[Labs] Conference Call Minutes

Mon Jan 11 02:16:14 UTC 2016

Fellow Federationists:

Here are the minutes from tonight's conference call, attached and pasted here:

Louisiana Association of Blind Students
January 2016 Meeting
7:00 pm via Conference Call

Justin Salisbury
Yadiel Sotomayor
Bre Brown
Pam Allen
Sophie Trist
Stephanie Martin
Michell Gip
Chelsea Gwen Page
Syed Rizvi
Emily Hope Miller
Christie
Morgan

Call to Order: 7:04 pm
Stephanie discussed the NFB BELL Academy. Krystal Guillory is setting up a donation list so that people can donate to help support the program.
Stephanie introduced Pam Allen, our featured speaker.
The BELL Academy will be held on the second week in June of 2016
If you are interested in volunteering, contact Pam, Krystal or Stephanie
Pam asked everyone to challenge themselves to bring one new person to the next call and the state convention.
If you will be in college or graduate school in the fall, you are eligible for the NFB scholarship programs.
NFBL Deadline: March 25
NFB Deadline: March 31
4 state scholarships
30 national scholarships
Applications can be found online at nfb.org and nfbla.org.
Pam challenged all of us to apply. The only way to be sure that you will not win is to not apply. Winners get much more than money: mentors, resources, extra gifts.
The top winner at the national level gets a chance to address the Federation and funds to support future national event attendance.
Be sure to interview with the state president from your home state if you want to apply for a national scholarship.
Don't put off your application process! It takes time to compile your application.
If you are a student at LCB or Louisiana Tech, your expenses will be paid as a part of your program. If not, there will still be resources such as help paying for and organizing transportation to the convention.
Pam would love to have people's help with getting involved at the convention and doing the little things that make the convention go.
Pre-register for the convention at nfbla.org
We do not yet know who the national representative is; regardless of who it is, we can expect a great person and a great leader to join us
Pam is in the midst of working on the agenda. If you have ideas for any presentations, please get them to her.

National convention will be in Orlando at the Rosen Shingle Creek in July. It starts on Thursday, June 30 and ends on Tuesday, July 5.
Louisiana is one of the affiliate that is on the host committee to run the convention. Pam will be calling on all of us to help with various things
Louisiana, Utah, Oklahoma, and New Hampshire are on the host committee
Louisiana will be helping out with youth track activities
Louisiana will offer bus transportation for $50 to get to and from the convention.
Cost of State Convention: Preregister $50, Regular Registration $60
Held at the Crown Plaza Baton Rouge
If you have questions about transportation, call Susan Clark at LCB, who is coordinating transportation.
People of all ages are welcome; if anyone is younger than 18, we will need to work out certain details; contact Pam if this is the case for you or a friend
Pam covered the issues for Washington Seminar:

1.       Transitioning to Integrated and Meaningful Employment (TIME) Act

2.       AIM HE

3.       Equal Access to Air Travel for Service-Disabled Veterans

4.       Marrakesh Treaty Ratification in the US Senate
Syed spoke about the campaign collecting letters about inaccessible technology in higher education. We need your letters!
We are also planning another meeting with Dr. Les Guice, President of Louisiana Tech University, for a letter of institutional support
Ten Tips from Bre Brown on Winning a National Scholarship

1.       Get a Sighted Person to Look Over Your Application Before You Turn It In!

2.       Turn in your application before the deadline in case anything comes up

3.       Essay Prompt Limit: 700 words. Write an initial essay and then tweak it.

4.       Choose recommenders who know you, who you trust

5.       Give recommenders sufficient time to submit your letter

6.       Don't wait until the deadline to talk to your state president about her letter

7.       Be sure to read through everything on the application to fill out everything

8.       Don't be afraid to reach out to scholarship chair Patti Chang

9.       When you get the confirmation email, check to see that everything on the submission list was submitted

10.   Not everyone wins on the first try, so apply again!
Bre added that it is so important to apply for state scholarships in addition to national scholarships
There will be a NABS Winter Seminar at Washington Seminar. There will be a pre-registration open for that soon.
There is a funding program bringing 30 students to Washington Seminar
There will be a NABS fundraiser with an auction at Washington Seminar
National Convention will include a NABS meeting, Monte Carlo Night fundraiser
Bre chairs the communications committee for NABS. The committee publishes a blog each month, featuring different students, what they do
Contact Bre at bbrown at nfbtx.org<mailto:bbrown at nfbtx.org>
LCB's summer programs are funded through Louisiana Rehabilitation Services. Anyone interested can contact the Louisiana Center for the Blind.
Meeting Adjourned at 8:04 pm

Respectfully submitted,

Justin Salisbury
Secretary/Treasurer

Justin Salisbury, NOMC
Graduate Student
Professional Development and Research Institute on Blindness
Louisiana Tech University
Email: President at Alumni.ECU.edu<mailto:President at Alumni.ECU.edu>
LinkedIn: https://www.linkedin.com/profile/view?id=325734822
Twitter: @SalisburyJustin

"None can be free as long as any are enslaved"

Dr. Kenneth Jernigan

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