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Keynote Speaker: Amanda DeLuca
Amanda DeLuca is a dedicated advocate, nonprofit leader, speaker, and entrepreneur committed to supporting families of children with disabilities. Based in Ohio with her husband, Sal, and their two children, Monroe and Jackson, Amanda’s journey into advocacy was inspired by her son’s autism diagnosis. As a Master IEP Coach®, she works with families both locally and remotely, empowering them to approach the Individualized Education Program (IEP) process with confidence and collaboration.
Amanda is the co-founder and president of The More Than Project, a nonprofit dedicated to supporting special needs caregivers and providing respite retreats that foster in-person connection. The organization’s mission is to remove barriers and create ripples of positive change for families caring for individuals with disabilities.
In November 2024, Amanda and Sal launched Pathways for Inclusion: A DeLuca Family Initiative, a future resource center for families raising children with disabilities. Pathways will provide job coaching, sibling support groups, social skills clubs, parent training, and more. Its first initiative, Merry SquishMas, was inspired by their daughter Monroe following her DIPG diagnosis, an inoperable brain cancer. Monroe’s goal to bring comfort to children in the hospital over the holidays was met by the delivery of over 1,000 Squishmallows to UPMC Children’s Hospital.
A sought-after speaker, Amanda has traveled nationally to educate and inspire audiences on parent rights in special education, finding hope in unexpected journeys, and making room for faith in times of challenge. She is also a dedicated community leader, serving as the appointed Parent Chair for the Governor’s Department of Children and Youth Advisory Council.
Deeply involved in her faith community, Amanda and her family are active in their church’s Outreach and Evangelism Committee and lead a micro-pantry project to provide barrier-free food assistance. She also serves as Vacation Bible School Director, revitalizing the program post-pandemic.
For over 13 years, Amanda has been a small business owner, teaching at her dance studio in Harrison County. She is also an accomplished writer, known for her blog, Jackson’s Journey, Jackson’s Voice, with work featured on TODAY Parenting, Her View From Home, Love What Matters, and more. Most recently, she became a best-selling author with Dear Mama, Nothing is Impossible, a devotional curated for special needs caregivers.
Through advocacy, community service, and personal experience, Amanda continues to champion inclusion, support families, and create lasting impact.
Speaker: Tiffany Weaver, LCSW
Tiffany Weaver, LCSW, is a Licensed Mental Health Therapist from a small town in Kentucky. Both of Tiffany's children have a rare genetic condition and her youngest child is Autistic and Non-Speaking.
Tiffany is passionate about helping mothers navigate the grief, trauma, and mental toll that caregiving brings through her experiences, both professionally and personally.
In addition to being a therapist, Tiffany is also a certified Maxwell Team Coach. She has been married to her husband Jeremy since 2011 and they share their 2 wonderful children plus a Corgi named Eevee.
Speaker: Lindsey Elliott, MOT, OTR/L
Lindsey Elliott is a native of Morgantown, WV. She graduated from WVU in 2017 with a Bachelor’s Degree in Child Development & Family Studies, as well as a Bachelor’s Degree in Human Performance and Health. In 2018, she received her Master’s Degree in Occupational Therapy.
She is a Certified Autism Specialist and Certified Primitive Reflex Integration Clinical Specialist. She is passionate about play-based learning and using multi-sensory approaches in her treatments. She also loves community integration and allowing her patients to practice important life skills in real time. Lindsey organizes and runs monthly support groups for autism caregivers and is hoping to start up social groups for teens on the spectrum.
Lindsey is a mama of triplets, one of which also has Autism and Complete Agenesis of the Corpus Callosum. She loves reading books in her spare time, mostly about neurodiversity, and choreographs musicals for Morgantown High School.
Speaker: Catherine Hughes
Meet Catherine Hughes. Hailing from a small town southeast of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, dubbed "the most boring town in Pennsylvania," Catherine Hughes is the daughter of two English professors. She is a passionate advocate, innovative storyteller, and community strategist. Catherine is an international best-selling author and/or editor of over twenty books. Her long-awaited memoir, Imprisoned No More: A Mother and Son Embrace Autism and Journey to Freedom, released in August 2020. Catherine has managed a blog and social media platforms as The Caffeinated Advocate since 2018. For two decades, she has provided comprehensive support and passionate advocacy to individuals and self-advocates, their families, and surrounding natural supports throughout their communities. She considers herself a servant leader, one who cultivates, develops and maintains relationships with grace and grit in order to create, enhance, and promote services and programs that transform lives. On a personal level, her calling (not a career) allows her to give back some of what has so graciously been given to her family. She proudly serves as the Director of Family Support and Community Engagement at Achieving True Self, supporting families across the Northeastern U.S. Living with her in that "boring" (ok, it's not actually boring) town and very much not boring household are "Mama Betty" and her neurodivergent son, Christian, as well as Callie, Cookie, Candie, Hannah, Maddie, and Raven the furry felines -- that's right, six cats.
Speaker: Tina Hinebaugh
I am a single mom of 3 great kids. The oldest is 19 years old and a WVU sophomore and a great special needs big sister. The other 2 kids, Autumn and Tristan, are 17 year old twins in the Autism spectrum. They were both diagnosed between 2 and a half and 3 years old. We started our journey in Birth to 3 with an ABA therapist for our developmental specialist. We also had OT and ST. Then I put my kiddos on the wait list for the iASD clinic around the time the twins turned 3. I also started seeing an ABA therapist in a separate program at the CED. They were also in Pre-k part time and had OT and ST and socialization through the school system. We got off the wait list for the iASD clinic the twins were there for 5 years. From the time they were 3 until they were 8 years old. Dr Poe and her students ran a top notch program with very little funding and the twins made so much progress there. Then we switched to a private therapist for insurance and family issues.
I am also a nurse and I have a Bachelors in nursing and I’m well educated in providing continuity of care to my patients. I used those skills at home for the sake of advocacy for my kids to get the services they need. And because it was so difficult for me, I decided to volunteer to help others get services for their kids. So we got Medicaid through the CDCSP program, IDD Waiver which extended their access to Medicaid. We fought and kept ABA services until the twins were 16. Waiver gave me an extra income and paid for OT and ST for my twins and we paid out of pocket for ABA some and also obtained private insurance coverage.
I became a single mom in 2018. I also enrolled the twins in OT and ST at therapy services and obtained an AAC device for Autumn because she is nonverbal. We endured telehealth and quarantine through Covid and also I got diagnosed with breast cancer and treated and am now a survivor. Through that we had a full time therapy schedule still. And now the twins still have an IEP and use MTECH to help them gain employment and life skills.
I do work tirelessly to help my own kids and our village to access services. I’m always here to be non judgmental and provide help and encouragement whenever I’m able.
Speaker: Claire Baniak, PsyD
Dr. Claire Baniak is a licensed clinical psychologist who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders, including Autism, ADHD, Learning Disabilities, and Intellectual Disability. She also provides consultation related to sexual health development for children and adolescents with neurodevelopmental differences. She earned her doctorate in Clinical Psychology (PsyD) from Spalding University in 2019. Dr. Baniak has experience working in a variety of settings including medical, educational, and private practice. She previously worked at the WVU Medicine Children’s Neurodevelopmental Center until 2024, when she opened Unlocked Potential alongside Dr. Jenna Wallace. At Unlocked Potential, Dr. Baniak not only continues to specialize in providing care to children and families with neurodevelopmental differences but enjoys the opportunity to provide these services in a variety of ways, including traveling the beautiful state of West Virginia to see families through the WV Birth to Three program.
Speaker: Tori Glock, PPCNP-BC
Tori is a Board-Certified Pediatric Nurse Practitioner who was born and raised in Morgantown, WV and currently lives here with her three children ~ Taylor, Ellie, & Drew. In her free time, Tori loves spending time with her family, friends, and dog, Molly. She enjoys hiking, reading, traveling, anything cat-related, and eating Taco Bell. She is very much a kid at heart which is why she was drawn to a career working with children.
Tori received both her Bachelor and Master of Science in Nursing from WVU, and she previously worked as a pediatric nurse at the WVU Medicine Children’s Hospital for 6 years until 2015 when she transitioned to her role as a Nurse Practitioner in a pediatric specialty clinic. For the past 9 years, Tori has had the privilege of providing developmental assessments and care for children with Autism and other developmental disabilities. She loves working with kids of all ages, and she is particularly passionate about Autism and child development. She is also credentialed as a Certified Autism Specialist (CAS). Tori is employed by Cardinal Pediatrics, where she sees patients with various neurological and developmental needs at the Suncrest Location.
Speaker: Jenna Wallace, PsyD
Dr. Jenna Wallace is a licensed clinical psychologist who specializes in the diagnosis and treatment of neurodevelopmental disorders, including Autism, ADHD, Learning Disabilities, and Intellectual Disability. She earned her doctorate in Clinical Psychology (PsyD) from Marshall University in 2016. Dr. Wallace spent the first several years of her career in medical settings alongside pediatricians, neurologists, rehabilitation therapists, and mental health professionals. She was instrumental in the development and administration of the WVU Medicine Children’s Neurodevelopmental Center until 2024, when she opened Unlocked Potential, a private practice that specializes in neurodevelopment, alongside Dr. Claire Baniak. Dr. Wallace is a proud provider for WV Birth to Three services and travels across the state to provide evaluations for families.