[nabs-l] Filing discrimination complaint re NIU TVI program with US Department of Education

[Ashley Bramlett]

Zach,

So what is your new major? Since you only have two semesters left, I can see 
why you chose to stay at this school.
I think you will do  fine in grad school. Not everyone has an education 
degree that goes to study to be a teacher of blind and vision impaired 
students.
I'm glad you tried to study it and plan to pursue being a teacher. We need 
more of them.

As for filing a complaint, you probably could do some good there. If you 
file a complaint, at least they will investigate the school on your behalf. 
As for NFB representation, that would be a question for Valerie at the 
national office.

Not all programs to teach teachers of blind and vision impaired students 
discriminate. I'm wondering what kept you at NIU  so long with this 
situation. You could have gone to another school to study either being a 
teacher of the visually impaired or someplace to get a general teaching 
degree.

Good luck with whatever you decide to do.

Ashley
-----Original Message----- 
From: Zachary N. GriegoDreicer via NABS-L
Sent: Tuesday, January 17, 2017 1:22 AM
To: iabs-talk at nfbnet.org ; il-talk at nfbnet.org ; nabs-l at nfbnet.org
Cc: Zachary N. GriegoDreicer
Subject: [nabs-l] Filing discrimination complaint re NIU TVI program with US 
Department of Education

Hi all,
   Happy new year. I flew all day to Chicago's O'Hare airport the other day 
from home and was starting to question why I was even coming back to 
Illinois for another semester after the appaling grade I got in classes I 
mentioned as being challenging and unpassable due to facing discrimination 
against all blind students last semester (fall 2016) to you in an earlier 
email. I had a good long time to think about this as I got further and 
further away from home, having the question of my voc rehab counsellor and 
many others of why I didn't transfer to somewhere back home if I'm not going 
to graduate with what I want to think about, and thought that my best course 
of action was to just complete the major I switched to after my email to you 
all last year was sent, especially considering that I can graduate with 
vocational rehab services undergrad major at the end of the 2017 fall 
semester. I'm frankly not satisfied with this, because this was planned for 
down the road, I could accomplish this major at a school much nearer home in 
an undergraduate path, and I came thousands miles to do the TVI program and 
am now at this point not even going to graduate with an education 
credencial. One of my friends suggested the other day that I am within my 
right to file a complaint to the department of education because a programa 
for TVIS teachers of visually impaired should most definitelya be 
accessible. I did file a complaint locally with the school as you guys 
suggested, but I am highly unsatisfied with how slowly it's progressing and 
am also highly disappointed in my current situation of being steered off a 
path that I really wanted to pursue. Nobody else around here has complained 
or is doing anything about it so I am going to and nobody can now disuade 
me. I'm not in Illinois just for any program and this is really upsetting 
that I'm having to do this and that other blind students attending the same 
program in hopes of the same degree just ran off into the distance and said 
nothing of it. I'd much rather this not become a legal issue so my friend 
said the department of ed route will do it and would be much less likely to 
result in lawyers getting involved. I'm also doing this to try and help, NOT 
to do a lawsuit. Once the complaint has been received by the department of 
ed will someone (or a group of people) in NFB be able to please provide 
representation to guide the school and/or department of ed to make the 
program accessible? I have hope of returning to this program is something is 
done about it before December which is my currently scheduled graduation 
date. Thanks.

Sent from my BrailleNote Touch
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