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    Mr. Cooper has lectured at over 1000 facilities, on 3 continents. His expertise ranges from severe/profound to mild MR and LD. RJ has worked with, literally, thousands of people, from infants to adults. His audiences have ranged from five to five hundred in attendance. RJ's workshops and presentations take a very unique approach. You arrange 1 learner per half-hour, and RJ will try to change that person's life, right there in front of your attendees. All that is needed is a short paragraph, in advance, explaining a bit about that learner and caregiver goals, and RJ will attempt to make the connection. His goal: to have the learner do something new and exciting that he/she has not done before. This may be increasing attending and time-on-task significantly. Maybe it will be using a switch in a completely new position that no one has thought of before. Or it could be a breakthrough to using pictures as communication tools. You can be sure some 'magic' will be in the air, as RJ has had 18 years of experience in making breakthroughs, with great success.

The Invitation

RJ Cooper is coming to your region and wants to work with your learners!

He wants to come to your school/center, and work with your learners!  And the best part, there is no fee involved.   Mr. Cooper would bring all necessary hardware and software with him, along with his 18 years of experience in problem-solving every disability and age group.

There are, however, some criteria that must be met for a successful experience.

1. An audience minimum of 30 is required, and may include parents, professionals, grandparents, etc. The more the merrier!
2. A gym, auditorium, or other appropriately-sized room must be available.
3. Learners are scheduled 1/2 hour each, up to 8/day, any age, any disability.  Parent(s) of each learner must attend.  A facilitator is responsible for scheduling and maintaining schedule and order.
4. Two large TV/monitors on tall carts must be available.  One must include a DVD player.  One of them may be an LCD projector.  We use one for my computer video (I bring adapters), so the audience can see it, and the second one for the camcorder ouput (see #9 below), so everyone can see each Learner's face.
   
5. Lodging, 1 room, paid for by you, in a hotel near the workshop location.  Mr. Cooper will stay at this hotel the evening before your workshop.
6. 2 rolling chairs and a small wastebasket.
   
7. Thick-skinned teachers are a must.  In providing suggestions on things that might help learners, sometimes the teacher/professional that has worked very hard for that learner, and has 'invested' in a certain, shall we say, 'path, and Mr. Cooper may have suggestions that differ from that path.  All associated parties must be open to suggestion.
   
8. A rolling cart to meet Mr. Cooper at the appointed location, to move equipment boxes from his vehicle to the workshop room.
9. An 'assistant' to operate a camcorder, which will project onto one of the large monitors from 2) above. This person's 'job' will be to let the audience see the learner, through the camera/monitor, up close and personal.
   

If this is something of interest to you, please email us at <roadtrip@rjcooper.com> and also check in here often <http://www.rjcooper.com/roadtrip>, which describes Mr. Cooper's route.

Schedule early!

To email us, just click here: <roadtrip@rjcooper.com>
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More Details

Information on Learners:
Please have a paragraph on each learner available upon Arrival.  Answer the following:
1) Name
2) What is it that you'd like the learner to do that he/she is not doing now?
3) Chronological age and developmental/cognitive age?
4) Abilities (what can he/she do)?
5) What has she/he done successfully with technology, and using what materials?
6) What disability or negative behavior does she/he have that are not apparent?

If you've made a flyer for the workshop, please fax us a copy: 949-582-3169. You will notice, as some of you have, that we have not provided biographical info on Mr. Cooper, or given you much direction in making your flyer.  We are very interested to see what you have come up with. Mr. Cooper is very keen on what impressions you have of his work and that is why you have full reign on content of your flyer. If you do need more biographical information, or would like to have us fax some of the flyers that last years RoadTrip participants created: click here to email us: <roadtrip@rjcooper.com>.

Please consult the schedule above and fax us directions, preferrably with a map, from the location before yours to your location, and from yours to the next location.

The schedule for the day, including names, ages, and a short paragraph for each learner in the schedule.  The most important question that Mr. Cooper needs answered is "What is it that the you'd like the learner to do (or that the learner wishes to do), that he/she is not doing or can't do now?"  Mr. Cooper is always surprised when he asks this question and the parent or teacher does not have a quick answer, so please be prepared :)  Please email or fax us the following info:

Name:
Age:                                  Cognitive age:
Disability:
Experience with technology:
What is it that you'd like him/her to do that he/she is not doing now?
Motivators:
Negative behaviors:

Mr. Cooper wants his input/assessment/evaluation to actually make a difference in the learner's life.  Hence, there is a need to have someone at your site be a note-taker and write down his suggestions. Normally, Mr. Cooper produces a 2 page report for each learner, but on a RoadTrip like this, it is impossible.  So we need you to keep track of what he is trying, and suggesting.  It is hoped that the learner will be 'better off'  after Mr. Cooper leaves, than he/she was before, or, at the least, you will have some new things to try.  If no one writes these things down, nothing will change. This is not being pretentious, just confident and hopeful.

The workshop room should be equipped with a power strip at front & center, along with a clean 6-8 foot table.  If your table is 'funky', then please have a tablecloth.

2 of the biggest complaints at any workshop, that have nothing to do with the presenter, are always "Too cold" and/or "Seats were too hard" so please be aware of the environment for your guests.

An evaluation sheet would be helpful, for both you and us.  Once compiled by you, we would very much appreciate a summary, not all the originals, please.

We require that you provide hotel accommodations for Mr. Cooper.  This helps to defray our costs, considering we travel and provide the workshops at no charge. 

Here is what we need from you:

• Good, no great directions from one location to another.
• Name, address, and phone # of hotel.
• A good place to unload the equipment upon arrival at your facility, and a wheeled-method of transporting the equipment.
• Someone to meet Mr. Cooper at the entry point of your facility, so that Mr. Cooper does not show up and must explain who he is and who is supposed to be expecting him. Nothing tones down a visit more than a poor reception.

January 14-17 - ATIA Annual Conference, Orlando, FL; preconference participation, and booth in Exhibits

February 25 - Wayne County, MI; contact Laura Lloyd
February 26 - Torrant Center, Jackson, MI; contact Mary Ann Berthiaume
February 27/28 - Milton C. Porter Educational Center, Adrian, MI; contact Dianna Colman

April 28 - The Arc of Illinois Convention, Itasca, IL; contact Janet Donahue
April 29 - Community Support Services, Brookfield; contact Cathy Bedard
April 30 - Blue Cap, Blue Island; contact Lorraine McCormick

May 19 - NEAT Marketplace, Hartford, CT; contact Leslie Dauer
May 20 - NYC Bd. of Ed; contact Nghi Le
May 21 - Open

June 9 - Mars Hill College, Asheville, NC; contact Chris Cain
June 10 - NET-AT Cooperative Summer Symposium, East TN State U., Johnson City, TN; contact Marci McMurray
June 11 - Greene Valley Development Center; Greenvile, TN; contact Craig Bullock

September 22 - Pines Bridge School, Yorktown Heights; contact Helen Vail
September 23 -Southern Westchester BOCES, North White Plains, NY; contact Peter Bloom
September 24 -TRE Center, Albany, NY; contact Monica Short
September 25 - UCP TRAID Project, Utica, NY; contact Susan Bord

October 20-23 - Annual Closing The Gap Conference, Bloomington, MN; contact Closing The Gap

November 17 - St. Mary's School/Home for Disabled Children, Norfolk, VA; contact Ynez Peterson
November 18 -  Southampton High School, Courtland, VA; Contact Barb McGrath
November 19 - Henrico County Schools, Henrico, VA; Contact Jude Hazelgrove

November 30 - Oakland County Assistive Tech Conference,  Waterford, MI; contact Ina J. Kirstein
December 1 - LISD Milton C. Porter Education Center, Adrian, MI; contact Kathy Cremeans
December 2 -Wayne-Westland Schools/Roosevelt-McGarth, Wayne, MI; contact  Judy Arkwright
December 3 - Deiter Trainable School, Detroit, MI; contact Karen Pierce-Williams

January 15-17 - Potentials Charter School/ARC, Riviera Beach, FL; contact Rosie Portera

2002 Schedule

March 6 - Stephens ESE Center, Pinellas, FL; contact Paula Walker
March 7 - FETC, Orlando, FL; contact Beverley Blanton
March 8 - Pine View Middle School, Land O Lakes, FL; contact Patsy Little

December 18 - ACCEPT Collaborative, King School,  Framingham; contact Debbie Larsson
December 19-20 - Yesodot, Westin Hotel, Waltham, MA; contact Susan Wolf-Fordham

2001 Schedule

Jan. - ATIA Conference, Orlando FL

1999 Schedule

April 10-11 - Baby Faire, Bayside Expo Center, Boston, MA
April 12 - Woods Services, Langhorne, PA; contact Norm Rubin
April 13 - OPEN
April 14 - LARC School, Bellmawr, New Jersey; contact: Hinda Kriegel
April 15 - CloverPatch Early Childhood/Center f/t Disabled, Albany, NY; contact Susan Martin
April 16 - UCP of Ulster Co., Kingston, NY; contact Prudence Richmond
April 17 -  OPEN
April 18 - off
April 19 - UCP of Nassau, Long Island, NY; contact Joan Tanenhaus
April 20 - Pines Bridge School, Yorktown Heights, NY; contact Carol Schwager
April 21 - Kingsway Learning Center, Haddonfield, NJ; contact Madge Bradley
April 22 - Bergen County Spec. Services, Paramus, NJ; contact Cathy Tamburello
April 23-25 - Abilties Expo, NJ Expo Center, Edison, NJ