Shortly after we received his hearing aids, we were educated through the Maine Center on Deafness about the hear ME now program and were very interested in the auditory oral educa-tion approach. When we further edu-cated ourselves with the actual ap-proach to listening and speaking that is very unique to hMn, we were very ex-cited and encouraged to get connect-ed. The first time I spoke to Carrie Cho-jnowski, a speech and language pathologist with hMn who has special-ized training in Auditory-Verbal Train-ing, I felt a new sense of hope for my child and an excitement for his future. When she explained the approach and how it differs from some other tradi-tional therapies, it really resonated with my belief in what my child needed. Her passion for what she does matched the passion I have for doing my best as a parent to help my child through this challenge. The most amazing part of all of this is that Carrie is 6 hours away, yet we get

The following is a recent letter written by one of our families to the Commis-sioner of the Department of Education. Dear Commissioner, I would like to personally thank you for your support of the hear ME now organ-ization, and for the contract that allows them to continue the work that they are doing to help families like mine all across Maine. We are a family in Fort Kent, new to the world of hearing loss. Our son, Dax, was recently diagnosed with severe bilateral sensorineural loss, and we were told he would have to wear hear-ing aids for the rest of his life. We were quite devastated initially by the news. We were saddened and anxious about his future and how this would impact his life and our family. We were worried more than ever about his language de-lay and wanted desperately to get him any and all the help we could. Another major concern was that we lived in such a rural area, and it would be difficult to find services that may be readily availa-ble in other parts of the state.

Support from a Northern Maine Family to connect with her at least weekly via the tele-intervention program. We get to meet with her in her office in Fal-mouth from our living room way up here in Fort Kent. She can see Dax and work with him while she educates us on strategies to use in between sessions. I can’t express my appreciation enough for this program and the specialists that work at hear ME now. Their outreach program has made it possible for Dax to have access to a very special educa-tional opportunity. We no longer feel we are missing out because we live so far away. Sincerely, Vicki M.

Non Profit Org US Postage Paid

Portland, ME Permit #402

PO Box 896 Portland, ME 04104

Director’s Update

Pam Dawson, Executive Director

Dear Friends of hear ME now, This continues to be a year of growth and collaboration for hear ME now. The support of donors, private foundations and the State has allowed us to design and deliver effec-tive service delivery models in Listening and Spoken Lan-guage and move closer to our goal of a statewide education-al system for children with hearing loss whose parents choose listening and spoken language. We have visited all nine Child Development Services (CDS) sites and followed up with comprehensive information to case mangers on hearing loss and communication options through mailings and a series of eight one-hour webinars that were broadcast to 13 sites around the state. As a result, our referrals have in-creased significantly. We are able to report back on the first year of our pilot pre-school program – newly named SHIPs (Speech and Hearing in PreSchool). The initial 5 preschool classrooms from the 2010-2011 school year included a public pre-k, a CDS preschool, a Headstart program and 2 private pre-schools,

Adult Cochlear Implant Group Gets Together

The gazette of hear ME now

10th Anniversary Ski Race a Great Success!

Spring 2012

This year’s winners are:

Blue Mooners: Fastest Team Gross(80.87) Gregg Novick, Tina Novick, Sa-rah Novick, Ella Novick

Albin, Randall & Bennett: Fastest Team Net (69.38) Bart Haag, Eric Levasseur, Chrissy Wilcox, Lynn Gallagher

Fastest Male Skier: Gregg Novick – Blue Mooners (25.67)

Fastest Female Skier: Sarah Novick – Blue Mooners (26.62)

Fastest Under 14: Liam Martin – The Long Trailers (26.18)

Top Fundraising Team: Albin, Randall & Bennett – ($2825 in pledges!)

Most Leisurely Pace: Maddie Mooradian – Team Med-El

Best Wipeout: Emma Massey – Team Irwin, Tardy & Morris

Best Costume: Dave Rossignol – The Cable Guys

Best Cheerer: Seth Slivinsky

Raffle Winner: Nancy Brooks

This year’s Break the Sound Barrier ski race raised nearly $30,000 for hear ME now. Nine teams raced at Shawnee Peak, March 4th on newly fallen snow—a sharp contrast to last year’s race in the rain!

Thank you to all our wonderful sponsors:

Stormwater Compliance New England Development

Albin, Randall & Bennett Shawnee Peak

Med-El Irwin Tardy & Morris

MKM ENT Associates Time Warner Cable Brooks Livestock

Bangor Savings Bank Red Sox Foundation

SoundWorks for Children Leach Engineering Lebel & Harriman

M. Daigle & Son Logging

Ski Race Pictures Inside!

The hear ME now Adult Cochlear Implant Group met on March 31 at the hear ME now offices in Falmouth. We en-joyed an informal social gathering and delicious breakfast foods. Some attendees shared information about assistive technology devices that make their lives a little easier, and everyone enjoyed being with others who face similar chal-lenges.

To date, hear ME now has provided services to 13 adults with cochlear implants through the new cochlear implant program at Mercy Hospital.

Fastest Team Gross Time: Blue Mooners L to R: Sarah Novick, Ella Novick, Gregg Novick, Tina Novick

Cont on p. 3

Hear ME! Hear ME!

EDHI. Many parents still may not even know their rights as parents of a child with a disability – the session enforced for me the need for Advocacy!”

Page 2 Spring 2012

Hear Me! Hear Me!

Board of Directors

Gregg Lagerquist, President

Dick O’Meara,

Treasurer

Connie Ouellette, Secretary

Harriet Gray Deb Feagans

Matthew Hearst, M.D. Gregg Novick

Executive Director Pamela R. Dawson,

M.Ed.

hear ME now PO Box 896

Portland, ME 04104 207-781-7199

www.hear-me-now.org

“Where children with hearing loss learn to

listen and speak.”

11th Annual Early Hearing Detection and Intervention Conference By April Morin

hear ME now funded for another year! State and Private Foundation Support for hear ME now!

We are pleased to announce that both the State of Maine and our primary funding foundation will continue to support the work of hear ME now for our next fiscal year of 7/1/2012 – 6/30/2013.

The Department of Education will be renewing our current contract to provide technical assistance, equipment support and professional development to Child Development Services and state contracted providers working with young chil-dren with hearing loss. A private family foundation has agreed to match the state contract. This public/private partnership insures that our mission contin-ues – that all families have the CHOICE of working with qualified professionals in listening and spoken language. A warm thank you to both our partners! We will be accountable to you, and all our stakeholders, in our ongoing efforts. Pam

March 4-6, 2012 St. Louis, Missouri The largest group of Maine stakeholders ever attended the EDHI conference last month! It was a fun and in-formative opportunity to learn what is happening in child-hood hearing loss across the country – both at the state and federal levels. Pam Dawson and April Morin, a parent of two chil-dren receiving services from hear ME now share feed-back on several sessions they attended below. Family Advisory Boards: “Never underestimate the

insight that parents can bring to the table – they have the most experience with their child and the most desire and drive to evoke change in the educational system.” Tele-Intervention: “We are both excited by the rapid growth of this service delivery model – and hear ME now is in the forefront of a national effort to develop an evidence-based model of tele-intervention. It will be a viable option to reach many children and their families in Maine that are underserved at this time” On-Line Together: “…Very excited about “therapist as coach” to parents. It edu-cates the parent more and

enables them to implement strate-gies during non therapy times. Parents’ Legal Rights: “…I still have a lot to learn here, however, this is definitely a very important part of

April Morin with daughter Shannon.

Page 3

Hear Me! Hear Me!

AG Bell's acclaimed Parent Advocacy Training

After completing the P.AT. Program, parents gain a basic understanding of education law and how to negotiate appropriate applica-tions to help develop an effective Individualized Education Program (IEP) for their child.

Topics covered in this training include: ~Know the Law ~Know Your Rights Under the Law ~Know How to Use the Law to Advocate for Your Child's Educational Needs ~Know How to Secure Ongoing Support and Services for Your Child

FMI about this training in May, contact Pam at pdawson@hear-me-now.org.

Director’s Update ...Cont from page 1

“We’re sharing what we know” Speech Language Pathologist Training

In January and February 2012, hear ME now used its new video

tele-conferencing equipment to provide a free, three-day course in auditory lan-guage development to 31 Child Development Services (CDS) speech pathologists in 5 sites simultaneously - Falmouth, Waterville, Rockland,

Bangor and Houlton. We were able to provide continuing education credits to attendees through a collaboration with Northeast Hearing and Speech. The participating speech therapists currently work with 53 students with hearing loss in all regions of the state! Interested participants will continue to receive professional development through an ongoing Community of Practice (CoP) facilitated by hear ME now. The CoP will provide a collaborative learning environment where professionals will have access to resources and skill building tools in auditory oral education. We received some wonderful and constructive feedback from the speech therapists, and more sessions are in development. FMI or to sign up for a session, contact Cindy at crussell@hear-me-now.org.

Parent and hear ME now board member Deb Feagans with daughter Emily.

all of whom had at least one child with hearing loss in their classroom. A certified Listening and Spoken Language Educator from hear ME now was embedded in each classroom as a member of the classroom team. Participant pre and post self-ratings indicated an average increase of 82% in knowledge of auditory oral teaching strategies. This perception was confirmed in pre and post classroom observations that showed an 89% increase in teacher presentation through audition and a 50% increase in auditory oral teaching competencies.

hear ME now Listening and Spoken Language Specialists have had the opportunity to use tele-intervention to provide their specialized services to families who live outside of the area we have traditionally served. Through a regular internet connection and web camera in a family’s home, we are able to provide parent coaching and therapy over a private and se-cure network. Although we have only been providing tele-intervention since late December, we are already working with 6 families – including two in Aroostook and Hancock Counties. The families are unanimously enthusiastic with this method of service delivery.

There is a wonderful story about one of these far away families on page four of this newsletter. Please take a mo-ment to read how distance technology is helping to bridge the miles for one little boy and his family in Fort Kent.

Thank you for all you do to support our work and the children and adults we serve. Wishing you a warm and wonderful spring, Pam

Long-time hMn clients and friends, Kyle and Taylor.

Photos courtesy Cunningham Photography

10th Anniversary Break the Sound Barrier Ski Race