SOAR Conference 2025

Registration is now closed.

Thank you for your interest in the SOAR Conference.  Unfortunately, we have to close registration early as we have now reached full capacity for this year's event.

Please contact us should you have any questions.

Send an Email

402-559-6483

• T-shirts are available for purchase from People First of Nebraska. A limited number of shirts will be available at the conference on a first-come, first-served basis.
  
• Non-hotel guests can purchase voucher tickets for hotel-provided events.
  
  • Evening social hour ($20 per person)
  • Hotel breakfast ($15 per person)

Nebraska

People First of Nebraska is offering scholarships to provide hotel rooms for Nebraskans with disabilities and their support staff/family. For more information, please visit the People First of Nebraska website.

 

Iowa

The Julie and Katie Beckett Advocacy Fund at the Arc of Iowa is offering scholarships to Iowans with disabilities. For more information on this scholarship, contact Doug Cunningham by email at doug@thearcofiowa.org or by phone at 515-664-2252. 

 

South Dakota

The South Dakota Council on Developmental Disabilities has limited funds available to support South Dakotans with disabilities and their families/support staff to attend the SOAR Conference.  Individuals with disabilities and their families/support staff may be reimbursed for expenses for travel to an out of state conference, if approved. Please email Jessica Lamb at Jessica.lamb@state.sd.us or call 605-773-6369 for more information or to receive a travel assistance application.

Proposal submissions are now closed.

The 2025 SOAR Conference will feature presentations on the following topics: Leadership and Advocacy, Healthcare, Policy, and Community and Connection.

45 minutes will be given for presentations, including questions.

Submission Guidelines 

The SOAR Conference is an opportunity for people with disabilities to share their experiences, connect with others, and learn about advocacy. For this reason, the committee highly encourages that all presentations include a person with a disability as a presenter, or as an important part of the development of the presentation. Proposals that do not include people with disabilities may not be accepted.

As the SOAR Conference is a regional gathering, the committee encourages that presenters collaborate with others around the region. If similar presentations are submitted from different states or organizations, presenters may be asked to work together.

Please note, all presenters are required to register for the Conference and to arrange their own travel and hotel plans.

 

Presenters will be asked to follow guidelines for accessible presentations set by the Association of University Centers on Disabilities:

• Presenter Guidelines
• Plain Language

The 2025 SOAR Conference is committed to making the conference as accessible as possible. Accommodation requests can be made through the registration form and other accessibility questions can be directed to our email.

The 2025 SOAR Conference will be hosted at:

Embassy Suites by Hilton
Omaha Downtown Old Market 
555 S. 10th Street, Omaha, NE 68102

Check-in is anytime after 4:00 pm on October 3, 2025.

Omaha Tourism

The conference will take place in the Old Market district of Omaha. For more information on food and attractions of this area, please visit their website.   

More information on other accessible attractions in the Omaha area can be found here at Visit Omaha.

Interested in being a sponsor or exhibitor for this event? Email us to find out which sponsorship levels are still available.

• Friend ($1000)
• Ally ($2500)
• Advocate ($5000)

Exhibitors ($150)

• Exhibitor tables are available for purchase for $150. Exhibitor tables do not include conference registration.

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