• 2008 National Convention
• Previous conventions

2008 - Dare to Dream

• Sessions, Registration & Reservations (see below)
• How you can help (see below)
• VOLUNTEER form (We need Volunteers!)
• Speakers and Program Highlights
• Convention Overview
• Where?
• What?
• How (to get there)?
• Cost

Sessions, Registration & Reservations

Sessions and Registration:

• [Click here to download the Session/Registration packet.]

Professional Call for papers (deadline extended to April 25, 2008):

• [Click here to download the Call for Papers packet.]

Hotel reservations:

• Hotel reservations can be made at any time by following this link to Hyatt's online registration page...
  
  Or by calling the Hyatt at: 714-750-1234
  (Be sure to ask for the WSA National Convention room block.)

How you can help

There are several ways that you can help make a great convention even better:

• Help identify volunteers. It takes more than 150 volunteers to staff the special programs for children and adults with WS over the course of the convention. If you live in the area or know someone who does, you can help us identify teens and adults who might want to help. Or - if you have a teen sibling who would like to work in the childcare program for young children, we would love to know that. The WSA will provide certificates for community service hours to all participating students.
• Help identify panel participants. If you are coming to the convention (or know someone), who you feel would be an excellent panel participant please let us know - check the appropriate questions on your registration form and we will contact you for further information.
• Provide items for the WSA "Special Supplies Resale Shop". There are countless special items that we purchase for our kids throughout their lives to help them reach milestones and overcome difficulties - everything from slant boards to software. If you have a closet full of such items that your child has outgrown, please consider donating them to the WSA re-sale shop so another child can benefit.
• If you are a seasoned convention goer, volunteer to be a mentor family and then drop into the welcome room from time to time during the first couple days of the convention to help overwhelmed new parents feel more at home.
• If you are coming to the convention as an occasional session participant, volunteer to help out in the WSA store, registration desk or child care during some of your free time.

Convention overview

Where?

The Orange County Hyatt Regency in Garden Grove, CA

Close proximity to Disneyland (1 mile), 600 sleeping rooms (including more than 200 suites with refrigerators and microwaves) and 65,000 sq ft of meeting space (40 meeting rooms), combine to make the Hyatt a perfect destination for the 2008 WSA convention &endash; Dare to Dream.

Two separate pool areas with hot tubs, tennis courts and a complete fitness center will help keep kids busy in the non-meeting hours, and on site restaurants including Starbucks, Pizza Hut, California Grill (featuring American style cuisine) and a large lobby lounge as well as several dining options within walking distance should help to make sure that everyone is accommodated during their convention stay.

During free time, you and your family will be able to visit Disneyland, Knotts Berry Farm, Crystal Cathedral, and much more!

For more information on the Hyatt Regency Hotel, click here.

What?

A gathering of more than 1000 family members, teachers, therapists and physicians interested in learning more about Williams Syndrome.

The convention:

• Features more than 50 educational workshops on a wide variety of topics pertinent to raising a child with Williams syndrome to adulthood
• Provides separate programming for:
• youth with WS ages birth thru 5 or 6 and their siblings in the same age group - in a child care setting
• youth with WS ages 6 or 7 thru 12 and their same age group siblings in a day camp program which will be held at the Hyatt
• teens with WS ages 13 - 20 and their teenage siblings
• adults with WS, ages 21 and older
• Offers clinical research participation opportunities for individuals with Williams syndrome of all ages
• Enables parents to learn from each other in interactive panel presentations and networking sessions
• Provides enrichment opportunities for individuals with Williams syndrome
• Increases medical and educational knowledge of WS among parents and professionals
• Increases community awareness of Williams syndrome
• Offers a forum for WS researchers from around the world to present their latest research findings on WS at the International Professional conference on July 13 & 14 - immediately following the family convention

Programs for Parents and Professionals

Dare to Dream - The theme for the 2008 convention reminds us all of the importance of allowing our children/students/patients with WS to reach for the sky and the necessity for us as parents/teachers/medical professionals to do all we can to provide them with the very best opportunity to make their dreams come true. Recognizing our need for professional assistance to acquire the latest in educational, therapeutic and medical strategies, techniques and treatments to help make dreams come true, we will provide daily Keynote sessions from esteemed professionals followed by 3- 90 minute workshop “blocks” each day. During each block there will be a variety of professional and parent-lead sessions of importance to parents and professionals working with children and adults with Williams syndrome of all ages.

Our Keynote speakers & Program Highlights: TBA

Keynote Speakers

• Laura San Giacomo

Our featured speaker at the Saturday evening dinner will be Ms. Laura San Giacomo. She is a veteran Golden Globe-nominated actress who has starred in such television and film projects as Just Shoot Me, Saving Grace, and Pretty Woman.

In addition to her acting success, Ms. San Giacomo is a strong supporter of charitable causes, mostly disability-related ones. She has appeared at the Environmental Media Awards, the "Voices For Change" gala benefit and concert benefiting Children with Disabilities and the "Friends Finding a Cure" gala benefiting Project ALS. She is also a founder of the CHIME Charter Elementary School, which is an elementary school for children with special needs. The school opened its doors in 2001 and it is based out of Woodland Hills, California. As a charter school, CHIME provides free public education to students and admits them through a lottery system. The school serves approximately 200 children in kindergarten through fifth grade who live in communities around California's San Fernando Valley. (Information provided by Wikipedia)

Programs for Children

• Infant & Toddler Daycare

Infants and very young children through age 2 will be entertained at the hotel in 3 meeting rooms that afford them both privacy and proximity to parents if needed. Our ratio of children to caregivers will be a maximum of 3 children to 1 adult in this program. We will have professional support overseeing the program, but most caregivers will be community volunteers. If your child requires special attention or 1 on 1 support please plan to bring a care provider with you to supplement the program.

Children ages 3 - 5 will spend their day at the Hyatt in a ballroom which will be divided to provide spaces for a variety of activities (and quiet space) but will also give them plenty of room to exercise throughout the day as well as enjoy shows by local entertainers (story tellers, music therapists etc.) and take advantage of riding toys and other group activities.

• WSA Day Camp at the Hyatt

Children ages 6 through 12 will be treated to a special day camp experience during their stay in Anaheim Each morning (Thursday thru Saturday) they will meet for a combined program of indoor activities supervised by a teaching professional and outdoor activities organized by members of the WSA's Whispering Trails Camp Staff. One or two field trips to local attractions will also be part of the program.

Programs for Teens and WS Adults

• Teen Program

All teens in attendance (WS and siblings) are welcome to participate in the teen program. Teens will spend their days participating in team building activities and on selected excursions to local attractions.
• Dream Team Activities

The WSA Dream Team will split their time between local attractions and workshops at the hotel.

Evening Entertainment

Our entertainment committee is hard at work preparing activities that everyone will enjoy.

• Registration and Exhibits will be open all day on Wednesday and Thursday, with our "official" convention Welcome and activities beginning at 6 PM on Thursday evening (following the first day of general sessions)
• Additional evening activities will be announced as they are scheduled.

How (to get there)?

Travel to Anaheim is easy by car, bus, train or plane.

The Hyatt Regency is on Harbor Blvd. just down the street from Disney and very close to the CA 22 & CA 55 freeways. The CA Coastal Amtrak service stops in Anaheim just a few miles from the hotel, and families traveling by plane can utilize John Wayne Int'l Airport in Orange County (just 8 miles from the hotel) Long Beach Airport or Los Angeles Int'l (LAX).

At What Cost?

• Convention Registration Costs will be listed soon.


• Hotel Rates
  There are several room options within the WSA's negotiated convention room block...

  King room:	$119 per night
  2-Queens:	$129 per night
  Kids Suite:	$149 per night (featuring a King BR plus a 2nd bedroom with bunkbeds and futon for the kids)
  King BR Suite:	$169 per night
  2-BR Suite:	$229 per night

SEE YOU THERE!!

Previous conventions

Tapes of previous Convention sessions can be ordered online through The Sound of Knowledge.

To order audio tapes from the 2006 Convention online, pick here.

Note: you will need to search for "Williams Syndrome" on the TSOK site to get the convention listings.