[nabs-l] Preparing For The First Day Of School

Sun Aug 23 05:00:15 UTC 2015

Hi,

Switching majors isn't a problem; I have a roommate who is now on her
third major because it took her a while to find the one she loved, but
finally she's in the right place.  She came in as music ed, switched
to early childhood ed because she thought she just didn't like
teaching music, then discovered after the first semester of sophomore
year that teaching was the problem.  She switched to pre-med the
following semester and has been much happier ever since.  Don't be
afraid to change if you feel you want to.

I have found the sooner you contact your professors about books and
syllabi the better off you are.  Also, I like to make the offer to
meet with each professor to discuss my accommodations before taking
their classes.  This has been especially helpful in math and science
courses for me, and it also helps put the professor at ease because
they see accommodations aren't a big deal.  Sometimes those meetings
are great for brainstorming and the professor comes up with a great
reasonable accommodation on their own (E.G, my anatomy professor came
up with the idea to let me borrow her 3D models in our meeting last
March).  Then you have professors who just want to check all their Ts
are crossed, and those meetings are also great for establishing a
good, working relationship before class beigins.  Not all professors
will want a meeting, and some will prefer the phone over in-person,
but definitely make the offer to meet with them in some way if you
can.

I also like to go through my schedule a day or two before classes
begin so I learn where my new rooms are.  I used to do this with my
O&M instructor, but have not done so since early on in college as I
know my campus well enough now to figure out things on my own or by
asking directions.  You may find either approach helpful, or might
change between one or the other depending on how comfortable you feel
with the areas you need to frequent on campus before each semester.

I hope this helps,

On 8/22/15, justin williams via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> I had four undergrad majors; three of them I knew about, and one of them I
> didn't. Not  even joking.  I switched classes whithout telling my advisor
> when I was leaving a nmajor. She dropped me back into the journalism major
> I
> started with until I was able to get to Psychology. -----Original
> Message-----
> From: nabs-l [mailto:nabs-l-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Kayla James
> via
> nabs-l
> Sent: Saturday, August 22, 2015 7:13 PM
> To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
> Cc: Kayla James <christgirl813 at gmail.com>
> Subject: Re: [nabs-l] Preparing For The First Day Of School
>
> I have been slowly packing my schoolbag for my first day on Monday at my
> local community college. I have also been freaking out because I don't know
> if I made the right degree choice, but decided if I hate my classes I'm
> taking in the fall now, I can always change in the spring semester. I have
> to schedule my bus tomorrow; oh, the joys of Paratransit. I hope I have
> everything ready. I also have to program my schedule into my phone. But,
> all
> in all, I am trying to get past the nerves and get excited, but lately, I
> guess I've been on autopilot.
> Sort of in the neutral zone. But I'm sure by tomorrow night, I'll be a
> jumpy, nervous, excited wreck by then. Yay! First day of school.
> BTW: this is the first school I've ever gone to where I am the only blind
> student on campus. All my Christian NFB brother and sisters, pray for me,
> please.
>
> On 8/22/15, Suzanne Germano via nabs-l <nabs-l at nfbnet.org> wrote:
>> I prepare by contacting all my professors and letting them know about
>> my vision. I let them know I will be using a cctv to see the board. I
>> equest copies of powerpoints. I let them know if we are doing in class
>> quizzes that i will need them in large print and i provide a size
>> sample. I contact classroom management to run electrical to my seat
>> because the magnilink cctv kills my macbook battery before class is
>> over. I go prior to classes start to locate my rooms and select which
>> seat is best for using my cctv. I find out the texts and provide that
>> info to disabled resource center so they can scan to pdf or in some cases
> print out large print.
>>
>> On Saturday, August 22, 2015, Roanna Bacchus via nabs-l
>> <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
>> wrote:
>>
>>> Dear Students,
>>>
>>> I wanted to know how you prepare for your first day of school.  The
>>> UCF student body begin classes in two days.  Tomorrow I will go to
>>> the campus and find the building where my class is located.  I have
>>> already received my syllabi for my classes.  Hope to hear from you soon.
>>>
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>
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-- 
Kaiti Shelton
University of Dayton-Music Therapy
President, Ohio Association of Blind Students 2013-Present
Secretary, The National Federation of the Blind Performing Arts
Division 2015-2016

"You can live the life you want; blindness is not what holds you back!"