History of Annual Conferences

OAER Annual Conference List

Year Theme; Location OAER Conference Chair

1985 Working Toward Success In Transition- Dale Lamar; Sheraton Century Center Tommy Robertson/Jeanne Meyer

1994 Braille Literacy/Employability; Clarion Hotel-OKC Robert Warren

1995 Doing More with Less; Saddleback Inn - OKC Jane Nelson

1996 Building awAERness; Oklahoma School for the Blind Deb Delhotal 

1997 ***** ; Trade Winds Central- OKC Julie Brantley 

1998 Along the Bumpy Road; Fifth Seasons Inn - OKC Glenda Farnum 

1999 OAER Your Pot of Gold; Oklahoma School for the Blind Karen Kizzia 

2000 2001: OAER Odyssey; Ramada Inn - Shawnee Liz Scheffe 

2002 United We Stand; Hilton Inn Northwest – OKC Dennis Williams 

2003 OAER 2003 - The Place to Bee; OSB and Ramada Inn – Muskogee Carolyn Patocka

2004 Jumpstart Your Year with OAER; Saddleback Inn - OKC Sherry Holder 

2005 Reaching Across the Ages; Holiday Inn North – OKC Paul Miller 

2006 ROAER into the Future; Oklahoma School for the Blind Gina Woods

2007 Paving the Road to Professionalism  Vicky Golightly

2008 With Insight; Holiday Inn Airport – OKC Nancy Cauthron

2009 Building Blocks to Success; Oklahoma School for the Blind Carolyn Patocka

2011 Getting In Sync With OAER; Oklahoma School for the Blind Sherry Holder 

2012 OAER: Lighting Your Fire; Tradewinds Central - OKC Jeri Cooper 

2013 Strength Through Partner Collaboration; Oklahoma School for the Blind Janet Whitworth

2014 Operation: Let the Games Begin; Wyndham Garden Hotel – OKC Debi Trout 

2015 The Sweet Road to Success; Oklahoma School for the Blind Julie Brantley 

2016 Putting the Pieces Together; Tower Hotel-Oklahoma City Liz Scheffe 

2017 A World of Opportunities; Oklahoma School for the Blind Barbara Collins 

2018 Seeking Knowledge Through AER; Holiday Inn Airport-Oklahoma City Pam Holloway

2019 Striking A Balance; Holiday Inn City Center, Tulsa Kimberly Berry

2020 N/A; No Conference Held due to COVID-19 restrictions Paul Miller

2021 Transition Focus; Virtual Conference Andrea Hamen 

2022 Keeping Older Adults Active in Their Communities, Oklahoma City Lindsay Turner

2023 sOAERing to New Heights; Oklahoma School for the Blind Gina Woods

2024 Success Among the Stars Kimberly Ford

2025 Empowering Transitions and Advancing Careers with Assistive Technology Trey Lewis