[nabs-l] VR thoughts/what do you all think?

[Joseph Hudson]

Hello Katie, I ran into the same similar issues that you had with your VR counselor, it has to do with equipment for my computer. With now been working on this for about 6 to 8 months when we first started he asked me what kind of job I was using, I told him JS W 13th, so he said okay so when about three months ago hearsay. I have not heard, anything from him so I called him, and asked him question have you heard anything on my Dragon and Jay say. He Mcclyde with him we don't have this version of Jay say in our warehouse. He recently asked me when I'll be interested in getting just 14 I say yes and no, because I would have to upgrade my system of my windows. I wish that my counselor was still here she was the best thing around as you work really fast. And I did not clarify which date I'm talking about I'm talking about the state of Texas. If you would like you can email me off list if you have any other questions, my emails in my signature.

Vice president
of the Texas school for the blinds Zello channel , phone, 641-715-3900 extension 34315, or 588-7652.
Email, jhud7789 at yahoo.com Sent from my iPhone

On Mar 26, 2013, at 2:49 PM, Kaiti Shelton <crazy4clarinet104 at gmail.com> wrote:

> Hi all,
> 
> Okay, so I'll confess that part of the reason I'm writing this email
> is to vent about my current circumstances, but more importantly than
> that I am interested in seeing how other states or parts of the
> country run their voc rehab services.  I apologize if this email
> sounds venty, as in order to explain what I'm talking about I'll need
> to give specific examples, but I am really interested in hearing your
> thoughts on the matter based on your own experiences.
> 
> The thing that makes me the most uncomfortable with the voc rehab
> system in my state is that the councelors don't necessarily know much
> about blindness, let alone what a blind student truly needs to be
> successful.  My councelor fills her job capacity in terms of knowing
> how to do the paperwork, but my own mother has told me that when they
> chat as I'm signing papers and my mom brings up something relatively
> fundamental like a conversation about navigating campus or something,
> she'll notice that what she says goes over my councelor's head.  This
> has caused a few concerning events in terms of the authorizations that
> have been made for me.  In December for example I requested
> orientation and mobility training so I could go through my second
> semester schedule, as there were a few buildings I would need to use
> that I had not been to yet.  I got in touch with my O&M guy and we
> planned to set up a time in January.  I emailed my councelor and told
> her this, but then my O&M specialist emailed me back and asked if I
> would be on campus after the first semester ended in December, because
> that was when training was authorized.  I had to email my councelor
> and tell her that the reason for going with January was that campus
> closed the last day of finals week, and a few days prior to the start
> of the second term I would be back on campus and most of the academic
> buildings would be reopened.  Another time for this same semester I
> requested a Perkins Brailler, specifically specifying that the
> traditional braillers were much sturdier and more reliable than the
> plastic ones and justifying my request.  When I got a call from my
> vendor she first informed me that the braillers were out of stock
> until February, half way through my semester, and then asked me what
> color I wanted.  I told her that the new brailler was not what I
> thought I was getting and she got in touch with the councelor.  I
> ended up getting a traditional anyway on the grounds that although the
> new generations were out of stock, there were plenty traditionals
> available, and I needed one as I am taking math this semester.  I know
> the system isn't there to grant my request, but it bothered me that I
> justified my reasoning why for both events and that my councelor, who
> doesn't necessarily know what I need, ignored it and wrote
> authorizations which would not work.  The kicker, which really shows
> that the councelors don't know much about blindness or the equipment
> students use, is after I got off the phone with the vendor, I suddenly
> wondered if the councelor authorized braille paper to go along with
> it.  I called the vendor back and found that paper was not included in
> the authorization, so the vendor had to call the councelor back and
> get braille paper added so I could actually use the brailler.  I mean,
> to anyone who really knows the basics of blindness, ordering paper for
> the pencil-equivalent brailler seems like a no-brainer.  I'm wondering
> why if the state employs people who aren't necessarily knowledgeable
> about the consumers they serve why they don't make an effort to
> educate and inform the councelors so they can better meet their
> consumer's needs?
> 
> The other thing that bugs me is the communication problem.  I
> understand that councelors are busy, that some travel between offices,
> and that because of these things they're not always easy to get ahold
> of.  What I don't understand are a few of the communication issues
> whichh could be easily solved.  My councelor and I often play phone
> tag; once in the summer I called her during the early afternoon hours
> and when my call was returned a few days later it was before 8:00 in
> the morning before I was even out of bed.  I tried using emails
> instead, thinking that she probably has computer access more
> frequently.  Sometimes when I send her paperwork I'll also take the
> opportunity to ask for clarification.  I've found that when she does
> respond to receiving the paperwork she usually doesn't answer my
> question from the same email.  Other times, like when I sent those
> emails about the brailler and mobility authorization in December, I
> may not get a response at all.
> 
> Repetition of paperwork is another frustrating issue.  In Ohio they've
> just started making students fill out these forms once a month which
> report our major, number of credits, where we're going to school, and
> how much class was missed.  I understand the need for this, as perhaps
> there were issues when students who dropped classes or changed their
> plans didn't report to their councelors as they are supposed to, but
> if someone were to lie or withhold information from their councelor
> why would they not lie on the form as well?  And to those of us who
> are solid students who do what we're supposed to, don't skip class and
> let our councelors know about the major changes, it's just an
> inconvenience that is preaching to the choir.  We also have to do
> these interviews with a professional in our field.  I've done two so
> far, once over the summer for the pre-college interview and again last
> semester.  This semester one of my music therapy professors is trained
> in a specific type of therapy model that interests me.  The interview
> sheet we have to go by has basic questions about the salary, what the
> job outlook is like, etc.  I asked my councelor if it would be okay
> for me to come up with my own interview questions which would build
> off of what I've learned so far and that would take advantage of the
> opportunity to talk to this person about their specific training.  She
> replied and said we had to use the form every time.  To me, this seems
> really redundant.  I don't see the point in asking different people
> the same questions and coming up with very similar, if not the same
> answers; if we're going to do that, then why not just use the same
> interview each time.  I also don't see the point of doing it if
> gaining different perspectives on the field isn't an available option.
> I was talking to my mom about this, and although she reiterated that
> although the system is dumb all students have to do it, she agreed
> with me and stated that one of the systems worst flaws is that the
> expectation is so low that they don't want you to learn from the
> things you do through them, they just want the paperwork.
> 
> Seguing off of that, the last thing that bugs me, (I promise), and the
> thing that bugs my mom the most actually, is that the system does not
> allow for students to complete their paperwork independently based on
> their low expectations.  When the monthly report form was distributed
> through email it was attached as a pdf file.  As we know, pdfs aren't
> the best with screenreaders, and more importantly aren't editable.
> The state clearly intended for these forms to be printed and filled
> out with a pen or pencil, which does not align with independence as
> most blind students in the voc rehab system would not be able to do
> this without sighted assistance.  I emailed my councelor and asked if
> it would be possible to get a word copy of the document so I could
> fill it out myself.  Like the braille and O&M emails, that message did
> not get a response.  This isn't the first time I noticed it; when I
> was a sophomore in high school and just getting set up with voc rehab
> they would send print forms about job interest and searching to my
> house.  A friend and I went to our councelor (a different one from the
> one we have now), and asked if we could get text or word files instead
> of the print copies and she didn't really understand why.  We
> explained that we obviously couldn't read the files ourselves or write
> on them, but using our notetakers or laptops we could complete them if
> given an accessible copy, we even told her she could just email us the
> file as an attachment.  She really didn't know what to do about this.
> It boggles me how a program designed to train blind students to be
> competent and independent adults won't even allow them to do something
> so simple as their paperwork on their own.  Are their expectations of
> blind students really that low, and if so them giving money to college
> students who do the bulk of their work independently is hypocritical.
> (If they even know that we do most of our work independently without
> someone to hold our hand and scribe all our assignments for us).  My
> mom thinks that the system is just still stuck in the 80's or 90's
> when not many blind kids successfully completed college, as opposed to
> now when a lot of them do, but that is no excuse.  If they're that
> stuck in the past then something far worse than their low expectations
> is wrong with the system.
> 
> Sorry for the venting rant, but if any of you have thoughts or
> commentary on this or your own situations please feel free to compare
> and write about it.  I'm really interested in hearing other people's
> experiences.
> 
> Thanks,
> 
> -- 
> Kaiti
> 
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