CHAMPAIGN, IL (Chambana Today) – A Parkland College graduate recently received the 2025 Prentke AAC Distinguished Lecture Award by the Assistive Technology Industry Association (ATIA).
The prestigious award recognizes individuals who use Augmentative and Alternative Communication (AAC) devices or applications mainly to communicate and have made significant contributions to the field. Some examples of an AAC are sign language or speech generating apps. The lecture award was chosen for Shannon Voss, who studied sociology at Parkland College. Voss was a third-year business administration major at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign (UIUC) when he suddenly contracted life-threatening illnesses.
These illnesses forced him to relearn how to move around in everyday life. On top of this, he lost his mother to illness soon after. Despite these hardships, he pushed through and was awarded with the the 2025 Prentke AAC Distinguished Lecture Award. The award includes $2,000, 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 said.