Unlearning: What 4 OT Leaders Got Wrong About Minds, Spaces, and Systems

Chesapeake Bay Academy Community Professionals Engagement Series presents:

Across the Lifespan – A Focus on Neurodivergence: What OT colleagues across the nation taught us to do better

Monday, November 16th
5:30–8:00 p.m.
Chesapeake Bay Academy
821 Baker Road, Virginia Beach, VA, 23462

Moderated leadership forum with lightning talks, guided conversation, and fireside chats. Attendees can earn 2 continuing education credits. Light refreshments will be served

Attendance is free; seating is limited. Scroll down to reserve your spot today and join four national OT leaders for an evening of honest reflection and practical ideas.

In lieu of registration fees, please consider making a donation to the speakers’ charity of choice: Chesapeake Bay Academy, the LD school of excellence in Hampton Roads and Northeastern, NC.

About the Event

Growth starts with unlearning. Join us for an evening with four occupational therapy leaders who have led the profession at the national level, and who are willing to talk openly about the assumptions they had to let go of.

This moderated leadership forum examines neurodivergence across the lifespan through three lenses: the minds we serve and the clinicians who serve them; the spaces where therapy and learning happen; and the systems that shape fieldwork, the workplace, and new technologies like AI.

Each presenter gives a 10-minute lightning talk about something they got wrong and what changed their thinking. OT and OTA students from attending programs moderate a guided conversation and audience Q&A. The evening closes with small-group fireside chats and time to connect with colleagues over light refreshments.

Who should attend: Occupational therapists, occupational therapy assistants, OT and OTA students, educators, fieldwork coordinators, and anyone who supports neurodivergent people in schools, clinics, workplaces, or the community.

You’ll leave with:

• Honest lessons from leaders about mistakes they made and how they corrected course
• Practical ideas for neurodiversity-affirming spaces, fieldwork, and workplaces
• A clearer view of the promise and risks of AI for neurodivergent children and underrepresented communities
• Strategies to protect your own well-being in a caring profession
• New connections with OT practitioners, educators, and students

Schedule

5:30 p.m. Welcome and Opening — Alyson Stover
5:35 p.m. Lightning Talks — four 10-minute talks (see below)
6:15 p.m. Moderated Conversation and Audience Q&A — all four presenters, with OT and OTA student moderators
7:00 p.m. Rotating Fireside Chats — small-group breakouts with the presenters, supported by OT and OTA student ambassadors
7:30 p.m. Networking and Refreshments
8:00 p.m. Event concludes

The Presenters &  Lightning Talks

An Early Adopter’s Mistakes with AI, Neurodivergent Children, and Underrepresented Communities
Alyson D. Stover, MOT, JD, OTR/L, BCP
Past President, AOTA · Associate Professor, University of Pittsburgh · Owner, Capable Kids
A childhood family trauma introduced Alyson Stover to the power of occupational therapy. Today she is a Past President of AOTA, a pediatric OT and practice owner, an attorney, and a University of Pittsburgh professor helping clinicians bring AI into practice without leaving people behind

What I Got Wrong About Therapeutic Spaces
Debra Martins, M.Ed., OT, ATP, CAPS, FAOTA
Former Vice President, AOTA · Accessibility Specialist, U.S. Access Board
Debra Martins is a former AOTA Vice President and an Accessibility Specialist at the U.S. Access Board, where she helps shape the standards that make buildings and public spaces accessible. She brings an OT’s eye to every environment, from classrooms to clinics to homes.

What I Got Wrong About Burnout and Clinician Mental Health: Unlearning Self-Neglect in a Caring Profession
Wendy Hildenbrand, PhD, MPH, OTR/L, FAOTA
Former President, AOTA and Kansas Occupational Therapy Association
Dr. Wendy Hildenbrand is a former AOTA President, mental health practitioner, and public health scholar whose research examines what happens when productivity demands collide with OT’s core values. She has spent her career building bridges between policy and practice.

We Have Asked for Permission for Too Long: Building Neurodiversity-Affirming Fieldwork and Workplaces
Amy Lamb, OTD, OTR/L, FAOTA, Past President, AOTA (2016–2019) · Founding Chair, Department of Occupational Therapy, University of Detroit Mercy
Dr. Amy Lamb is a Past President of AOTA, a former lobbyist, and the Founding Chair of OT at the University of Detroit Mercy, where she is building a program from scratch. Her career has focused on changing systems that aren’t serving people.

Continuing Education

• Virginia 2 Type I contact hours
• North Carolina 2 points (approved continuing education course)
• NBCOT 2 PDUs (Activity ID #18)

Registration Form