AER 2024-2026 Board of Directors

AER 2024-2026 Board of Directors

The AER Board of Directors consists of five officers, one representative from Canada, one representative from each of the geographic districts as designated by the Board of Directors, the chair of the Council of Chapter Presidents, one representative from each of the categories of divisions as established by the Board of Directors, one of whom is the chair of the Council of Division Chairs and one non-voting student representative. Directors serve a two-year term, which begins after the biennial business meeting. The board president appoints chairs of task forces, standing and ad hoc committees.

Check out the business and operations of AER by reviewing the Board of Directors meeting agendas and minutes posted and updated regularly. This is a Member Only benefit.

View Agendas and Minutes (Coming Soon!)

Click here to see a list of Past AER Presidents. 

Have feedback for us? Questions for the AER Board of Directors? Please email the AER Board of Directors: [email protected]

 

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Officers

 Rebecca Renshaw, Ph.D., President

Rebecca L. Renshaw, Ph.D., MSL has been a member of AER since 1999. She graduated from the University of Pittsburgh Vision Studies Program in 1999 and started her career as an Orientation and Mobility Specialist and Teacher of the Visually Impaired at the Western Pennsylvania School for Blind Children (WPSBC) in Pittsburgh, PA. In 2006, she received an NCLVI doctoral fellowship, and in 2010, earned her Ph. D. in Special Education and Master of Studies in Law from the University of Pittsburgh. From 2010 to 2018, she worked as a Visiting Assistant Professor at Pitt, Education Director at Leader Dogs for the Blind, and Education Director at WPSBC. In 2018, she accepted a position as Executive Director at Lavelle School for the Blind in Bronx, NY. She has served on the Penn-Del Board of Directors from 2007-2010 and as President-Elect, President, and Past President of Penn-Del AER from 2014-2020. She is also currently an Associate Editor for The New RE:View.

 Chris Tabb, President-Elect
Chris Tabb is an orientation and mobility specialist working to advance the independence of students and clients, provide training opportunities and knowledge exchange for professionals and families, and bring accessible information to the community. He is presently employed by the state of Montana’s Blind and Low Vision Services, working with clients ages 14 to well into their 90’s. Chris has worked with individuals who are blind and low vision in California, Connecticut, Massachusetts, Maryland, Texas, and Montana, providing services in residential programs, as an itinerant, an outreach specialist providing technical assistance, and as a private contractor. He enjoys working with all age groups, including infants and toddlers, school age students, adults, and older populations. Chris’ greatest professional interests are to help individuals and families realize their best lives, to help professionals in providing services to those who are blind and low vision, and to facilitate new individuals in entering the fields of education and rehabilitation of those who blind and low vision.

 Sean Tikkun, Ph.D., Treasurer

Dr. Sean Tikkun is an Assistant Profession at North Carolina Central University in the Visual Impairments Training Program. He holds a Ph.D. in Educational Psychology, M.S. in Education Media Design and Technology, M.S. in Special Education, and a B.A. in Mathematics. Within his profession he serves the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AERBVI), as a treasurer starting in Summer 2024. Illinois AERBVI awarded him the distinguished service award for his work in training assistive technology professionals for the Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals (ACVREP) and developing the first automated grading tool for braille. He is a member of the Board of Trustees for the Governor Morehead School for the Blind. His research focuses on cognitive factors for tactile learning and emerging technology applied to visual impairments. 

 Stephanie Welch-Grenier, Ph.D., Secretary

 Olaya Landa-Vialard, Ph.D., Past-President
Olaya Landa-Vialard, Ph.D. is a graduate of Texas Tech University. She has served as a Bilingual Teacher, Teacher of Students with Visual Impairments, In-Home Trainer, Bilingual Educational Diagnostician for Students with Low Vision and Blindness, Bilingual Parent Engagement Specialist for Project Reach of Illinois State Deafblind Project, and Assistant Professor of Low Vision and Blindness at Illinois State University. Currently, Olaya is an adjunct professor for multiple VI programs across the country and is the Director of the APH ConnectCenter.

District Representatives

 Erika Fundelius, Ph.D., Canadian Representative

 Raychel Callary, District 1 (Representing AK, AB, AZ, BC, CO, HI, NO (Northern CA), NM, NT, NV, OR, SO (Southern CA), UT, WA, Northern Rockies (ID, MT, WY), YT)
Raychel Callary, COMS, is the past chair of the AER Orientation and Mobility division and served as chair of the AER Council of Division Chairs from 2022-2024. She graduated from Northern Illinois University with an O&M degree in 2007, and has been an AER member since 2008. She moved to Spokane, Washington where she contracts to work with adult learners. Raychel is an adjunct professor and university supervisor with the Portland State University Orientation and Mobility program. She works to promote accessible infrastructure locally and as a member of the AER O&M Division Environmental Access Committee.

 Amy Scepaniak, District 2 (Representing AR, DK (North and South), IA, KS, LA, MB, MO, NE, OK, SK, TX)
Amy Scepaniak, M.S., TSVI, COMS®, CLVT® has been employed by the University of South Dakota, Sanford School of Medicine, Center for Disabilities as the DeafBlind Project Director for 3 years.  Amy started her career as a HS Special Education Teacher, then spent 27 years at the SD School for the Blind and Visually Impaired, working as an Outreach Vision Consultant, Low Vision Specialist (CLVT®) and Orientation and Mobility Instructor (COMS®). Amy graduated from Northern State University with a degree in Special Education and Teacher of the Visually Impaired.  She attended the University of Northern Colorado and received a Certification in Orientation and Mobility in 2000.  She received her master’s degree in Low Vision Rehabilitation from the Pennsylvania College of Optometry (Salus University) in 2004.  Most recently she became endorsed in Cortical Vision Impairment (CVI) in 2019.  Amy is an Adjunct Instructor for Northern State University SPED Visual Impairment Master’s Program.  

 Julie Hapeman, Ed.D., District 3 (Representing IL, IN, MI, MN, ON, WI) 
Julie Hapeman, Ed.D. has worked as an Orientation and Mobility Specialist in the Milwaukee Public Schools since 1994. She has been involved in AER since she was an undergraduate at Northern Illinois University and has served on many committees, was twice president of WAER, and was a member of the international board of directors from 2002-2006. Julie has her BS.Ed.Teaching Students with Visual Impairments and a Certificate of Graduate Study in Assistive Technology from NIU. She holds Masters Degrees in Orientation and Mobility and Vision Rehabilitation Therapy from Western Michigan University, and a Doctorate in Education in Teaching and Learning in Higher Education from Alverno College in Milwaukee. Julie holds certifications as a COMS, CVRT, and CATIS. Julie is a proud Chicago Cubs fan who lives in Milwaukee with her 2 Lab rescue dogs and a retired Seeing Eye dog.

 Nancy Sharon, District 4 (Representing Northeast (CT, MA, ME, NB, NF, NH, NS, PEI, QC, RI, VT), NY)

Nancy Sharon is currently Director of Education and Community Services at the Carroll Center for the Blind in Newton, Massachusetts where she thoroughly enjoys supporting a team of more than 30 TVIs and COMS who deliver both school-age and adult services. As a TVI and COMS, she has been teaching in the field for over 25 years. She is a Massachusetts state liaison for students in the TVI program at UMass Boston as well as an APH Ex-Officio Trustee representing the Carroll Center. Nancy has been a member of AER for almost 15 years. The Northeast AER chapter, and AER International, play an extremely important role in her professional life.

 Misty Epperson, District 5 (Representing AL, FL, GA, KY, MS, NC, PR, SC, TN)
Misty Epperson is the Clinical Instructor at the University of Kentucky Visual Impairment Program. She has over 17 years of education experience in the areas of Special Education: Learning Behavior Disorders, Teacher of the Visually Impaired and Orientation and Mobility Specialist. She also has certification in Principalship and is currently completing the DeafBlind Certificate program at the University of Kentucky. Before working at the University level, Ms. Epperson worked at the Kentucky School for the Blind as the statewide DeafBlind Outreach consultant. She has the distinct pleasure of serving on the board for the Orientation and Mobility Specialist Association (OMSA). She found her passion in this field early on due to her grandmother having lost her vision while she was a young child. Ms. Epperson was introduced to Orientation and Mobility Specialists and braille as a kindergartner thanks to her grandmother and the individuals who would come to her house to provide these services. She has had a rewarding career, carrying on her grandmother's legacy through the work she does every day.

 George J. Zimmerman, Ph.D., District 6 (Representing DC/MD, NJ, OH, Penn-Del (PA, DE), VI, VA, WV) Prior to his retirement in 2016, Dr. Zimmerman was the Coordinator of the University of Pittsburgh Vision Studies Program since 1988. He is a 1973 graduate of Kutztown University’s Teacher of the Visually Impaired Program and a 1976 master’s degree graduate of Western Michigan University’s Orientation and Mobility (O&M) program. He received his Ph. D. in Education and Human Development, with emphasis in O&M research from Vanderbilt University in 1987. He has served the educational and O&M needs of children and adults in Pennsylvania, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Texas, and Tennessee. In addition, he has prepared hundreds of teachers of the visually impaired and O&M specialists, including the research mentoring and academic advising of doctoral students at Boston College, Vanderbilt University, and at the University of Pittsburgh. Since retiring, Dr. Zimmerman continues to serve as an on-line instructor for both Florida State University and the University of Pittsburgh O&M programs. From 1993 to 2000 he has served as a member of the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AERBVI) as well as serving as Chair of Division 17 (Personnel Preparation) and Chair of the University Certification Committee for Division 9 (O&M). He is currently serving as a member of the AERBVI By-Laws Committee. In addition, he has served for many years as a member of the Board of Directors for the Pennsylvania-Delaware Chapter of AERBVI as well as member of the Penn-Del AER Conference Planning Committee. He has received numerous national and regional awards for his service, including the 2014 AERBVI Division 9 Lawrence W. Blaha Award, which is the highest award presented within the profession of O&M. From 1996 to 2000, Dr. Zimmerman served as Chair and Co-Chair of the various AERBVI committees that were responsible for the establishment of the Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professionals, the national certification body, which now provides multiple types of professional certification in the field of blindness. Dr. Zimmerman is also the creator of the Zimmerman Low Vision Simulation Kit, which is used by thousands of professionals around the world for informing others about low vision. 

Division Representatives

 Maggie Winn, Large Divisions (Representing Orientation and Mobility)

 Catherine Summ, Related Services (Representing Administration & Leadership, Psychosocial Services, Access & Technology, Low Vision, Personnel Prep, International Services & Global Issues, and Physical Activity & Recreation) Catherine Summ is a certified teacher of children with visual impairments and she is the Education Supervisor of the Children’s Services Program at the State of Connecticut, Department of Aging and Disability Services, Bureau of Education and Services for the Blind (BESB). Catherine has been the Education Supervisor for over eight years and prior to that she was an Education Consultant at BESB for 17 years. Catherine has been an active member of the Northeast AER Chapter, where she is currently a board-member-at-large. In the past she has also held the regional positions of Chairperson of Divisions 1 and 16 and she has also served on various NE/AER committees. Catherine is the past chair of AER Division 1 (Administration and Leadership). 

 Daniel Norris, Adult Services (Representing Rehab Counseling & Employment Services, Vision Rehabilitation Therapy, and Division on Aging)
Daniel Norris is the Adult Service Cluster Rep and the Chair of the Council Divisions of Chairs on the AERBVI Board. He is the current Past Chair of Division 11, Vision Rehabilitation Therapy. Professionally, he is the Director of Adult Services with the Vermont Association for the Blind and Visually Impaired (VABVI) and the VRT Program Coordinator at UMass Boston. A former TVI and current COMS and CVRT, Dan has been with VABVI since 2004 and UMass Boston since 2014. He has served as the cochair of the ACVREP CVRT Subject Matter Expert Committee, served as a member of AERAC’s Higher Education Accreditation Committee, actively serves on several committees with the Aging and Vision Loss National Coalition (AVLNC) as well as the VisionServe Alliance, and actively participated in the development and current implementation of the current AERBVI/AVRT Five-Year Strategic Plan for the Field of Vision Rehabilitation Therapy. Dan Norris is visually impaired himself, having developed a juvenile form of Macular Degeneration at the age of eight.  In his various roles he has acted as a mentor and role model for many transition-aged children and adults, in the state of Vermont and elsewhere. Daniel happily lives in Vermont with his beloved wife, three children and an irascible cat.

 DeEtte Snyder, Ph.D., Instructional Services (Representing Multiple Disabilities and Deafblind, Infant & Preschool, Education Curriculum, Itinerant Personnel, and NVI)