It's a little bit country, interwoven with continuing education in audiology, and well known for dynamite social activities! It is the Scott Haug Foundation Hill Country Retreat. You can find it in Kerrville, Texas, where some 130 audiologists gather in early fall to participate in a 3-day conference. The Retreat is well-known to audiologists in Texas as a not-to-be-missed reunion of old friends and colleagues. The Retreat was named in honor and memory of a popular young audiologist who died unexpectedly in 1984. The Scott Haug Foundation was established by his friends to sponsor an annual meeting which would reflect Scott's commitment both to professional excellence and to fun and interaction among Texas audiologists.

Scott Haug was a graduate of the University of Texas at Austin, where he completed his BS in Speech Communications in 1972 and his MA in Audiology in 1973. He completed his CFY under the supervision of his father, Olaf Haug, at the Medical Center ENT Clinic in Houston, Texas. Scott served as the Director of Audiology and Vestibulography at the Austin ENT Clinic from 1975 to 1984, during which time he was an active member of ASHA, the Texas Speech, Language, and Hearing Association, the Texas Hearing Aid Association, and the Academy of Dispensing Audiologists.

Annual Softball Tournament!

Scott Haug's outstanding clinical career ended in 1984, when he passed away at age 33 following a brief illness. Scott had dedicated his adult life to the profession of Audiology, to his patients, and to his friends. He affected and inspired everyone with whom he came in contact, including fellow clinicians, students, and manufacturers, and his enthusiasm, friendship, and dedication to helping people have been greatly missed.

To perpetuate the commitment and ideals that were the essence of Scott Haug, his friends formed a foundation which was committed to realizing his dream of an annual conference in the Texas Hill Country. The goals were to create an informal educational opportunity for individuals in the hearing health care profession that was both practical and clinical in nature and that was designed to provide the highest quality continuing education in the country. Equally important to Scott was that the meeting be in a retreat format that would allow his colleagues to meet in a relaxed setting and to interact in both professional and recreational activities.

The first annual Scott Haug Hill Country Audiology Retreat was held in Wimberley, Texas in 1985 and was attended by 60 audiologists, manufacturers' representatives, and hearing aid dispensers. Despite some "logistics surprises" and extremely wet weather conditions, the inaugural meeting was an unlikely success, thanks in large part to the "pioneering" flexibility of the soggy Retreat attendees and an outstanding faculty consisting of James Jerger, Gustav Mueller, Jerry Northern, Michael Gorga, Robert Fifer, and Mike Vivion. Scheduled outdoor recreational events were hastily replaced with an impromptu array of board games, rented video movies, and a slumber party. Embracing the "uniqueness" of first meeting, the Foundation board members and many of the die-hard first-time attendees remained committed to Scott's dream. Subsequent retreats have been attended by 125 to 150 professionals annually, and all but one have been held on the Guadalupe River at the picturesque resort Inn of the Hills in Kerrville, Texas.

The quality of the continuing education continues to be treated as among the best in the country, due in large part to the carefully selected faculty members. Each faculty member provided attendees with practical information designed to be put into immediate use in clinical settings. The informal setting allows each faculty member to be available for one-on-one discussions with attending colleagues.

We respect our faculty!

The Retreat participants, as members of the Scott Haug Foundation, and some as elected members of the Board of Directors, have taken on an increasingly more active role in determining the direction of both the Foundation and the annual retreats. Their input has been solicited in determining not only faculty, presentation topics, and retreat activities, but also the long-term goals of the group. For example, the membership has voted to have a portion of the Foundations' funds available to support clinical research in the field, and financial support has recently been given to hearing health care providers to facilitate audiologic services in Latin America. In keeping with Scott's dedication to student training, retreat scholarships have been rewarded to outstanding Audiology graduate students from accredited Texas training programs since the inception of the meeting, and the number of annual winners has grown from four to seven.

During the 11-year span of Scott Haug retreats, the flavor of the meetings has come to more closely resemble a family reunion than a formal conference. The Retreat's hospitality suite (known as the "Casa") has become infamous as the social hub for a very distinctive network of professionals, not to mention the source of some of the best Texas-style hor d'oeuvres in the state. The Retreat's sporting events include the annual "Texas scramble" golf tournament and a spirited competition for the "Ossicular Chain Gain" softball trophy, as well as leisurely canoe trips, bicycle rides, swimming, tennis, jogging, and other outdoor activities. Attendees have also been party to other less-than-scholarly activities that have included Country Western dances, 50's sock hops, a Karaoke sing along party, a murder mystery dinner, a German OktoberFest, Skit Night, Audiology Family Feud, Trivia Bowls, costume parties, Prom Night, poolside parties, a Star Search Talent Show, and annual awards programs.

The Wizard of AuD