1^st Annual National Meeting - February 2000 - Procter & Gamble host - Cincinnati, OH

A group of individuals, representing the organizations we visited in our research, was brought together to discuss how to structure the group and what the priorities should be on an ongoing basis. At the meeting we had 32 participants from 24 different entities and agreed upon the building blocks of the consortium including three areas of focus: 1. A national website that is devoted solely to disability and employment issues. 2. Education that would benefit students with disabilities, employers and university faculty and staff. 3. Follow up of students as they graduate to create a study of where students land in careers that will assist university professionals in advising current and future students in their career choices. A governing structure was also established with a Steering Committee. The name, COSD, was adopted by a vote of all participants in October 2000.

2^nd Annual National Meeting - March 2001 - Exxon Mobil host - Houston, TX

At this meeting, 37 individuals representing 30 different entities attended. We further clarified the direction of the direction of the organization, as well as the strong need for greater structure and a stable funding base. The Steering Committee was charged with formalizing the structure of the organization with decisions on such issues as growth in the number of participants, communication to, and among, the participants, strategic alliances with national associations such as NACE and AHEAD and funding. Time lines were established for one, two and three years and milestones were identified for each year.

3^rd Annual National Meeting - July 2002 - NASA / University of DC hosts - Washington, DC

There were 57 attendees over the day and a half long event, representing 41 different organizations. The Keynote Speaker was Claiborne Haughton, Jr., Retired Acting Deputy Assistant Secretary of Defense for Equal Opportunity. Please refer to the Conferences / Annual Meeting / Keynote Speaker section for Mr. Haughton's bio and background. He spoke to our group, energizing us with a very inspirational message covering three basic themes that interlocked extremely well with the philosophy of COSD.

We featured a Discussion Panel, comprised of four individuals who have been through internship programs such as the Workforce Recruitment Program (WRP) or Entry Point through the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS). These individuals with disabilities are either currently employed full time with a member employer or have been students of a member university. Each individual had the opportunity to tell their unique story through their answers to several questions covering several major areas including what it took to obtain the internship, what benefits were received through the internship, benefits from mentoring and the amount and quality of assistance received from Disability Services and Career Services. Each stated the high value of their internship experiences

All attendees participated in a "Think Tank" Discussion on the topic of whether there is a connection between disability and diversity. Assumptions held by both employers and universities regarding disability and employment were discussed. For further details of the findings that resulted from this discussion from the employers and university attendees, please refer to section of this website under Conferences / Past Conferences / 2002 Meeting / Employer's "Think Tank" and Universities "Think Tank".

4^th Annual National Meeting - May 2003 - Microsoft host - Seattle / Redmond, WA

There were 98 attendees from 77 different member entities over a 2 1/2 day meeting. Not only was this Meeting larger, but also we were fortunate to attract the interest of many different folks who have not previously attended a COSD Meeting. Included in the newcomer list was Rehabilitation Services Administration in the US Department of Education, US Department of the Interior, National Institutes of Mental Health, State of Washington Education representatives and individuals from three local K - 12 school districts who were transition specialists or teachers. We had a full agenda with four quality national speakers on disability and diversity, a presentation on the new research into Attention Deficit Disorder, an Internship Discussion Panel of four young individuals and a "Think Tank" Discussion. We also presented entertainment at the Westin Seattle that featured "Light Motion", female dance duo focusing on the gracefulness of dance in combination with the power of disability. The performance was an incredibly impressive display. Additionally, Microsoft, as host, provided many activities for the attendees. For more details, please see the Meeting Summary under Conferences / Past Conferences / 2003 Meeting.

5th Annual National Meeting – May 2004 – Motorola host – Schaumburg, IL

There were 100 attendees representing 70 different member entities over a 2 day Meeting. We had a full agenda with four quality national keynote speakers discussing diversity, disability, employment and the media. Other speakers explored areas of the international perspective on disability and employment, the impact of employee behavioral health conditions on companies, disclosure of a hidden disability in an interview situation, the Washington Center Internship Program for Students with Disabilities and the US Business Leadership Network. We also had our traditional Intern Panel four young individuals with disabilities, who have succeeded in many endeavors and “Think Tank” Discussion. A new feature was the spotlight on the partnership between employers and universities and featured the relationship between Motorola and Arizona State University. The Banquet had entertainment featuring Anita Hollander singing her one-woman show “Still Standing”. Speaking of standing, she received a loud ovation with everyone on their feet for those who could stand. Motorola and Kevin Foster were the consummate hosts and were the reason the Meeting was such a great success.

6th Annual National Meeting - July 2005 - Merck and Blue Cross Blue Shield of Massachusetts, Co-hosts - Boston, MA