2024 D.C. Fly-In
May 13 - May 15
150 PWS Advocates will descend on Capitol Hill during National PWS Awareness Day for PWSA | USA’s 2nd D.C. Fly-In!
PWSA | USA is excited to announce that our 2nd D.C. Fly-In will take place May 13-15, 2024, and the event hotel will be YOTEL Washington DC | Capitol Hill Hotel (415 New Jersey Ave NW, Washington, DC 20001)! During the Fly-In, we will learn about Policy affecting the PWS community, hear from policy makers, and continue our advocacy efforts by coming together on May 15th for a “Day on the Hill” to celebrate National PWS Awareness Day! We want to thank Aardvark Therapeutics, Acadia Pharmaceuticals, Harmony Biosciences, and Soleno Therapeutics for funding this important event for our community.
We have reached our capacity for 2024 D.C. Fly-In applications. We are thrilled to see the overwhelming interest in this event and look forward to taking our advocacy efforts to Washington, D.C. in May! Attendee selections have been made on a first-come, first-served basis. Thank you all for your incredible enthusiasm and understanding!
If you have any questions, please reach out to us at advocacy@pwsausa.org.
Jennifer Bolander has been serving as a Special Education Specialist for PWSA (USA) since October of 2015. She is a graduate of John Carroll University and lives in Ohio with her husband Brad and daughters Kate (17), and Sophia (13) who was born with PWS.
Perry A. Zirkel has written more than 1,500 publications on various aspects of school law, with an emphasis on legal issues in special education. He writes a regular column for NAESP’s Principal magazine and NASP’s Communiqué newsletter, and he did so previously for Phi Delta Kappan and Teaching Exceptional Children.
Evan has worked with the Prader-Willi Syndrome Association (USA) since 2007 primarily as a Crisis Intervention and Family Support Counselor. Evans works with parents and schools to foster strong collaborative relationships and appropriate educational environments for students with PWS.
Dr. Amy McTighe is the PWS Program Manager and Inpatient Teacher at the Center for Prader-Willi Syndrome at the Children’s Institute of Pittsburgh. She graduated from Duquesne University receiving her Bachelor’s and Master’s degree in Education with a focus on elementary education, special education, and language arts.
Staci Zimmerman works for Prader-Willi Syndrome Association of Colorado as an Individualized Education Program (IEP) consultant. Staci collaborates with the PWS multi-disciplinary clinic at the Children’s Hospital in Denver supporting families and school districts around the United States with their child’s Individual Educational Plan.
Founded in 2001, SDLC is a non-profit legal services organization dedicated to protecting and advancing the legal rights of people with disabilities throughout the South. It partners with the Southern Poverty Law Center, Protection and Advocacy (P&A) programs, Legal Services Corporations (LSC) and disability organizations on major, systemic disability rights issues involving the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA), Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and the federal Medicaid Act. Recently in November 2014, Jim retired.