[nabs-l] The History of the NABS.doc

[Jennifer Applegate]

History of the NABS                                                         

 

History of the National Association of Blind Students 

By Michael Baillif

Editor's Note: The following speech was delivered by Michael Baillif at the 

annual meeting of the National Association of Blind Students held as part of
the 

1998 National Convention of the National Federation of the Blind. Michael 

Baillif was President of NABS from 1987 - 1991.

In a letter to a friend, John Lord Acton cautioned, "A word of advice to
people 

thinking about writing history-don't!" Henry Ford's view of the subject was,


"History is more or less bunk!"

With all due respect to Henry Ford, however, and mindful of Lord Acton's 

admonition, I will take my chances and address the history of the National 

Association of Blind Students. Before beginning that discussion, though, let
me 

say that I am far more interested in the history that those of you in the
room 

tonight will make, than about that which has come before. Toward this end, I


would like to put the upcoming historical discussion in context by telling
an 

updated and condensed version of a story that I told seven years ago in my
last 

speech as president of NABS. I think this story is, if anything, more
relevant 

and more important to NABS today than it was then. It goes like this.

Once long ago, there was a commune located high up in the mountains. In its 

golden days, it had been busy and prosperous. Now, however, it was stagnant
and 

withering away.

One day, the head of the commune called in his top advisor, and said, "We've
got 

to do something. This place is falling apart. No one is joining up, and the
work 

is not getting done. We're basically going to Hell in a hand basket. It's
those 

Generation X kids. They don't believe in anything. They don't have any 

commitment. They don't want to be part of anything. What do we do?

The advisor pondered the problem for a moment and replied, "I think I might
have 

an idea. Let me see what I can do."

A few days later, as the advisor was strolling in the vineyard, she looked
up 

into the sky and shouted, "Hallelujah!" When asked what she had seen, all
the 

advisor would say was, "a vision, a vision. The chosen one is either among
us 

now, or will be very soon."

The reports of the advisor's strange prophesy went far and wide over the 

countryside. People said, "the chosen one, the chosen one is there at that 

commune." Soon, sometimes one by one, sometimes in groups, people started 

appearing at the commune doors, seeking to join. Even some of the skeptical 

Generation X kids began coming around.

Another more subtle change occurred as well. People at the commune, both new
and 

old, started looking at themselves in a new light and began treating others 

differently. A person would think, "is he the chosen one, or could it be
her, 

or, good heavens, could it be me?" People looked at each other and at
themselves 

and saw not only the good that currently existed, but also the potential for


greatness that each person possessed. They took new pride in their duties
and 

found a new joy in the commune.

To this day, the commune remains prosperous. Interestingly enough, though,
the 

chosen one has not yet arrived, or perhaps the chosen one is there, but has 

decided to remain incognito. Only the advisor knows, and she is not talking.

I believe that you, and the person you're sitting next to, may be one of the


chosen ones within our own organization. Within this group here tonight are
the 

current and future leaders of NABS, and in large part, the future of the 

National Federation of the Blind. Given this perspective, here is a
thumbnail 

sketch of the history of NABS, which will provide the context for the work,
the 

challenges, and the opportunities that await you as the chosen ones.

The National Federation of the Blind Student Division, as it was then known,
was 

organized in 1967, by a group of students so few in number that they could
meet 

in a single hotel room. It was the first of our national divisions to be
formed 

and was conceptualized very much as a Young Republicans or a Young Democrats


type of entity.

Jim Gashel was elected as the first president and served until 1971. Dr.
Maurer 

then took over and was the only three term president the division has had, 

serving until 1977. Peggy Elliot then succeeded Dr. Maurer.

The purpose behind the founding of the student division was two-fold. (1) To


help recruit students into the larger organization, and (2) to help give 

students who might not otherwise have the opportunity, the chance to
experience 

leadership positions within the organization. Judging by the division's
early 

leaders, this latter goal was achieved very quickly.

In the early years of the student division, it undertook three principle 

activities that in many ways were representative of the focus that the
division 

has maintained ever since. First, it sought to help blind students deal with
the 

problems caused by paternalistic disabled student service offices. Second,
the 

division published a student handbook which functioned as both a resource
guide 

and how-to manual for blind students at all educational levels. And third,
some 

members of the division went up to Canada and helped them develop an 

organization of Canadian blind students. A few years later, the division
dove 

into a fourth issue, that being the test administration and validation
policies 

of those entities administering gateway tests, such as the SAT and the LSAT.

Over the years, the student division has successfully addressed many of the 

subjects to which it has turned. Other battles have come and gone of their
own 

accord and still other issues plague us to this day. Nevertheless, the
student 

division has remained true to its essential mission: to train leaders and to


help the organization grow.

One event, the significance of which should not be over-looked in this
process, 

was the implementation in 1984 of the scholarship program as it now exists.
When 

I became president in 1987, four of the five members of the student board
had 

been scholarship winners. By 1989, all seven of us had come through the 

scholarship program. 

During this period, that being the later 1980s and early to mid-1990s, the 

student division, which by now had become NABS, added a strong outreach 

component. Many social events such as parties and the Monte Carlo night were


held during convention. Also, substantial emphasis was placed on organizing 

student chapters in state affiliates. At one point, student chapters existed
in 

almost half of the affiliates around the country. Thus, up through the 

mid-1990s, NABS progressed, sometimes more quickly and sometimes more slowly
in 

the means by which it helped develop leadership, helped advocate for the
rights 

of blind students, and helped reach out to blind students, both in providing


real life advise as to how to get things done, and in providing a social
context 

that would bring blind students into the larger organization.

In a nutshell, this is the history of NABS through the mid- 1990s. The
history 

of the late 1990s and beyond will be told in the future and will be
determined 

by you, the chosen ones.

In the National Federation of the Blind, we desperately need a vital and 

energetic student division. We need students to go off and have raucous
parties 

and do things that vaguely scandalize the rest of the organization. We need 

students to debate issues and to ask the questions that challenge us all and


keep us from growing complacent. And we need students to be reaching out to 

other students in the way that only you can.

It is up to you to become leaders in the division and to ensure that it
fulfills 

its role. Why should you do this? Because you have a unique opportunity to
give 

to, and to receive from, the National Federation of the Blind.

Why do you think I am here this evening instead of in the bar, which I do
not 

leave lightly. First, because I might say something useful. Granted, it's 

unlikely, but if I talk long enough, you never know, it could happen.
Second, 

because I need and deeply value the reinvigoration I draw from this group.
It 

stays with me throughout the convention and I carry it back with me for
strength 

when I am alone in the day-to-day world. And third, because some of my best 

friends are right here.

This is the opportunity that you are offered, to give and to receive and to 

develop relationships that will last a lifetime. Those of you who have 

leadership in this division, exercise it. Those of you who don't seek it out
and 

take it. Take the leadership of this division and make things happen. Take
the 

leadership of this division and become the chosen ones. Take the leadership
of 

this division and write a history of which you and this organization can be 

proud.

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