[nabs-l] Orientation and Mobility Training to college campus

Mon May 5 22:51:51 UTC 2014

Hi Winona,

Like Minh, I think I started learning the campus about a month before
I was supposed to arrive.  My situation was a little different, since
I moved in a week early for marching band camp, but I think my mom
just pointing out landmarks everytime we have gone up there for tours,
visits with the disabilities services, and music auditions helped me a
lot.  So knowledge of that stuff from past visits will only help you.
For example, I knew from my mom telling me on repeated visits that the
engineering building was basically the center of campus, and it was
across from the humanities plaza, with the music building set back
between the two buildings.  On the far side, away from the music
building, was a parking lot which I could walk through to get to my
dorm, and other student residence buildings.  Though I wasn't familiar
with the spatial aspects of this area any more, I was able to recall
what my mom had told me and confirm my hunches with the instructor.
This helped us cover more ground in a short amount of time, I believe.

I worked with my instructor for 2 to 4 hours 4 or 5 weeks in a row.
Each time I grew more familiar with the routes I would need to get to
my academic buildings, and we even managed to find shortcuts.  I was
really lucky in that my dorm was really close to the main cafeteria on
campus, and for most of the year there is a fountain outside of it.
Using the fountain was great for getting me on the right path towards
the student union, and by the time the fountain was shut off in
November I didn't have to rely upon it any more.

One other recommendation I would have would be to get a rehab teacher
to help you as well.  I got lucky to get a guy who was a certified
orientation and mobility instructor as well as a certified rehab
teacher, so some of the time we were together at school was spent
labeling different things.  I was able to get bump dots put on the
washers so I would know where the dial needed to go, and my mailbox
got a braille label on it so I could look for my name rather than try
to read the tiny print room number.  He also made sure I was familiar
with how the microwave and air conditioning unit in my room were set
up, which was really nice because I got to see my room early.

One other thing that students typically struggle with is navigating
the cafeteria.  Often it can be pretty difficult to navigate crowds,
or know what is where in buffet situations.  I got lucky in that there
are people to serve most things to you when you order them at stations
in the cafeteria, and the cafeteria food court is basically set up
like a horseshoe; everyone goes in at one end of the horshshoe, and
circles around till they find the station they want to order from.  On
the opposite side of the horseshoe is a drink station, and then there
are 4 or so registers you can go to for payment.  The only thing that
is a bit tricky for me to work with is the salad bar, since it is
pretty rarely staffed, but typically salad bars will have the same
kinds of things in the same areas from day to day, and you can learn
them as you go.  Having access to online menues helps a lot as well.

Hope this helps, and good luck with starting college.  It's really an
exciting time!

On 5/4/14, justin williams <justin.williams2 at gmail.com> wrote:
> Make sure you do some scoping on y ou own as well; you are going to use
> different markers anth cues than your sighted counterparts; I love the word
> counterparts, but seriously, make sure you do your own exploring.
>
> -----Original Message-----
> From: nabs-l [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Darian Smith
> Sent: Sunday, May 04, 2014 11:21 PM
> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Orientation and Mobility Training to college campus
>
> Hello,
>  I am not going to repeat what's been said because those points are good
> ones in my view.
>  I would say that in addition to a   tactual map, and being willing to ask
> for directions from folks on campus, you'll  want  to think about learning
> basic  routes. To Class, to  dining  hall, to dorm room.
>  Keep  in mind how  long it generally takes you to get yourself acclimated
> to an area because some people need to go over a route three or four times
> while others can do it once or twice.
>  When I start to figure out my way around campus I take note of any
> landmarks that stand out (Thea fountain, a statue, or the Science hall, or
> the student union).
>  Getting to campus is going to be very exciting and you are going to be
> nervous.  If you have a roommate, maybe you both go and grab a bite to eat
> and explore the campus a bit.  You both are going to be new and you both
> need to scope the area out anyway.
>
>  I wish you the best,
>   Darian
> On May 4, 2014, at 6:47 PM, minh ha <minh.ha927 at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hey Winona,
>>
>> I started orientation to my college campus a month and a half in
>> advance of move in day. My O&M instructor and I met every week for
>> about four hours and just worked on the basic routes that I needed,
>> like my dorm, my classes and the dining hall. She also came during the
>> semester to work with me on stuff as they came up such as a building
>> that I needed to get to for an extracurricular activity. If it helps
>> you, ask your instructor to make a tactile map of the campus as a
>> reference. I'm a really spacial learner and with the aid of the map
>> that my instructor created for me, I was able to get myself in the
>> general area of a building, even if I've never been there before. And
>> don't be afraid to ask for help if you get lost; trust me, it's a rite
>> of passage for freshmen to get lost on campus.
>>
>> Minh
>>
>> On 5/4/14, Winona Brackett <trumpetqueenwb at gmail.com> wrote:
>>> Hi All,
>>>
>>> I will be attending Stetson University in the fall as a freshman. I
>>> have been talking with the Division of Blind Services (in Florida)
>>> about receiving orientation to the campus so I can become familiar
>>> with my new surroundings and travel independently.
>>>
>>> How long before move in day should I start orientation to campus?
>>>
>>> I am excited to go to college, but at the same time, I am worried
>>> that I will have to rely on sighted peers too much.
>>>
>>> Thanks for all the advice and suggestions  in advance.
>>>
>>> Winona
>>>
>>> trumpetqueenwb at gmail.com
>>>
>>> "Ability is what you're capable of doing. Motivation determines what you
> do.
>>> Attitude determines how well you do it." -Lou Holtz
>>>
>>> Sent from my iPhone using VoiceOver
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>>
>>
>> --
>> "All men dream, but not equally. Those who dream by night in the dusty
>> recesses of their minds, wake in the day to find that it was vanity:
>> but the dreamers of the day are dangerous men, for they may act on
>> their dreams with open eyes, to make them possible." T. E. Lawrence
>>
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-- 
Kaiti