Cindy Ellison: 2003-2004

Unfortunately, space simply doesn't permit a full review of the numerous projects that took place during my Presidency from 2002-2004. So here is a brief overview of those two whirlwind years. I have highlighted many of the issues that were tackled by the ADA Board of Directors that ultimately had broad implications for our members as well as the profession.

Work continued on the framework and guidelines for educational standards for Au.D. training programs. ADA's input to the Accreditation Commission for Audiology Education (ACAE) has had a tremendous practical effect on this effort in that our members were able to help the curriculum guidelines focus not only on scientific, but on practical and business aspects of the profession as well. ADA also generously contributed financially to help get the project off the ground.

At the 2002 ADA Convention keynote speaker Frank Bucaro challenged the attendees to work ethically even when the competition doesn't. After the convention, an exhaustive review of federal guidelines on this topic, conversations with our members and the AAA Board, and the ADA Board's deliberations resulted in the landmark document “Ethical Practice Guidelines on Financial Incentives from Hearing Instrument Manufacturers” which was issued jointly by ADA and AAA.

In 2003, two citizen's petitions were filed with the Food and Drug Administration. Two major implications of these petitions would have been to remove the professional component in hearing aid fittings and to allow hearing aids to be purchased through OTC retail, Internet and mail distribution where possible by state law. Based on member input and the Board's hard work, ADA submitted a response which, I believe, had a tremendous impact on the deliberations of the FDA. Several months later both citizen's petitions were denied.

It also became apparent that our website was fast becoming the go-to place for our members to obtain information on the organization, chat with other members and communicate with the Board. Thanks to our Webmaster, Lori Fitzsimmons, and our website committee we developed a beautiful and workable website that will serve us for the foreseeable future.

In January 2004, ADA was represented at the 4 th Year AuD Student Training Experience Consensus Conference. Not only were the views of our members represented, but ADA and its mission were introduced to an entire population of educators.

A strong presence of eager students was felt at both of the conferences I had the privilege of presiding over. The Student Outreach Program was supported by both ADA and AFA in order to educate a new generation of audiologists on the organization. It was thrilling to hear the glowing comments of the students about the meeting as well as to experience the enthusiasm that both the “old-timers” and “newbies” shared.

Numerous hours were put into a model licensure bill in a joint venture by ADA , AAA and AFA. While the bill was not completed in my term, it had a solid start and will provide a good foundation for any State looking to update or revise its current licensure requirements.

Finally, the buzzword “Branding” began finding its way into the ADA member lexicon. The funding provided by member participation in AuDNet enabled the first day-ahead session to take place at the Tucson convention which investigated the process of branding audiology and the Au.D. to the public.

I want to thank the membership for allowing me to serve as President of an organization that had both provided me with valuable networking and informational experiences as well as numerous friends and lots of fun along the way.