[Fopbc] Fwd: NFB Imagineering Our Future: Increasing the Odds for Success

[Lenora Marten]

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Imagineering Our Future




     Issue 22 

May 2010    


 
In this issue:


Message from the Executive Director
What’s New
Education
Braille Initiative
Advocacy
Straight Talk About Vision Loss
Technology Talk
>From the Jacobus tenBroek Library
Independence Market
Parent Outreach
Spotlight on the Imagination Fund
NFB Calendar
Citation




Message from the Executive Director

Dear Friends,

During the past month, I have been thinking about the fact that the diamond is said to be the April birthstone. I have been thinking about this partly because Melissa and I are expecting our second child any day—it will certainly be a May baby now. I have also been thinking about this because we have had groups of blind youth visit the Jernigan Institute almost every week this month. So, why diamonds?



Mark, Austin, and Melissa Riccobono






When most people see a blind child, they do not see the diamond or even the potential for a diamond.  They see something less, and they expect something less.  When young blind persons come in contact with the National Federation of the Blind they learn—frequently for the first time—that they can be a diamond. They learn that it is not their blindness that defines who they are or what their future will be. We believe in the diamond, and we build our education programs with the expectation that each blind child is a diamond and that our first job is to teach them all to expect more of themselves.

This past month we have shared laughs and tears with blind middle school and high school students whose horizons were expanded because of their time here at the NFB Jernigan Institute.  We cooked over charcoal fires, learned about putting on makeup, debated issues of blindness, used power tools, changed tires on cars, learned leadership and advocacy skills, walked the halls of Congress, and much more. Most importantly, we saved another pile of diamonds and connected them to the National Federation of the Blind.

This is what happens in each of the affiliates of the NFB on a daily basis.  We find blind people, and we help them understand that they are diamonds, and we teach them how to live full and independent lives. Your support of our work at the local, state, and national level helps us continue mining for diamonds and expanding the reach of our organization. Help spread the message of the National Federation of the Blind in your local community; you never know when you will help uncover a diamond!

Thank you,



Mark A. Riccobono, Executive Director, NFB Jernigan Institute 




Featured NFB News
Our Main Event—The Cane Event
Join us for our annual fundraiser, The Cane Event, on May 1, 2010! The evening will feature casino games, a piano bar, food, drinks, music, silent and live auctions, and a $1,000 raffle! Auction items include vintage French wine, hotel stays, Southwest tickets, sports memorabilia, and more!

Get your tickets before it’s too late! The proceeds from the event benefit our Imagination Fund, which supports programs at the NFB Jernigan Institute and in our state affiliates. Alternatively, you could become a Braille Literacy Champion, which comes with two tickets, plus you’ll support a blind child’s right to read by sponsoring a Braille book to be sent through our Braille Reading Pals Club. 

When you become a sponsor or purchase tickets, you support us as we empower the blind across the country! Thank you to our current sponsors, including Brown, Goldstein, and Levy, LLP; Morgan Stanley Smith Barney; M&T Bank; and Market Development Group. 




 


 

 


 





 


 





 





Get more information online at thecaneevent.org or call Karen Zakhnini at (410) 659-9314, ext. 2297. 
 


 

Education

Exploring the Carina Nebula by Touch. Photo credit:  NASA, ESA, and M. Mutchler (STScI/AURA) and N. Grice (You Can Do Astronomy LLC)





Exploring the Carina Nebula by Touch
The Hubble Space Telescope’s dramatic glimpse of the Carina Nebula, a gigantic cloud of dust and gas bustling with star-making activity, is a glorious feast for the eyes. Energetic young stars are sculpting a fantasy landscape of bubbles, valleys, mountains, and pillars. The National Federation of the Blind is now helping to bring this celestial fantasyland into view for blind people. Max Mutchler, a research and instrument scientist at the Space Telescope Science Institute in Baltimore, and Noreen Grice, president of You Can Do Astronomy LLC and author of several tactile astronomy books, have created a touchable image of the Carina Nebula. Located 7,500 light-years from Earth, thousands of stars are cycling through the stages of life and death in the three-million-year-old nebula. The nebula is 300 light-years wide, but Hubble captured a 50-light-year-wide view of its central region.

The 17-by-11-inch color image is embossed with lines, slashes, and other markings that correspond to objects in the giant cloud, allowing blind people to feel what they cannot see and form a picture of the nebula in their minds. “The Hubble image of the Carina Nebula is so beautiful, and it illustrates the entire life cycle of stars,” says Mutchler, who, along with Grice, unveiled the tactile Carina image in January 2010, at the American Astronomical Society meeting in Washington, D.C. The NFB has received copies of this image and will be distributing them to select schools for the blind and libraries across the country later this summer.  

For more information about this project, go to the Hubble site.  
 

Braille Initiative

Braille Readers Are Leaders

Check out the winners of the Braille Readers Are Leaders Contest!  We had winners from twenty-two states between the K-12 and adult contests this year.  Was your state represented? If not, start getting people excited about reading Braille now so when it’s time for the contest next year they are ready to read!

Onkyo Braille Essay Contest submission deadline

The NFB administers the Onkyo Braille Essay Contest on behalf of the North America-Caribbean Region of the World Blind Union. Essays by contest participants, in English or their native language, must be completely original in nature and written in Braille. Entries of no fewer than 800 and no more than 1,000 words in length and submitted by April 30, 2010, are eligible for prizes ranging from $500-$2,000.  

If you’d like to help support the Braille literacy efforts of the NFB Jernigan Institute, please consider making a matching gift to the Braille Readers are Leaders Campaign.
 

Advocacy

The NFB administers the Onkyo Braille Essay Contest on behalf of the North America-Caribbean Region of the World Blind Union. Essays by contest participants, in English or their native language, must be completely original in nature and written in Braille. Entries of no fewer than 800 and no more than 1,000 words in length and submitted by April 30, 2010, are eligible for prizes ranging from $500-$2,000.  

If you’d like to help support the Braille literacy efforts of the NFB Jernigan Institute, please consider making a matching gift to the Braille Readers are Leaders Campaign.
 

Advocacy

2010 Census Alert
You may have received a form in the mail from the U.S. Census Bureau in late March.  All Americans are required to provide Census data under federal law—anyone over 18 years old who refuses or willfully neglects to complete the questionnaire or answer questions posed by Census employees may be fined up to $5,000.  

The information obtained through the Census may be used for legislative redistricting and the allocation of nearly $400 billion in governmental funding to public projects such as schools, road and infrastructure construction, hospital and health care services, rehabilitation programs, and disaster preparedness projects.  

As equal, contributing members of society, it is crucial that the nation’s blind are counted.  Every Federationist should take advantage of one of the alternate methods for completing the 2010 Census as quickly as possible:  

 By phone or at home: Call the Census toll-free help line at 1-866-872-6868 and talk with a representative or schedule a home visit by a Census worker.  


In person and as a group: Individuals can visit Census Questionnaire Centers in person, or chapters and affiliates can request that a Census Partnership Specialist conduct a Census workshop and provide survey completion assistance for your group.  




 Straight Talk About Vision Loss 

A new video has been added in the Straight Talk About Vision Loss Web-based video series.  In Straight Talk About Vision Loss Episode 30, NFBJI’s executive director talks with Ed Morman, director of the Jacobus tenBroek Research Library on Blindness, about access to books. 
 

Product and Access Technology Talk

A new video has been added in the Straight Talk About Vision Loss Web-based video series.  In Straight Talk About Vision Loss Episode 30, NFBJI’s executive director talks with Ed Morman, director of the Jacobus tenBroek Research Library on Blindness, about access to books. 
 

Product and Access Technology Talk


The Access Technology team has been sharing their experiences and news from the CSUN conference in San Diego—check the Access Technology Blog for interviews and impressions.

For the National Convention in Dallas, the team has added a session to the Technology day (July 3rd) line-up—a discussion about accessibility on the eBay site.  The NFB Access Technology team’s convention session on Apple products is now fully booked.  No registration is required for any of the other sessions.  

In other news, the team has been busy updating and revising the Technology Resource List, our listing of nonvisual access technology available in the United States, and we expect to release that in the next few weeks.


 

The Access Technology team has been sharing their experiences and news from the CSUN conference in San Diego—check the Access Technology Blog for interviews and impressions.

For the National Convention in Dallas, the team has added a session to the Technology day (July 3rd) line-up—a discussion about accessibility on the eBay site.  The NFB Access Technology team’s convention session on Apple products is now fully booked.  No registration is required for any of the other sessions.  

In other news, the team has been busy updating and revising the Technology Resource List, our listing of nonvisual access technology available in the United States, and we expect to release that in the next few weeks.


 


>From the tenBroek Library






If you’ve been reading the last few issues of the Braille Monitor closely, you may have noticed an item that’s beginning to appear regularly. Your tenBroek Library staff is grateful to Braille Monitor editor Dan Frye for the opportunity to feature an interesting book in our collection as we have occasion to prepare a short book note. In case you’ve missed them, here are the ones that have appeared so far—as well as a full-fledged book review that Dan’s predecessor, Barbara Pierce, commissioned last fall:
~April’s selection was about an eccentric blind composer: Moondog: Viking of Sixth Avenue by Robert Scotto;
~In March we presented the oldest book in the library’s collection: Poems by Robert Blacklock;
~Our second oldest book, this one in French, was featured in February: Essai sur L’Instruction des Aveugles by Sébastien Guillié; 
~January’s book note was about a nineteenth-century novel: Poor Miss Finch by Wilkie Collins; and
~The series started out in December with a delightful memoir: Going Blind by Mara Faulkner.

The commissioned review, of The Ugly Laws by Susan Schweiker, appeared in the November issue.

And just think of it, you have only a short time to wait for the next featured book, which will be Drawing & the Blind: Pictures to Touch by John M. Kennedy. Look for it in the May Braille Monitor!
 


Independence Market


Independence Market







The NFB Independence Market offers a variety of products and resources of interest to blind people living with diabetes.  
Several devices enable blind diabetics to manage their diabetes needs independently.  The Count-A-Dose, a device used to fill a syringe with insulin without the aid of vision, has not been available for over two years.  Diagnostic Devices Inc. has brought this product back to market, and it is now available for purchase from the Independence Market.  The Prodigy Count-A-Dose is designed to give tactile and auditory feedback while one is filling a syringe.  We also carry the Prodigy Voice, produced by Diagnostic Devices, a talking glucose meter that allows the user to test his or her blood sugar independently.  

The following resources can be ordered from the Independence Market as well:  

Bridging the Gap—Living With Blindness and Diabetes.  Focusing on nonvisual methods of managing diabetes, this volume has been prepared to answer common questions from blind diabetics. The book includes a collection of some of the best articles from the Voice of the Diabetic and a useful resource section.  Bridging the Gap can be ordered in large print or MP3 audio CD free of charge.  The text is now also available on our Web site.  

Choose Your Foods: Exchange Lists for Diabetes (2008).  This booklet, produced and distributed by the American Dietetic Association and the American Diabetes Association, can be used to learn about healthy eating, the first step in managing diabetes. The information about carbohydrates, proteins, and fat in various food groups will assist with meal planning.  Choose Your Foods is available for purchase in either Braille or MP3 Audio CD.  

For more information, please e-mail the Independence Market staff or call 410-659-9314, extension 2216.  

  



Parent Outreach






Future Reflections is a magazine for parents and educators of blind children published in partnership with the National Organization of Parents of Blind Children (NOPBC).   To whet your appetite for the 2010 National Convention in Dallas, the winter Future Reflections issue, Volume 29, Number 1, contains items about the 2009 National Convention.  Longtime Future Reflections readers will enjoy the account of the surprise 2009 Jacobus tenBroek Award  presentation to Barbara Cheadle (who edited Future Reflections from its beginning and served as president of the NOPBC for twenty-five years) and her husband, John.  Other articles include “The National Federation of the Blind Scholarship Class of 2009” (the value of cash and other prize winnings for these thirty students exceeded $200,000!) and “Why Do You Want to Make That Child Blind?,” a reprint of a plenary session address by current NOPBC president, Carol Castellano.  

Coming soon—the spring 2010 issue of Future Reflections, a special issue on blind children with additional disabilities.  Watch for it on the Future Reflections Web page or hear about it in this space. 

  

Spotlight on the Imagination Fund 


Spotlight on the Imagination Fund 







In addition to supporting the innovative programs of the National Federation of the Blind Jernigan Institute, the Imagination Fund provides grants to NFB state affiliates and local chapters to provide information and promote programs that encourage and educate the blind.

In 2009, the Texas Parents of Blind Children (TPOBC) applied for and was awarded an Imagination Fund grant to create a “Saturday School” designed to provide supplementary support in academics and blindness skills to blind school-age children. This pioneering program meets one Saturday each month and teaches and reinforces blindness skills (such as Braille use and cane travel) in a fun, social atmosphere.

All too frequently, the capacities of blind children are underestimated, and blind children do not receive the tools and encouragement needed to pursue their dreams. To counterbalance, the TPOBC Saturday School promotes independence and instills self-confidence with activities designed to be educational and fun.

“What We Did Last Summer” describes a Saturday School activity that allowed blind children to learn about plant life and the coastal ecosystem while enjoying a day by the ocean. The children gained new skills and benefited from positive social interaction with their peers.
 

NFB Calendar
It’s time to prepare for the 2010 National Convention:   

In addition to supporting the innovative programs of the National Federation of the Blind Jernigan Institute, the Imagination Fund provides grants to NFB state affiliates and local chapters to provide information and promote programs that encourage and educate the blind.

In 2009, the Texas Parents of Blind Children (TPOBC) applied for and was awarded an Imagination Fund grant to create a “Saturday School” designed to provide supplementary support in academics and blindness skills to blind school-age children. This pioneering program meets one Saturday each month and teaches and reinforces blindness skills (such as Braille use and cane travel) in a fun, social atmosphere.

All too frequently, the capacities of blind children are underestimated, and blind children do not receive the tools and encouragement needed to pursue their dreams. To counterbalance, the TPOBC Saturday School promotes independence and instills self-confidence with activities designed to be educational and fun.

“What We Did Last Summer” describes a Saturday School activity that allowed blind children to learn about plant life and the coastal ecosystem while enjoying a day by the ocean. The children gained new skills and benefited from positive social interaction with their peers.
 

NFB Calendar
It’s time to prepare for the 2010 National Convention:   



Make room reservations for the 2010 National Convention by writing directly to the Hilton Anatole Hotel, 2201 Stemmons Freeway, Dallas, Texas 75207, or calling (214) 761-7500.  



Avoid the lines and save money when you pre-register with the NFB.  With online conference registration by May 31st, the pre-registration fee for convention is $15 ($20 on-site), the cost of a banquet ticket is $40 ($45 on-site), and the cost of the BBQ tickets is $40 ($45 on-site). 


If you are interested in becoming an exhibitor, complete an online application on the Exhibitor Information page. 


Show your support of the blind across the country by becoming a convention sponsor! For more information, please e-mail Karen Zakhnini or call (410) 659-9314, ext. 2297.







Register as an Imaginator in the Race for Independence, then achieve your fundraising goal. This will earn you the opportunity to visit the exclusive showroom for the Blind Driver Challenge vehicle in the Hilton Anatole hotel, and you can even compete for the right to serve as a beta tester during the 2010 National Convention of some of the technology being used in this prototype automobile. 

See you in Dallas!


April 30, 2010  Deadline for Onkyo Braille Essay Contest, administered by the NFB for the North America-Caribbean Region of the World Blind Union. 

May 1, 2010  The Cane Event, National Federation of the Blind Jernigan Institute. 
Our annual fundraiser features casino games, live entertainment, heavy hors d’oeuvres, drinks, dancing, and more!  The proceeds from the evening benefit our Imagination Fund, supporting programs at the NFB Jernigan Institute and in our state affiliates.  For more information, tickets, or to become a sponsor of The Cane Event, e-mail Karen Zakhnini or call (410) 659-9314, ext. 2297.   

May 31, 2010  Deadline to pre-register online for the 2010 NFB National Convention, Hilton Anatole Hotel, Dallas, Texas.

June 10-12, 2010  Research in the Rockies international seminar devoted to Braille reading and writing, Denver, Colorado.  For more information, please contact Dr. Judith Chwalow, NFB Jernigan Institute Director of Research.

July 3-8, 2010  NFB National Convention, Hilton Anatole Hotel, Dallas, Texas. 
The annual meeting of the NFB and the largest gathering of the blind in the country, drawing approximately three thousand blind people from all across the United States.   

July 28-August 1 and August 4-8, 2010   2010 NFB Junior Science Academy, A STEM program for blind children in grades 3-6 offered by the NFBJI.  See a video about the 2009 NFB Youth Slam science academy for high school students.  

Coming Summer 2011—NFB National Convention in Orlando, Florida!


Citation

Graphic: ND 2010 honorary degree winners. Credit: Sofia Iturbe, Observer





Honorary ND degree recipients announced
Notre Dame will award eight honorary degrees at this year’s Commencement in addition to the honorary degree it will give Commencement speaker Brian Williams, the University announced Tuesday.

Williams, anchor of NBC Nightly News, will receive an honorary doctor of laws degree.  The additional recipients come from a variety of backgrounds, such as education, engineering, law, philanthropy and the Church. . . . 

Marc Maurer, a 1974 Notre Dame alumnus, will receive a doctor of laws degree. Maurer, who was blinded by an overexposure to oxygen after birth, now serves as president of the National Federation of the Blind (NFB). Under his leadership, NFB has expanded its headquarters and accelerated development of innovative education, technology, products and services to facilitate the independence of blind people.


    —"Honorary ND Degree Recipients Announced," Sarah Mervosh, News Editor, The Observer, The Independent Newspaper Serving Notre Dame and Saint Mary’s, March 31, 2010  


Back to Top 

Thank you for reading the NFB Jernigan Institute’s Imagineering Our Future.

 




 
 




  
Support the Jernigan Institute through the Imagination Fund

















Interesting links: 
Archive of Straight Talk about Vision Loss videos


National Center for Blind Youth in Science


Access Technology Tips




 










Blogs:
Access Technology


Voice of the Nation’s Blind







 











Publication archives: 
Voice of the Diabetic


Future Reflections


Braille Monitor
 






 




 
 
















































































Visit us at nfb.org


 

 


Jernigan Institute, National Federation of the Blind
200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place, Baltimore, MD 21230
(410) 659-9314      Fax (410) 659-5129      E-mail JerniganInstitute at nfb.org
Visit us at www.nfb.org


 


 

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