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In December 2017, the American Board of Audiology (ABA) met with a consultant for a “certification reboot” retreat. Our intention was to look at the programs we offer and develop a roadmap for the future. After several days of intense discussions, the group concluded that business as usual is not optimal. We want, instead, to enhance the certification programs to maximize their value and impact for the profession of audiology. Our renewed vision this year focused on identifying changes and additional efforts needed for our “reboot.” The ABA will report more on this work in future columns.

One of the most popular grant programs supported by the American Academy of Audiology Foundation is the Humanitarian, Education, and Awareness Resources (HEAR) Chapter Grants, underwritten generously by Starkey Hearing Technologies. Offered twice per year to Student Academy of Audiology (SAA) chapters, these grants help fund the development of a new chapter project or the refinement of an existing project that is either humanitarian or educational in nature, or related to the awareness of audiology. SAA chapters must demonstrate a plan to raise money for a portion of the project funding.

Time conspires against us. It hardly feels like more than a decade has passed since I edited my first issue of Audiology Today (AT) in July 2008. In that issue, we interviewed Marlee Matlin about a variety of topics, including her status as a role model for the deaf and hard-of-hearing community; and Peter Scheifele, director of the Facility for the Education and Training of Canine Hearing and Laboratory for Animal Bioacoustics (FETCH LAB) at the University of Cincinnati.

This is my final column in Audiology Today as president of the Academy. As I write this last entry, I’ve spent the morning watching Brené Brown on Netflix, reflecting on the past year. Brené speaks about leadership and how this quote from Teddy Roosevelt forever changed her.