2023 AgrAbility National Training Workshop
March 20-23 | Spokane, Washington
The AgrAbility National Training Workshop is the premier training event addressing issues of disability in agriculture.
Professionals and consumers from all over the country participate in four days of plenary sessions, breakouts, tours, networking, and special events.
The 2023 conference was March 20th– 23rd, 2023 at the Centennial Hotel in downtown Spokane, WA. You can access the schedule and copies of most of the presentation PowerPoints on the Schedule tab.
Pre-Conference: Monday, March 14th: 1:00 pm – 4:00 pm
$40 fee
Providence St. Luke’s Rehabilitation Medical Center 
At Providence St. Luke’s Rehabilitation Medical Center, medical rehabilitation excellence and compassion are at their core. Their fully accredited rehabilitation center is home to an expert team that integrates treatments, technology, and care to help patients of all ages achieve their goals following stroke, spinal cord injuries, orthopedic issues, and brain injuries. They are proud to be one of the most technologically advanced rehab centers in the United States, and they leverage their innovation every day to help their patients thrive. $40 Fee- Subject to change based on COVID protocols.
Post-Conference: Thursday, March 23rd: 8:00 am – 4:00 pm
$75 Fee, lunch included on full day tours – Tours subject to change
OPTION 1 (Full Day Tour) 8 am-4 pm
Tour a beef cattle operation and discuss how they have managed to create a resilient operation by purchasing a meat processing facility and creating a boxed beef business that delivers across the northeast US. $75 fee
OPTION 2 – (Full Day Tour with ½ day drop off) 8 am-4 pm
Tour a farm designed for veterans to transition back into civilian life through careers in agriculture; drop off at the hotel; tour a family run farm, raising Piedmont cross cattle, and practice sustainably rotated crops and use no till practices. $75 fee for full day and $30 fee for half day (lunch not included for ½ day)
OPTION 3 (Full Day Tour) 8 am- 4 pm
Tour WSU Wilke Research Farm, a 320-acre research farm that grows different types of crops and shares their findings with farmers and scientists to help get optimal crop options and a Hutterian Colony that operates a beef operation and fully functioning farm. $75 fee
Schedule
Schedule subject to change
Monday, March 20th: 8 am – 6 pm
- 9 am – 3:30 pm: Mental Health First Aid – $60 fee- lunch included – Must register by March 1st
- 12 pm – 4:00 pm: Introducing the Business Model Canvas as a Planning Tool
- 1 pm – 4 pm: New Staff Training
- 1 pm – 4 pm: Worksite Assessment, Secondary Injury, and AT Selection- $25 fee
- 1 pm – 4 pm: Offsite tour- Providence St. Luke’s Rehabilitation Medical Center $40 fee
- 4:30 pm – 6 pm: Poster Session and Reception Poster descriptions
Tuesday March 21st: 8 am – 5 pm
- 8 am – 9 am: Opening Conference Session
- 9:15 am – 10:15 am: Conference Breakout Sessions
- Low Tech Assistive Technology Lessons from Ethiopia
- Improving Mental Health and Cognitive Abilities with Apps
- What AgrAbility Looks Like in Communities of Persistent Poverty
- Roundtable discussion with Veterans, Underserved and Beginning Farmers Farmer Veteran Coalition
- 10:15 am – 10:45 am Break
- 10:45 am – 12:15 pm: Conference Breakout Sessions
- Adaptive Beekeeping for People with Disabilities and Veterans
- Brain Injury: Chronic Health Condition and Management for Farmers
- Promoting Resiliency with Agricultural Clients Using SAMHSA’s 8 Domains of Wellness
- Alternative and Value-Added Agricultural Enterprises – Panel Discussion of Successful Entrepreneurs
- QPR for Farmers and Farm Families: Suicide Prevention Training
- 12:15 pm – 1:45 pm : Lunch- Speaker Mike Rosmann
- 1:45 pm – 2:30 pm: Conference Breakout Sessions
- 2:40 pm – 3:40 pm: Conference Breakout Sessions
- Think Outside of the Box to Increase Income of Small Farmers Direct Market Beef booklet
- Ask In Earnest: Candid and Compassionate Conversations about Suicide for the Farm and Ranch Community
- Project Director (PI) Session
- AgrAbility Farmers and Ranchers Need to Work Smarter, Let the Microbes in Your Soil Take the Hard Work Out of Growing Anything!
- Outdoor AT Show and Tell
- 3:40 pm – 4:00 pm: Break
- 4:00 pm – 5:00 pm: Conference Breakout Sessions
- Indoor AT Show and Tell
- Farm and Ranch Stress Assistance Network Updates Northeast FRSAN North Central FRSAN Southern FRSAN
- International Panel
- Cultivating Post-Traumatic Growth and Community Reintegration in Farmer Veterans and Farmers with Disabilities
- 6:00 pm Banquet and Auction with Keynote Speaker Laurie Hayn, IN AgrAbility client
Wednesday, March 22nd: 8 am – 5 pm
- 8:00 am – 9:00 am: Conference Breakout Sessions
- Beyond Aching Hands and Stomped on Feet – Emerging and Current Technology Trends
- Critical Conversations: Farm Stress and Mental Health Challenges in Farmworker Communities
- Ohio AgrAbility and Opportunities for Ohioans with Disabilities, Collaborating with Our State Vocational Rehabilitation Agency Handout
- Employing Youth in Agriculture: Keep Your Operation Legal and Your Young Workers Safe
- 9:10 am – 9:55 am: Conference Breakout Sessions
- Unconferencing: Sustainability – Maintaining Program Impact Beyond Funding Cycles
- Introduction of the Workforce Development Program within the Amputee Coalition
- Farm Family Resource Initiative in Illinois
- SARE Grants – Preparing a Proposal
- 9:55 am – 10:25 am: Break
- 10:25 am – 12:00 pm: Conference Breakout Sessions
- From Field to Table, Train-the-Trainer Food Safety Session for Small and Mid-size Farms Section 1 Section 2 Section 3
- From Capstone Projects to Internships: Working with Health Sciences Students to Meet AgrAbility Program Goals
- Cultural Humility panel: People, Principles and Practices Applied to Serve Agricultural Communities
- 10:25-11:05- Preliminary Results of Educating 45 Military Veterans Beginning Farmers/Ranchers through the Farm Education and Training (FEAT) Project
- 11:15-11:55- Inter-State Collaboration to Support Veteran and Other Beginner Farmers and Ranchers
- 12pm – 1:30pm: Lunch
- 1:30pm – 2:30 pm: Conference Breakout Sessions
- 2:40 pm – 3:40 pm: Conference Breakout Sessions
- Funding Assistive Technology: Financing, Credit Building, and Navigating Resources
- Tips for Recognizing and Managing and Recognizing Excessive Stress Anxiety and Depression are Common and Resolvable article, Managing Ourselves article, Farm Stress Management Planning Just in Case it’s Needed article
- 4-H Save Your Brain Leader’s Guide
- Tai Chi for Arthritis with the Agricultural Community
- 3:40 pm – 4:10 pm: Break
- 4:10 pm – 4:55 pm: Conference Breakout Sessions
- Walk in the Shoes of a Florida Farmer
- Unconferencing: Collaborating with Goodwill and Other Non-Profits
- What a Pain! Understanding and Managing Chronic Pain to Stay Active in Life
- AgrAbility Safety Considerations for On-site Visits with Farm and Ranch Families AgrAbility Safety Considerations handout
- Dinner on your own
Thursday, March 23rd: 8 am – 4 pm
Conference Tours- Fee $75 (full day) $30 fee (half day) All tours subject to change.
OPTION 1 (Full Day Tour) 8 am-4 pm
Tour a beef cattle operation and discuss how they have managed to create a resilient operation by purchasing a meat processing facility and creating a boxed beef business that delivers across the northeast US. $75 fee
OPTION 2 – (Full Day Tour with ½ day drop off) 8 am-4 pm
Tour a family run farm, raising Piedmont cross cattle, and practice sustainably rotated crops and use no till practices; a farm designed for veterans to transition back into civilian life through careers in agriculture; drop off at the hotel; and a community supported, organic produce operation and CSA. $75 fee for full day and $30 fee for half day (lunch not included for ½ day)
OPTION 3 (Full Day Tour) 8 am- 4 pm
Tour WSU Wilke Research Farm, a 320-acre research farm that grows different types of crops and shares their findings with farmers and scientists to help get optimal crop options and a Hutterian Colony that operates a beef operation and fully functioning farm experience that resembles farming in Switzerland 400 years ago. $75 fee
This year’s conference headquarters is The Centennial Hotel.
The Centennial Hotel
303 West North River Drive
Spokane, WA 99201
Phone: 844-733-3305
To make reservations, you can click on the hotel name here: The Centennial Hotel. You can also call The Centennial Hotel at 844-733-3305.
The hotel block is closed. You may still be able to reserve a room at The Centennial at their current rates.
Other hotels within a .5 mile walk are:
Oxford Suites- 509-353-9000
Holiday Inn Express Spokane Downtown- 509-328-8508
DoubleTree Spokane City Center- 866-568-0896
At this time, The Centennial does not have a shuttle from the airport to the hotel. This may change, but for now, please plan to make your own arrangements to get to the hotel from the airport. You can check with the hotel closer to your arrival to see if they have started a shuttle service. Uber and Lyft are available in Spokane and charge about $25-$30 one way. Here is a link to the transportation page on the airport website- Transportation
If you are in need of wheelchair accessible transportation you can contact Paratransit with Spokane Transit. If you are already approved for paratransit in your city, they will honor that. If you are not, you may still be able to utilize this service. Either way, please contact them ahead of time for more details- Gracie Pitts at 509-325-6052 or kpitts@spokanetransit.com
Here are some other potential accessible transportation options:
MedTran 800-550-3782 or email at info@gomedtran.com
Precious Cargo 509-951-5482
Special Mobility Services (877) 264-RIDE(7433)
Registration
Registration is open! Click here to register!
Earlybird pricing ends 2/17/22 Registration ends March 13th
- Earlybird Conference Registration Fee- ends 2/17/23 (does not include Thursday Tour Fee): $400
- Late Registration Fee After 2/17/23 (does not include Thursday Tour Fee): $475
- Farmer/Rancher Registration Fee (does not include Thursday Tour Fee): $325
- Student Registration Fee (does not include Thursday Tour Fee): $200
- One Day Registration Fee – Tuesday (includes banquet): $275
- One Day Registration Fee – Tuesday (without banquet): $225
- One Day Registration Fee – Wednesday: $225
- One Day Farmer/Rancher Registration Fee – Tuesday (includes banquet): $150
- One Day Farmer/Rancher Registration Fee – Wednesday: $100
- One Day Student Registration Fee – Tuesday (includes banquet): $125
- One Day Student Registration Fee – Tuesday: $75
- Tuesday Evening Banquet Only Fee: $55
- Thursday Agricultural Tour Fee: $75 (includes lunch)
- Thursday Guest Tour Fee (for those attending with a full conference participant): $75 (includes lunch)
- Commercial Exhibitor Fee: $700 includes full registration for 1 person
- Non-Profit Exhibitor Fee: $600 includes full registration for 1 person
- State/Regional AgrAbility Project Exhibitor Fee: $75
- Monday Pre-Conference Session – Worksite and Secondary Injury Assessment and Documentation – Fee: $25
- Monday Pre-Conference Tour Fee: $40
- Monday Pre-Conference Session- Mental Health First Aid – Fee: $60
Early bird registration ends February 17th; after that date, full registration fee will be $475. Registration closes March 13th. There will be no on-site registration.
Cancellation Policy
Full refunds are available before February 21st. Between February 21st and March 13th, you will incur a $100 processing fee. Cancellations after March 13th are not eligible for a refund. Please contact Tess McKeel at (585) 447-9015 with any questions.
If you would prefer to register by mail, you may print a 2023 NTW Registration Form. 2023 Printable Registration Form
The Centennial Hotel is about 12 minutes from the Spokane international Airport. 
At this time there is not a shuttle from the airport to the hotel. This may change, but for now, please plan to make your own arrangements to get to the hotel from the airport. You can check with the hotel closer to your arrival to see if they have started a shuttle service. Uber and Lyft are available in Spokane and charge about $25-$30 one way. Here is a link to the transportation page on the airport website- Transportation
If you are in need of wheelchair accessible transportation you can contact Paratransit with Spokane Transit. If you are already approved for paratransit in your city, they will honor that. If you are not, you may still be able to utilize this service. Either way, please contact them ahead of time for more details- Gracie Pitts at 509-325-6052 or kpitts@spokanetransit.com
Here are some other potential accessible transportation options:
MedTran 800-550-3782 or email at info@gomedtran.com
Precious Cargo 509-951-5482
Special Mobility Services (877) 264-RIDE(7433)
Information is available for sponsorship opportunities HERE.
If you would like to pay for your sponsorship by credit card, more information will be coming soon.
Contact JoBeth Rath at 585.402.2059 or jbrath@goodwillfingerlakes.org or Tess McKeel at 585.447.9015 or tmckeel@goodwillfingerlakes.org for questions or more information.
Featured Sponsors
We appreciate the continued support from the CHS Foundation and Life Lyfts by Life Essentials, who have generously provided funds to help pay for AgrAbility farmer/rancher clients and their spouses/caregivers to attend the NTW the past several years. Their dedication to the AgrAbility mission is greatly appreciated.
Bee Smart Designs
Cap-Chur Equipment
LogRite Tools LLC
LogOX LLC
Rotoshovel
Travel Stipends for Farmers and Ranchers with Disabilities.
Applications are no longer being accepted for this year.
Travel Stipends are available to help farmers/ranchers with disabilities come to the 2023 NTW in Washington. If you are a farmer/rancher with a disability and would like to attend the 2023 NTW please click on the link below for an online application, as soon as possible, so that you have the best chance of being included in the available budget. Applications are due by December 15, 2022, at the latest. If you would prefer to fill out a paper application, you may click on that link below. This form should be mailed to Chuck Baldwin at:
AgrAbility NTW Stipend Committee / 814 Laurel Hill Pl. / Fort Wayne, IN 46825
If you have any questions you can contact Chuck Baldwin at 574.306.7329 or baldwi19@purdue.edu, or Tess McKeel at 585.447.9015 or tmckeel@goodwillfingerlakes.org
2023 Farmer/Rancher Stipend Application- online form
2023 Farmer/Rancher Stipend Application- printable form
Exhibitors
Exhibitors are a welcome addition to the Workshop! AgrAbility professionals, partner organizations and farmer clients are eager to learn about products and services that may be of assistance.
The 2023 NTW features exhibitor space with a great traffic pattern, allowing you to catch attendees on their way to and from sessions and meals, and during breaks! Spaces are located in the Centennial Hotel Riverfront Ballroom Foyer.
Exhibit Space – One 6′ table with chairs and electric hook up if needed.
For $700 ($600 for non-profit organizations), which includes the regular registration fee for one representative, the registered exhibitor is invited to share information about your product during the AT Show and Tell session, attend any sessions of interest, and attend conference meals, providing great opportunities to connect. Conference meals include a conference reception event on Monday evening, lunch, breaks and banquet dinner and auction on Tuesday, and lunch and breaks on Wednesday. Additional representatives may join you at these events with the regular conference registration of $400, or just join you at the Tuesday evening banquet and auction for $60.
Exhibitors are encouraged to donate a product or service to the auction event held during Tuesday night’s banquet or the silent auction that will be held Tuesday afternoon until Wednesday lunch. These auctions help to raise money for farmer stipends for the event.
Exhibitor Details:
Move In and Set up: Sunday, March 19th at 1 pm – Tuesday, March 21st at 8 am **all exhibits should be fully set prior to 8am on Tuesday**
Break down Wednesday, March 22nd 5 pm – 10 pm.
Online exhibitor registration- IF PAYING BY CREDIT CARD
Online exhibitor registration- IF PAYING BY CHECK
Currently registered exhibitors
Purdue University Extension– Food Safety
Vision Works
Western Region Agricultural Stress Assistance Program
Washington State Department of Labor and Industry
Washington State University Skagit County Extension