Parkland College Alum Wins Assistive Technology Industry Lecture Award

Shannon Voss will provide 28th annual lecture at 2025 ATIA Conference on Jan. 31

A 2024 Parkland College graduate was recently honored with a lecture award from a leading organization in the assistive technology industry.
 
Shannon Voss has been chosen to receive the 2025 Prentke AAC Distinguished Lecture Award by the Assistive Technology Industry Association. He will provide the 28th annual lecture at the 2025 ATIA Conference on Jan. 31 in Orlando, Fl. His honor includes a $2,000 award, a travel stipend of up to $3,000, and up to three complimentary conference registrations, valued at nearly $600 each.
 
“I feel honored that a distinguished organization of that caliber is so invested in what I have to say, would fly me out to Florida and give me a platform for my work to be noticed by many,” Voss, a Chicago native, said.
 
The Schaumburg, Illinois-based ATIA is a global education and research organization promoting the manufacture, sale, and provision of equipment, products, and systems that enable persons with disabilities to learn, work, and live better daily. The ATIA’s Edwin and Esther Prentke Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) Distinguished Lecture was initiated in 1997 to honor the life and work of a couple who dedicated their lives to developing technologies for those with disabilities; the annual lecture is delivered by a person who communicates via assistive technology.
 
Voss, who studied sociology at Parkland College, shared his story this past May as a presenter at the college's 2024 Commencement Exercises: While a third-year business administration major at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign, he suddenly contracted life-threatening illnesses that required him to relearn the necessary movements for everyday life. Not long afterward, he lost his mother due to illness. Despite these crushing blows, Voss worked with the team at Carle Therapy to regain mobility and with the staff at Parkland College to obtain his degree.

The ATIA announced Voss's selection in late October.