Latest Blogs

Below is a list of blogs written by ACPA members and the National Office Team.

If you are interested in writing a blog, please email Alyssa Kirkman for more information.

*Disclaimer-The American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association claims no responsibility for the content published by others on its web site. Published content does not imply endorsement of the organization or the content of the meetings.

Celebrating Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness Month: UI Heath Craniofacial Center Picnic

By Alma Moya posted 2 days ago
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The UI Health Craniofacial Center in Chicago had its third annual picnic on Saturday, July 14, 2018 celebrating Cleft Palate and Craniofacial Awareness Month sponsored by The Face the Future Foundation (FFF).  Many of our Craniofacial Center Families came to enjoy the picnic even though it rained on and off.  The attractions included inflatable monster figures, water dunk activities, water balloon stations, and green screen photo station to dress up as your favorite hero.  There was also a face painting station which allowed children to get works of art on their faces including lions, butterflies, and dinosaur themes.  The children did not mind the rain as ...
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Spreading Awareness in Illinois and Texas

By Alyssa Kirkman posted 3 days ago
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ACPA Member Kevin Calder, leader of the ACPA Approved Team at the SIU Congenital Head & Neck Anomalies Clinic , was featured in a video on WAND in Decatur, Illinois.  The story features the story of Gwendolyn, who was born with a cleft lip and palate.  Watch the story. The ACPA Approved Texas Cleft - Craniofacial Team held WONDERkids workshop earlier this month in honor of Cleft-Craniofacial Awareness month.  They invited patients between the ages of 8-13 yrs old for a few hours of mingling and fun. Many kids have never seen another child with a craniofacial difference and this event was a time for children to come together.  The workshop included ...
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Awareness Events in Colorado Springs and Philadelphia

By Alyssa Kirkman posted 5 days ago
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Children’s Colorado Cl eft & Palate Team in Colorado Springs is hosting their 2 nd Annual Cleft/Craniofacial Picnic during Cleft/Craniofacial Awareness Month.  It will be held at the US Air Force’s Farish Recreation Area in Woodland Park, Colorado on Saturday 21 July.    Activities will include a BBQ, archery, canoeing, bounce house and the most popular event from last year – fishing. Clifford the CleftDog will be in attendance ( follow him on instagram ).   The Cleft Lip and Palate Program at the Children's Hospital of Philadelphia  is excited to hold their 3rd Annual Awareness Event.  Plans this year include a full day celebration on July 23 in the ...
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Cranio Bootcamp at Joe DiMaggio Children's Hospital

By Alyssa Kirkman posted 9 days ago
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Local Speech-Language Pathologists (SLPs), graduate students, parents, and children gathered bright and early at the Memorial Regional Hospital’s New Garage Convention Center on Saturday, June 23 rd, 2018 for a day of networking and learning. In honor of National Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness Month, the event was organized by the ACPA Approved Cleft and Craniofacial Program at Joe DiMaggio Children’s Hospital in Hollywood, Florida.  Speech Therapy Bootcamp was designed to simultaneously give professionals an opportunity to learn and apply their skills, parents to socialize, and for children to engage in play-based and individualized speech therapy sessions. ...
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New Issue of The Cleft-Palate Craniofacial Journal Available Online

By ACPA posted 11 days ago
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The new issue of The Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Journal is now available. All ACPA Members receive a free subscription to The Journal - just log-in to your ACPA account to access the online version.   Not a member and want journal access?  Join now ($240 for 2018 National Active Membership) or purchase an individual subscription ($324 for print and e-access). Epigenetics and Orofacial Clefts: A Brief Introduction Gemma C. Sharp, Ph.D., Evie Stergiakouli, Ph.D., Jonathan Sandy, Ph.D., F.Med.Sci., Caroline Relton, Ph.D. Microarchitecture and Biomechanical Evaluation of BoneCeramic Grafted Alveolar Defects during Tooth Movement in Rat Nan Ru, ...
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NYP Cleft Lip and Palate Team Day

By Alyssa Kirkman posted 13 days ago
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The ACPA Approved Team at Morgan Stanley Children's Hospital is hosting an event to celebrate National Cleft Lip and Palate Awareness month. The inaugural NYP Cleft Lip and Palate Team Day is July 22, 2018. This is an event for children and families who have worked with the cleft and craniofacial center. The day include a unique opportunity to meet and interact with each other in a  body positive environment and a chance to interact with physicians in a rare non-clinical encounter.  The keynote speaker is ACPA Member Patricia Simon, the author of a children's book on cleft. Each family will receive a copy of one of her books and Patricia will be available ...
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Team News: Awareness in Delaware

By Erin Mallis posted 16 days ago
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The A.I. duPont Hospital for Children Cleft Palate and Craniofacial Team, an ACPA Approved Team in Wilmington Delaware, is working to spread cleft and craniofacial awareness this July.  The team received a proclamation from Governor John Carney and Lieutenant Governor Bethany Hall-Long declaring July 2018 to be Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness Month in Delaware.  The team is excited to be holding an event at the Blue Rocks baseball stadium on July 27 to celebrate.  Tickets to the event include a reserved seat, a dinner buffet, and fireworks after the game.  What is your team doing to spread awareness?  Email us and we'll share it on the blog or ...
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July is Officially Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness Month

By Alyssa Kirkman posted 20 days ago
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ACPA is excited to announce that July is Officially Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness Month! North Carolina Governor Roy Cooper awarded ACPA a proclamation for Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness Month. In addition, Mayor Pam Hemminger and the Chapel Hill Town Council proclaimed July as Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness Month. ACPA Executive Director Wendy-Jo Toyama accepted the proclamation from Council Member Nancy Oates. Thank you to the State of North Carolina and the Town of Chapel Hill supporting ACPA as we spread cleft and craniofacial awareness.  Remember to send us your news, events and proclamations for the month so we can share them on the ...
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ACPA Spreads Awareness Online and in the Community

By Alyssa Kirkman posted 23 days ago
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Cleft and Craniofacial Awareness Month begins on July 1, and we are excited to start spreading awareness online and in our community.  You can support ACPA's Awareness efforts by: Joining us on social media.  We will be posting stories and awareness month items all month long.  Please share our posts. #cleftawareness Build awareness by adding a #Twibbon to your Twitter account.   http://bit.ly/2N0xpII Add a  Facebook frame to your profile picture . https://www.facebook.com/profilepicframes . Search and select the "Cleft Awareness-ACPA" frame and Click "Use as Profile Picture". Listening to Dr. ...
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ACPA Webinars: Speech, School and Origins of Team Care

By Stephanie Williamson posted 25 days ago
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ACPA offers educational webinars to cleft and craniofacial care providers worldwide. Upcoming webinars include:   Cleft Palate Speech Therapy: From Elicitation to Spontaneous Speech July 12 at 2:00 PM ET* This course is designed for working clinicians in search of techniques for teaching and habituating consonants and is intended to be a forum for the exchange of ideas. *Register with code “EARLYBIRD” for discounted pricing through 6/30.   Parenting a Child with Cleft Lip and/or Palate: Behavioral, School and Social Situations July 20 at 3:00 PM ET This course is for families of children born with a cleft lip and/or palate. Topics include  ...
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75th Anniversary: Finding Comfort in Community

By Alyssa Kirkman posted 27 days ago
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As we celebrate ACPA’s 75 th Anniversary in 2018 , we will be sharing stories from ACPA members about their ACPA experiences.  We are proud of the work our members have accomplished in support of our mission: to optimize outcomes for individuals with oral cleft and craniofacial conditions through education, support, research, advocacy, and interdisciplinary team care. Please join us in celebrating our anniversary by learning more about our members and the patients and families they serve. Today’s story is from Patricia Simon, RN. What counts in life is not the mere fact that we have lived. It is what difference we have made in the lives of others that ...
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Scholarship Profile: Arthur

By Stephanie Williamson posted 30 days ago
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ACPA is proud to award college scholarships to outstanding students born with cleft or craniofacial conditions.  It is an honor to recognize these students and to support them as they achieve their goals. One of the best parts of the whole process is reading the application essays, and we're excited to share their stories with you.  Today I'd like to share Arthur's submission. "I was born with a cleft lip and have had multiple surgeries since then to correct my lip. During high school I played baseball and was very active in my student government. I was lucky enough to be a part of my school's Student Council, Class Office, National Honor Society, and Student ...
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July Awareness Events: The 2nd Annual Craniofacial Awareness Picnic with Connecticut Children's

By Alyssa Kirkman posted 06-20-2018
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We are excited to see what events ACPA Approved Teams will be hosting to spread awareness this July.   The team at Connecticut Children's Medical Center will be hosting their 2nd Annual Craniofacial Awareness Picnic on July 21. Information is available below. What is your team doing to spread awareness this July? Email alyssa.kirkman@acpa-cpf.org to let us know.
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ACPA Artwork: Adwita

By ACPA posted 06-18-2018
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ACPA had an art contest to celebrate its 75th Anniversary. Several images have been shared on the cover of The Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Journal , and we will be sharing other winning artwork on the ACPA blog. This submission comes from Liisi. In her words: “Adwita removed her shawl and showed me her face for speech screening at an Operation Smile Mission in Northern India. I was touched by her beauty and her proud eyes. She didn’t leave my thoughts, and when I got home, I had to paint her.” We would like to continue to share artwork from our families in order to spread awareness of each of your individual and unique cleft and craniofacial journeys. ...
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75th Anniversary: A Memorable Annual Banquet

By Alyssa Kirkman posted 06-15-2018
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As we continue to celebrate our 75th Anniversary, we will be highlighting some of the leaders who have helped make ACPA so successful. This month we are highlighting Donald Warren, DDS, MS, PhD Name: Donald W. Warren City, State: Southern Pines, NC Current title/occupation: Owner, Cabin Branch Tack Shop Year(s) of service: 6 years on the ACPA Board, 4 years on the CPF Board Board position(s) while on board: Councilor, Treasurer, Vice President-Elect, Vice President, President-Elect, President, Past President An ACPA Memory: I just remembered one tidbit from 1982 when I was president. The Annual Banquet was memorable because the hotel ...
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Multiple New Genes Causing Non-Syndromic Cleft Lip are Identified in a New Study

By Timothy Cox posted 06-13-2018
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A new study, co-led by an ACPA member, has identified multiple new genes causing non-syndromic cleft lip with or without palate.  The genes, associated for the first time with cleft lip and palate, encode proteins that work together in a network, providing important insight into the biological basis of one of the most common physical malformations. Representing about 70% of cleft lip and palate cases worldwide, non-syndromic cleft lip and palate typically occurs in isolation without other physical abnormalities. This craniofacial malformation has long been considered to be caused by a combination of many common genetic variants and environmental factors, ...
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An Interview with ACPA Member Jamie Perry

By Alyssa Kirkman posted 06-11-2018
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ACPA Member Dr. Jamie Perry participated in an interview with SpeechPathologyMastersPrograms.com to discuss new cleft palate research and speech pathology graduate school. An excerpt from the interview: How did you specifically become interested in the treatment of cleft palate? When I was a graduate student I observed a cleft palate craniofacial team and observed cleft palate surgeries during the summers. I enjoyed the multidisciplinary team approach and I loved the medical aspects related to the patient care. Observing cleft surgeries allowed me to see firsthand how changes in the anatomy produced changes in a child’s speech. Also, while ...
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NIDCR Funding Opportunities

By Alyssa Kirkman posted 06-08-2018
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The Summer 2018 newsletter from the National Institute of Dental and Craniofacial Research included links to funding opportunities.   Several of the opportunities could be of interest to ACPA members, including: Small Research Grants for Analyses of Data for the Gabriella Miller Kids First Data Resource (R03 - Clinical Trial Not Allowed) Small Research Grants for Establishing Basic Science-Clinical Collaborations to Understand Structural Birth Defects (R03 - Clinical Trial Not Allowed) View the newsletter for a complete list. Click here to sign up for NIDCR News. #ACPA
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How to Use the Team Directory to Explore ACPA Approved Teams by Location

By Hillary Roberts posted 06-04-2018
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The ACPA Team Directory is one of the many resources available to members for connecting with other cleft and craniofacial teams. The directory can be used to locate a particular ACPA Approved Team through a more focused search or a group of ACPA Approved Teams through a wider search. In addition, you can discover the comprehensive list of professionals that make up each team’s roster. Search parameters can be entered that pertain to a team’s location. The location drop downs allow users to search multiple parameters. For example, you can search for ACPA Approved Teams located in North Carolina or Virginia. Once the search criteria are entered, a ...
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ACPA Publication: “Support for Individuals Affected by Cleft Lip and Palate”

By Hillary Roberts posted 06-01-2018
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Being equipped with information, support and resources can make a difference when faced with some of the challenges presented to families affected by cleft and craniofacial conditions. ACPA offers a factsheet summarizing some of the national and international groups that provide assistance for families within the cleft and craniofacial community. Cleft lip and cleft palate affect more than 7,000 individuals in the U.S. each year, leaving many people searching for support from others who understand their situation. The American Cleft Palate-Craniofacial Association has compiled a list of support resources to help individuals and families affected by cleft ...
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