the Year: Sheila Johnson,
Carmel,  Student of the Year:  Annie Burnett, South Bend
Community School Corporation,  Administrator of the Year:
 Janet George, Hutson, School, Indianapolis,  Bob Reed
Career Development Award: Joshua Davis,  Ivy Tech
Community College, South Bend.   
Another highlight was the presentation of our Annual
State Awards. The awards committee comprised of
several parents, a psychologist, special education
director and a teacher, had the honor of selecting
the award winners from the nominations we received.

This year, two extraordinary students were chosen
for their hard work and determination to succeed
academically, but also for the respect and admiration
they have earned by their peers and the adults in
their lives.  It was an honor to meet and present
them with their awards.

It was also a privilege to present awards to four
wonderful adults who have made an important and
positive impact on the lives of students with LD and
ADHD.  Everyday they show their dedication and
commitment through the support and
encouragement they provide to their colleagues and
the families they serve in their communities.

Click Here to read about each award winner.
We would like personally to thank our wonderful conference
committee for their support and invaluable help during the
conference day.  A special “Thanks” goes to a great group of
college student volunteers.  We had ten Indiana Wesleyan University
students who worked together Thursday evening stuffing the vendor’
s goodie bags that each attendee received and on Friday morning
they worked as registration check-in attendants and hall greeters.  
The four Butler University students worked as room hosts during the
breakouts. They passed out materials and kept the breakout
sessions on schedule.  Their help during the day put our plans into
action and made our conference a great success!
All rights reserved.   LDA of Indiana.
Sydney S. Zentall, has her doctorate in learning disabilities and is currently a professor in
the Department of Educational Studies at Purdue University.  She is an internationally
recognized researcher, author, speaker, and expert on the education of students with
attention deficit hyperactivity disorders (ADHD) and learning disabilities (LD).  

Professor Zentall has been examining the conditions that occasion differences between
students with ADHD and comparison populations.  Most of her empirical work is derived
from a theory first published in 1975, i.e. the optimal stimulation theory.  She proposed that
the purpose of the active/impulsive behavior demonstrated by students with ADHD was to
increase stimulation (arousal).  Professor Zentall and her research teams of students and
colleagues have also examined the responses of students with ADHD to added
stimulation in social tasks across a number of academic areas (e.g. math, spelling, language), and documented that novelty added to
relevant parts of tasks can improve performance to levels higher than that of matched average peers.   

Professor Zentall was awarded the 2006 "Outstanding Faculty Discovery Award" by the School of Education, the “Discovery Award” by
the Department of Educational Studies for the past three academic years, and the 1985 “Snodgrass Scholar Award”.  At the
national/international level, she is the past president of the Division for Research of the Council for Exceptional Children (CEC), and in
1995, she was inducted into the Hall of Fame
"In Recognition of Outstanding Professional Achievement in the Field of Attention Deficit Disorders in the Areas of Research,
Education, and Publication" by the national Children and Adults with Attention Deficit Disorders organization.

Professor Zentall has shared her expertise at dozens of international, state and local conferences and symposiums as a featured
keynote speaker and research presenter, contributed well over 100 major and minor publications and served as a national consultant
and advisor for the American Academic of Pediatrics and at John Hopkins University.  She has also given numerous local and national
interviews in popular magazines and news publications such as Parenting, Healthy Living, Education Week, Indianapolis Star and the
South Bend Tribune, and on ABC, CBS, BBC, WGN  television and radio stations, to name but a few.  In 1999 she and Dr. Sam
Goldstein co-authored Seven Steps to Homework Success: A Family Guide for Solving Common Homework Problems and over the
years she has collaborated with other distinguished experts such as, Russell A. Barkley, Sally Shaywitz and Mary Cahill Fowler.

In her most recent work ADHD and Education: Foundations, Characteristics, Methods, and Collaboration (2006) and in her chapter in
the following book Why is Math So Hard for Some Children?  The Nature and Origins of Mathematical Learning Difficulties and
Disabilities (2007), she provides empirically-based methods and strategies to successfully teach students and offers techniques for
effective collaboration and consultation with other teachers, service personnel, and family members.
Learn More About  Dr. Zentall
Book Review:   Seven Steps to Homework Success: A Family Guide for Solving Common Homework Problems
Book Review:   ADHD and Education: Foundations, Characteristics, Methods and Collaboration
Book Review:   Why is Math So Hard for Some Children? The Nature and Origins of Mathematical Learning Difficulties and Disabilities
Sydney S. Zentall, Ph.D.
Professor of Special Education, Purdue University, West Layette, IN