We expect 800-1,000 Parents, Caregivers, Young Adults (14-26), Educators, Professionals and Service Providers who care about children and youth with disabilities and specialized support needs to gather online through Zoom and our Special Events platform, Whova. Guests can browse the offerings of our Virtual Exhibitors and Sponsors and send them messages via chat, and you can attend a drop-in session with them hosted on Zoom.

You will sign up for workshops that take place throughout the day, but the platform is very flexible and you can switch to a different session or watch the recording later – for up to 3 months after the conference. The platform also encourages the creation of discussion threads and meet-ups so that you can connect with others who share your questions, concerns, and interests.

In the lead up to Conference day, we will also offer networking sessions and opportunities to meet with the Commissioners of state agencies including Department of Elementary and Secondary Education, Department of Developmental Services, Massachusetts Rehabilitation Commission, and Department of Public Health.

After the conference closes, we’ll continue to celebrate our community through three in-person events: Youth VOC, held in Boston, and two Special Editions of the Conference – held in Southeasttern MA and Western MA.

More details on all of these events and activities are coming soon!

• American Sign Language (ASL) interpretation is provided for the keynote sessions and is also available for other sessions upon request.
• Closed captioning is available for all sessions.
• Our goal is to provide digital information in the most accessible format possible.
• To request ASL for specific sessions or inquire about other disability accommodations, please contact us at voc@fcsn.org or (617) 236-7210  by February 15, 2024.

• Workshops will be available in English, Spanish, Portuguese, Haitian Creole, Vietnamese, Chinese, Somali, and Korean. 
• Simultaneous interpretation will be provided for our “Meet the Commissioners” pre-conference address, our two keynote addresses, and for select presentations.
• The conference schedule will indicate which sessions are held in languages other than English, and which sessions will have interpretation provided. Our languge outreach team members select presentation that they believe will be of most interest to members of their communities.
• A schedule of interpreted and language-specific sessions will be available in advance.
• In addition to the languages noted above, we have staff members available to answer questions in Russian, Amharic, Tigrinya, French, and Hindi.

We want all families to be able to access the information presented during the conference. At the same time, we do rely on ticket prices to ensure that our programs will be sustainable. If you have any hesitation about paying the ticket price, please request a scholarship by simply emailing voc@fcsn.org.

Special Education Surrogate Parents (SESPs) and MASSPAC Members may be eligible for discounts. You will hear more about this soon, or feel free to contact the SESP or MASSPAC team for more details.

Options for obtaining tech support include:

• Viewing  Whova’s Attendee Guide 
• Within Whova, go to Community and then “Ask the Organizer”
• Email voc@fcsn.org

Yes! To join the event from a mobile device or tablet, you will need to download the Whova mobile app, enter your email address and create a password. If you have previously attended an event on Whova, you will need to enter our conference code.

Please use the latest version of one of the recommended browsers (Chrome, Firefox, Edge, Safari). If you can, try securing a direct connection to your router. If you still need assistance, contact us at voc@fcsn.org.

Yes! It’s not a problem – simply change your name under Edit Profile on the Whova platform or mobile app. Tap on your image and edit.

Whova does not have built-in translation features. To ensure families have access to the conference regardless of what language they speak, we provide language-specific itineraries with the specific links needed to access a full schedule of sessions in their language.

We are committed to keeping your contact information confidential. We do not sell, rent, or lease our contact data or lists to third parties.