Meg Hefner Professional Day
In recognition of her years of dedication, service, and work in the field, the Professional Day at Conference is now known as the Meg Hefner Professional Day.
The CHARGE Syndrome Foundation’s biennial Conference is the largest gathering of individuals with CHARGE, their families and the professionals that serve them in the world. Our recent conferences have been attended by more than 1,200 people from the vast majority of the states and more than a dozen countries. We expect at least that many in attendance, including at least 250 individuals with CHARGE syndrome, at our upcoming Conference in July 2025 in Arizona.
The Conference kicks off with the Meg Hefner Professional Day, which is an opportunity for CHARGE professionals to come together to share information, research, and best practices with one another; the presentations are specifically for professionals in attendance. This one day conference includes plenary presentations of interest to all professionals, breakout sessions in the areas of Medical/Clinical and Educational/Therapy, and time during the poster session, lunch, and breaks to allow meeting and mingling among CHARGE professionals.
Most of these professionals will stay on for the International Conference and many will also be presenting their information at the International Conference, with their talks geared toward families and individuals with CHARGE.
Note: Families may attend professional day, but it is geared toward professionals. There is no camp on the Meg Hefner Professional Day.
Posters & Information Central
Professionals are invited to prepare posters summarizing their work for presentation during the Meg Hefner Professional Day and the main conference. During Information Central, conference attendees will have the ability to view the posters and ask questions.
Research at Conference
We all want to learn more about CHARGE, and that means research. Because CHARGE is relatively rare, most professionals only see a few affected individuals in their local practices. Conference attracts hundreds of individuals with CHARGE and their families, providing a wealth of potential research opportunities for the researchers and for families. Conference will provide a unique opportunity to bring international researchers and professionals working in this rapidly evolving field together, alongside those impacted by CHARGE syndrome to conduct research, develop joint research projects, present papers on their latest developments and collaborate on funding opportunities. Previous conferences have included everything from collecting DNA to interviews about feeding, language and behavior. There will be an area dedicated to the various research projects being conducted at conference.
Click here to learn more about conducting research at Conference.
Registration Fees
Fees for Meg Hefner Professional Day and the 16th International CHARGE Syndrome Conference will be released at the beginning of 2025.
Registration includes meals. Attendees are responsible for their own travel expenses and hotel reservations.
Registration opens in 2025.
Funding Opportunities
The Foundation has made a limited amount of funding available to defray the expenses of attendance for professionals planning to present or conducting research on-site. or attending the Research Advisory Meeting.
Sandra Davenport CHARGE Syndrome Fellows Program
The deadline to apply has passed. Applicants will be notified will be by April 11, 2025.
The CHARGE Syndrome Foundation is committed to nurturing and educating professionals who have shown a commitment to CHARGE syndrome. The Davenport Fellowship program brings professionals (clinical, research, therapeutic, educational) early in their careers to the International CHARGE Syndrome Conferences, where they have the opportunity to learn more about CHARGE, interact with one another and get to know individuals with CHARGE and their families.
The program is named in honor of Sandra Davenport, MD, a medical geneticist with expertise in sensory deficits who was a founding member of the CHARGE Syndrome Foundation. Dr. Davenport set the tone for conferences from the beginning – making sure medical and educational professionals interact with one another and ensuring that the conference is a family-friendly place. Her expertise in sensory deficits and deafblindness influenced a generation of CHARGE professionals.
