[Cabs-talk] A blast from the past!

[Justin Harford]

Hi there

Where did this come from?  May we post it on the CABS page?  Perhaps  
as part of a newsletter from 2003?

Regards
Justin Harford
Secretary
On Nov 15, 2009, at 2:39 PM, Michael Peterson wrote:

> California Association of Blind Students Seminar-A Success!
> By Ronit Ovadia, First Vice-President, CABS
> Robert Stigile, President, California Association of Blind Students
> Robert Stigile, President, California
> Association of Blind Students
>> From November of last year to this April, the California  
>> Association of
> Blind Students
> (CABS) board and I worked on a student seminar, which took place  
> April 5, 2003, in
> the Bay Area at the Lighthouse for the Blind in San Francisco. This  
> seminar was geared
> toward high school students, although there were also college  
> students who attended.
> The title of the seminar was "The Road to Success," and several  
> topics important
> to blind high-schoolers were addressed. Being new to the board, this  
> was quite an
> experience for me. However, I was excited to be involved and honored  
> that I was chosen
> as the leader of the planning committee for this event. I had never  
> planned anything
> of this kind before, and there were so many details to be  
> considered. Everything
> from who we should invite to speak to what we should serve for lunch  
> were important
> issues we discussed and planned. We also worked on outreach, and  
> several schools
> and teachers were contacted to let them know about our seminar.
> After so many months of planning, the big day finally arrived. All  
> of us were nervous,
> thinking that we wouldn't have enough people because our RSVP list  
> had only a few
> names on it. However, we had about 10 students who came, along with  
> parents and teachers
> of these students. This was the first exciting part for me; seeing  
> the students actually
> arrive and register. In the morning, we had all sorts of speakers  
> discussing several
> different topics. Nancy Burns, president of the NFBC, spoke about  
> what the NFBC is
> and attitudes about blindness. Patricia Leetz, a rehabilitation  
> counselor from Alameda
> County, gave tips on what rehabilitation services are available and  
> how to make sure
> you benefit from these services. Michael Thomas, who works for  
> Social Security, gave
> a talk about how Social Security is important for students as well  
> as working adults.
> We also covered the topic of training centers for the blind. I spoke  
> about the process
> I went through in order to attend the Colorado Center for the Blind  
> this upcoming
> summer. Finally, because we all like to have fun, we had a  
> representative from the
> Environmental Traveling Companions tell us about outdoor activities  
> available to
> blind people. Their programs include everything from rock climbing  
> to river rafting,
> water skiing and snow skiing. Throughout all these presentations,  
> the audience was
> involved and asked many good questions directed to each of the  
> speakers. Several
> of these questions initiated many conversations that continued into  
> the lunch hour.
> After our informative morning, we took a lunch break and served  
> pizza and soda to
> everyone. This was a great way to maintain contact with everybody  
> throughout lunch,
> and people really got to know one another during this time. Several  
> of the CABS board
> members talked with students and answered their questions during our  
> lunch break.
> During the afternoon session we divided the students, parents and  
> teachers into three
> discussion groups. Each group was led by one or two of our board  
> members who had
> pre-assigned topics to discuss, ranging from disability student  
> offices, to rehabilitation,
> to blindness training and even social skills and other social  
> issues. After each
> group had discussed their topics for half an hour, the groups cycled  
> to the next
> group, and after an hour and a half of discussion time, everyone had  
> a chance to
> meet with all the discussion leaders and get many of their questions  
> answered. This
> was a particularly successful activity, as everyone got involved.  
> Whether they were
> a student, a parent or teacher, they were able to ask their own  
> questions and tailor
> the discussion to meet their own needs.
> Overall, this seminar was quite a success. We had an interested  
> group and all our
> activities seemed to be well received. Participation was a great  
> part of this. Although
> it was the first seminar I had planned, it went very well and I am  
> hoping that I
> will have the privilege to help plan our annual seminar for next  
> year as well.
> Previous
>
> _______________________________________________
> Cabs-talk mailing list
> Cabs-talk at nfbnet.org
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/listinfo/cabs-talk_nfbnet.org
> To unsubscribe, change your list options or get your account info  
> for Cabs-talk:
> http://www.nfbnet.org/mailman/options/cabs-talk_nfbnet.org/jharford%40calmail.berkeley.edu