Events and Activities : Canceled: IES for the Blind and Visually Impaired Conference

The Spring Family Conference will be canceled due to public health concerns related to COVID-19. 

3/12/20

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We are in the process of notifying families who already registered for this event.  Online registration has been blocked and all IESBVI staff, presenters, and conference workers have been notified.

At Iowa Educational Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired (IESBVI), there are athletes who compete in the North Central Association of Schools for the Blind (NCASB).  This is an association consisting of 12 state schools and statewide agencies throughout the Midwest that serve students who are blind/visually impaired.  See www.ncasb.org for details about the conference.

Five years ago, IESBVI embarked on a mission to involve more students from Iowa in NCASB activities resurrecting the Iowa Rams wrestling team in 2016 and the Iowa Rams cheerleading team in 2018.  The number of student athletes from Iowa who competed in NCASB Track & Field meets, Goalball tournaments, Swim Meets, and Forensics Competition also began to increase.  This year, there will be a banquet held to recognize all student-athletes who compete for the Iowa Rams in NCASB events. 

Crystal Beighley, IESVBI Athletic Director and Harold (Jay) Colsch Regional Director  of NE Iowa, will be offering an award to a student-athlete in their last year of competition who exhibits character traits that are integral to success in sports and life. With that in mind, coaches nominated student-athletes who excelled in their chosen sport/activity, are determined to pursue post-secondary training,  are driven to live as independently as possible, and harbor the desire to "give back" to others.

The general public is invited to attend a Keynote Address by Jake Olson at 9:00 that morning.  Jake is a young man who befriended legendary coach, Pete Carroll, and the USC football team before he lost his eyesight to cancer at age 12.  Jake still managed to play football in high school and eventually, played for the USC football team as a long-snapper in 2018.  He will speak at 9:15, answer questions from the audience at 10:45, and meet/greet students, parents, and the general public at 11:15.

The NCASB Banquet is being held in conjunction with our IESBVI Spring Family Conference on Saturday, March 28, at the Franklin Junior High Community Center, 4801 Franklin Avenue in Des Moines.  There is no cost to attend the banquet which will be held from 5:30-7:30 pm. Members of the Iowa Braille School Alumni Association are invited to register for the banquet.  Please RSVP so that we can have an estimate of how many meals to have prepared. Contact Cindy Bryan at cindy.bryan@iaedb.org or (712) 366-3267.