Equity Pre-Conference (8:00am - 12:00pm) - Kagin Ballroom, Macalester

8:00am-8:30am: Pre-conference Check In 

8:30am-9:00am: Committee Welcome and Pre-Conference Overview

9:00-10:20: The Humanity of Students, Faculty, and Us

Reframing Students Autonomy and Decision Making - Molly Tast and Julie Bauch 

Discussing the nuance of student's right to "fail" 

Discussing Responses and Reactions to Critiques of Accommodations - Equity Committee

Specifically, the "Accommodation Nation" article from The Atlantic, AHEAD's response, and impacts across campuses

Follow this link for the Accommodation Nation Article.

Follow this link for AHEAD's Response to the Accommodation Nation Article

Minnesota Paid Family Medical Leave + Our Community and Self Care - Thryn Arnov and the Equity Committee

10:20-10:30am: BREAK

10:30-12:00: Roundtable Case Study Discussions 

Follow this link to submit a case study that you believe would be related to one of more of the three topics above. We will use these case studies to discuss how we actually implement the theories we are discussing.

12:00-1:00: Lunch on own

A list of nearby places to eat is listed here. 

Official Conference Start

1:15-2:00: Conference check-in and ice breakers

Ice Breakers will encourage interaction between membership. Please prepare to be social for a little bit!

2:00-2:30 Official welcome by Shammah, Alyssa and Javier 

2:30-3:30: Keynote speaker, Fostering Inner Healing & Collective Libveration: Intersectionality, Interconnectivity, and the Work of Sustaining Outselves and Each Other, Dr. Aeriel Ashlee 

The work of supporting students with disabilities is relational, demanding, and often done in isolation. And yet, the people doing this work — you — arrive with full, complex, intersecting identities that shape not only how you advocate for students, but how you sustain (or struggle to sustain) yourselves in the process.

In this interactive keynote, Dr. Aeriel A. Ashlee draws on the scholarship of Drs. Kimberlé Crenshaw and AnaLouise Keating to invite participants into an exploration of intersectionality and interconnectivity — not as abstract frameworks, but as living tools for self-understanding and collective action. Through healing-centered pedagogy, storytelling, and embodied reflection, this session creates space for disability support professionals to reconnect with their purpose, name what they carry, and reimagine what advocacy looks like when it begins from within.

Participants will leave with renewed energy, a deeper sense of connection to one another, and an expanded vision of what it means to sustain themselves, their students, and their communities — together.

3:30-3:45: Break

3:45-4:45: Changes in Section 504 and Title II, Judy Risch

This session provides a practical, up-to-date look at enforcement trends from the U.S. Department of Education’s Office for Civil Rights (OCR) and what they signal for institutions. It will highlight recent OCR cases, emerging themes in complaints and resolutions, and the areas drawing the most scrutiny—particularly around digital accessibility, effective communication, and equitable access.

The session will also include a focused update on Section 504 regulations and Title II regulations, including the current status of federal review, potential changes, and what institutions should be preparing for now. Attendees will leave with a clearer understanding of risk areas, compliance expectations, and actionable steps to strengthen their accessibility and disability compliance programs.

4:45: Wrap Up Day One and Transition to the Everway Sponsored Happy Hour! 

8:00 am-8:15 am - Check In and Breakfast

8:30-9:15: Breakfast with the Board 

Eat a continental breakfast with the MN AHEAD board while we provide our 2025-2026 year in review!

The Board will talk finances, recap our yearly membership sessions, welcome our new Board members, and celebrate our Durenburger award winner! 

9:15-10:00: Morning Connection 

This work takes more than gumption and spunk - it also takes teamwork. We are dedicating 45 minutes to reinforcing our internal networks. Find someone you haven't met yet, and go for a walk, grab a coffee, or whatever your heart desires. 

10:00-11:30 MN NAMI: Traume Informed Pratices 

Molly Peterson  (She/Her)
A one-hour overview of trauma, its impacts on the brain, and the guiding principles of a trauma-informed approach. Trauma has long been described as a unique and personal outcome of adverse events or experiences, but exposure is more widespread in our communities than ever before. For those living with a mental illness or substance use disorder, exposure is even more common. Communities and employers can build awareness and take action to create trauma-informed and responsive spaces where people feel safe and valued. 

11:30-12:30 Lunch sponsored by Simplicity

12:45-1:45 Breakout Sessions

Three Different 1-hour Sessions. Attend one that sparks your interest!

Kagin Ballroom:

Creating Accessible Math in Microsoft Word, 

Darrin Evans Director of The Virtual Learning Community Professional Development Center, Wake Technical Community College 

In this presentation participants will learn how to create accessible math content using Microsoft Word. We will go over screen reader and Word settings to ensure the most accessible outcome. Participants will also receive a handout that expands on the presentation. 

Flemmings Room:

Unlocking Opportunity: Institutional Advancement and the Future of Disability Resources
Dr. Shammah Bermudez, Director/ADA504 Coordinator, Macalester College
Kaylee Highstrom, Assistant Vice President of Advancement Operations
Katheleen Wilinski, Assistant Vice President for Principle Giving 

Many Disability Resources offices operate with limited funding while facing growing student needs and increasing institutional financial pressures. As colleges and universities navigate the enrollment cliff and ongoing budget challenges, identifying new funding opportunities has become increasingly important. 

Through strategic campus partnerships, Disability Resources professionals can elevate the visibility and impact of their work in ways that open doors to philanthropic and institutional support. This session will provide strategies for building collaborative relationships with Institutional Advancement offices to identify a variety of funding opportunities. 

Participants will explore approaches for communicating the impact of disability access initiatives, aligning funding priorities with institutional mission and values, and developing partnerships with your advancement team.  

Davis Court:

Hot Takes - Discussing Hot Topics and Surprising Opinions,
Molly Tast, Director of Student Accessability Resources
St. Cloud State University  

Molly will facilitate a discussion session which highlights 'Hot Takes' within in our profession! Hot Takes are potentially controversial or surprising opinions. If you plan to attend this session, come with your own hot takes and be ready to laugh and talk with your colleagues! 

2:00 pm - 3:00pm University of Minnesota, the Land of 10,000+ exams, UMN DRC

Attendees will review the challenges and opportunities that the UMN DRC Testing Center experienced in the 20205/2026 academic year. Attendees will have a chance to engage in an open dialogue aimed at idea sharing and collaboration on topics related to positive changes we can implement for more inclusive and sustainable operations in testing centers. 

3:00pm - 3:45pm Mini AHEAD talks 

3:00pm - 3:15pm: May Ling Kopecky (MCAD) presents: Art and Connection

“Art and Connection” shares May Ling’s journey of finding her voice and community through artwork. By transforming personal medical imagery and invisible Multiple Sclerosis symptoms into visual art, her creative practice evolved from an individual coping mechanism into a vital tool for advocacy. This presentation highlights how sharing a lived experience can bridge gaps between people, transforming personal stories into community connections.

3:15pm - 3:30pm: Aaron Pierson (Inver Hills CC/Dakota County CC) presents: Creating a Culture of Accessibility: Embedding Accessible Practice in Higher Education Student Assessment

With the WCAG 2.1 AA deadline still looming, higher education still lives in a culture of remediation.  As educators we need to be training the future workforce to live in a culture of accessibility.  This presentation explores the opportunities to leverage existing courses by making small changes that embed accessible practices in the learning experiences shaping the workforce of the coming decades.

3:30pm - 3:45pm: Kristin Burgess (Metro State University) presents: Compliance Won’t Save Us (And Honestly, It Wasn’t Meant To) 

This MNi AHEAD Talk disrupts the comfort of compliance as the default benchmark for accessibility. Challenging the field to look beyond legal minimums, it invites professionals to interrogate how policies, processes, and everyday decisions shape who is truly able to stay, engage, and thrive. Grounded in lived experience and systems-level critique, the talk explores the gap between what’s required and what’s meaningful—and what gets lost in that space. Attendees will be pushed to rethink familiar narratives, confront the hidden costs of exclusion, and consider what it takes to build communities that can actually hold people when it matters most.