[nagdu] FW: NFB Imagineering Our Future: March Madness
Sherrill O'Brien
sherrill.obrien at verizon.net
Sat Apr 3 02:38:40 UTC 2010
Hello all,\
I wanted to send out this Imagination Fund newsletter right away. I sure
recommend that you read it, especially the first article, a message from
Mark Riccobono. I hope it inspires you to register for our Race for
Independence, and ask folks to give a donation to such a very important
cause which is near to our hearts! Thanks for taking the time to read this.
It will help you better understand why the Imagination Fund is asking us all
to do what we can, especially for the future of blind children.
Sherrill O'Brien
Imagination Fund Committee Member
-----Original Message-----
From: Mark Riccobono [mailto:JerniganInstitute at nfb.org]
Sent: Tuesday, March 30, 2010 3:56 PM
To: sherrill.obrien at verizon.net
Subject: NFB Imagineering Our Future: March Madness
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View last month's newsletter.
Imagineering Our Future
Issue 21
March 30, 2010
In this issue:
a.. Message from the Executive Director
b.. What's New
c.. Education
d.. Braille Initiative
e.. Advocacy
f.. Straight Talk About Vision Loss
g.. Technology Talk
h.. From the Jacobus tenBroek Library
i.. Independence Market
j.. Parent Outreach
k.. Spotlight on the Imagination Fund
l.. NFB Calendar
m.. Citation
Message from the Executive Director
Dear Friends,
March Madness has a different meaning at the NFB
Jernigan Institute. Yes, around the coffee machine there's the usual
discussion of big upsets and smack talk for favorite college teams. However,
the madness here has to do with a more delicate and life changing selection
process than those sixty-five teams that are picked to play for a chance at
the big dance. March is filled with sorting through applications for
participation in upcoming educational programs like this summer's NFB Junior
Science Academy.
Why madness? We receive four times as many
applicants as we have spots for participants in our programs. We know that
every blind child, every parent of a blind child, and every teacher of blind
students would benefit from participating in our education programs. Until
we figure out a way to get enough resources to spread the programs out to
every corner of this country, we have to continue going through the madness
that is the selection process. The stakes are high as we see so many
children and families that are desperate for the hope and opportunity that
is offered in the programs of the National Federation of the Blind. A recent
letter from a mom said, "We felt like we learned more at the Beginnings and
Blueprints Conference than any other sources combined." And this spring we
are welcoming back blind students from the 2009 NFB Youth Slam for more
training in leadership and self-advocacy. The stories of how their lives
were changed because of their experience at the NFB Youth Slam and the
ongoing mentorship they are receiving from blind people in their local
community fuels our passion to do more.
We are tired of the madness. Blind people should
not have to wait or compete for hope and opportunity. That is why we
continue to expand and improve our efforts. This year's Junior Science
Academy will have two sessions instead of the one we offered two years ago.
This summer we are expanding our Braille enrichment program to three more
states (above and beyond the two original states from last year). And, we
are offering new education programs this spring and planning for new
initiatives in the next year and a half.
We need to do more. The pace is increasing, the
urgency is building, the demand for the work of the Federation is at an all
time high. We need your support in the effort. Your time, talent, and
treasure all contribute to helping us expand the resource pool to accomplish
our goals. I would ask that you look over this newsletter and find the place
where you can contribute (put your name in that bracket and let us know).
Pass this newsletter on to friends to spread the word about our work (your
college buddies will turn their heads when they learn that March Madness is
more than whether or not their team advanced). And get behind our team by
making a contribution to Team Jernigan Institute in the Race for
Independence. Your support in all of these ways makes a huge difference in
our effort to change what it means to be blind.
When you are standing around the coffee machine
talking about March Madness and tipping your hat to outstanding performances
on the court, remember the work of the National Federation of the Blind. The
teamwork and accomplishments of the members of the Federation are
outstanding, and our teamwork is helping put more blind people in a position
to compete in the big dance in more fields than ever before.
Mark A. Riccobono, Executive Director, NFB
Jernigan Institute
Featured NFB News
2010 Jacobus tenBroek Disability Law Symposium
The Jernigan Institute will host the 2010 Jacobus
tenBroek Disability Law Symposium: Equality, Difference, and the Right to
Live in the World, on April 15th and 16th. Assistant Attorney General for
Civil Rights Tom Perez and former Congressman Tony Coelho head the list of
distinguished legal scholars, practitioners, and advocates who will discuss
the concepts of equality and difference as they relate to the disabled in
employment, education, medical treatment, and access to technology. This
year, the symposium format has been expanded to incorporate workshops on
special education advocacy and litigation strategies to provide disability
rights advocates increased opportunities to collaborate and network.
In addition to founding the NFB in 1940, Dr. Jacobus
tenBroek was a constitutional law scholar who created the concept that civil
rights should apply to disabled Americans. His seminal 1966 Law Review
article "The Right to Live in the World: The Disabled in the Law of Torts"
is the foundation for the civil rights provisions of the Rehabilitation Act
of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act. The Jernigan Institute and
the Jacobus tenBroek Disability Law Symposium will provide disability rights
advocates a forum in which to continue Dr. tenBroek's work toward achieving
equal opportunity for all citizens to participate fully in the society in
which we live.
Time is short to register or get more information on
the 2010 Jacobus tenBroek Disability Law Symposium. Learn more about Jacobus
tenBroek and the Jacobus tenBroek Library online.
Bolotin Award Deadline Approaches
Individuals and organizations who are making
significant contributions to help change what it means to be blind are
encouraged to apply for the Dr. Jacob Bolotin Award presented by the
National Federation of the Blind. Nominations and letters of support should
be completed online by March 31, and winners will be notified by May 15. To
be considered, nominees must live and work in the United States. The
Federation will award $50,000 this year to recognize and support individuals
and organizations that share and live the philosophy of the National
Federation of the Blind and Dr. Bolotin. For further details, to nominate
an individual or organization, or to support a nomination that has already
been made, go to the Dr. Jacob Bolotin Award page.
Cane Event
Join us for our annual fundraiser, The Cane Event,
on May 1, 2010! The evening will feature casino games, a piano bar, food,
drinks, music, and more! The proceeds from the event benefit our Imagination
Fund, which supports programs at the NFB Jernigan Institute and in our state
affiliates. Reserve your tickets today! Alternatively, you could become a
Braille Literacy Champion, which comes with two tickets, plus you'll support
a blind child's right to read by sponsoring a Braille book to be sent
through our Braille Reading Pals Club.
When you become a sponsor or purchase tickets, you
support us as we empower the blind across the country! Thank you to our
current sponsors, including Brown, Goldstein, and Levy, LLP; Morgan Stanley
Smith Barney; and Market Development Group.
Sign up or get more information online at
thecaneevent.org or call Karen Zakhnini at (410) 659-9314, ext. 2297.
Education
2010 NFB Leadership and Advocacy in Washington DC (LAW)
Program
We received nearly 100 LAW Program applications from
interested students and are very sorry that we cannot take more
participants. Twenty-five youth from across the country have been accepted
to this new program and will be coming to the NFB Jernigan Institute next
month for an exciting week of advocacy and historical learning.
2010 NFB Junior Science Academy
This summer the NFBJI is very pleased to offer the Junior
Science Academy for the second time. The response has been overwhelming-we
received over 110 applications with only thirty spots to fill between the
two sessions. Selected applicants will be notified by April 1 of their
status.
Youth Leadership Seminars
This spring, as a way to follow up with youth who
participated in last summer's NFB Youth Slam, these participants were
invited back to attend one of four weekend leadership seminars at the NFB
Jernigan Institute. The youth will learn more about our philosophy on
blindness, they will learn how to advocate for themselves as a blind person,
they will learn the importance of good blindness skills, and they will
participate in confidence building experiences.
Increasing Your Odds for Success
This quarter's NFBJI accessible bulletin board has a
casino theme and focuses on the five elements for success outlined in the
book Freedom for the Blind: The Secret Is Empowerment. The green background
of the board and the black ribbed border mimic a poker table. The center of
the board features a two-and-a-half-foot square that protrudes from the
board two inches and is set on an angle. The number five side of the die is
face up to the viewer. Each of the tactile circles on the front of the die
feature one element for success: it is OK to be blind, mastering blindness
skills, coping with public attitudes, fitting in, and giving back. The title
of the board-Increasing Your Odds for Success-runs around the entire
perimeter of the die (in shiny red letters) starting at nine o'clock and
continuing clockwise. On either side of the die are three hands of jumbo
cards (five by seven inches) turned face down. The hands feature pictures of
successful blind people. The cards on the right side of the board (from top
to bottom) are of the NFB Training Center directors (Julie Deden, Shawn
Mayo, and Pam Allen) receiving the Jacob Bolotin Award at a national NFB
convention; Dr. Maurer, President of the NFB, sitting in a circle with
children at National Convention; and Mark Riccobono, Executive Director for
the NFB Jernigan Institute, demonstrating how to use a chain saw. The left
side of the board (from top to bottom) pictures: Mr. Omvig, author of
Freedom for the Blind and blindness advocate, giving a speech; Dr. Maurer
grilling with a group of young people; and Ronza Othman, a staff member for
the U.S. Department of Homeland Security, and Jesse Hartle, Government
Programs Specialist for the NFB, posing for a picture with then-Senator
Obama and Senator Durbin. Scattered around the hands of cards are poker
chips.
Attention Federationists: Have you or your child
participated in one of the following National Center for Blind Youth in
Science programs: Science Academy 2004, Rocket On! 2004, Science Academy
2005, Rocket On! 2005, Science Academy 2006, Rocket On! 2006, Youth Slam
2007, Jr. Science Academy 2008, or Youth Slam 2009? If so, we have a
contest for you! Show us in a creative way what science means to you now.
You can write a poem, essay, or original song lyrics, or create a piece of
tactile art. The theme of this contest is "STEM-ulating Growth in New
Fields." The top ten entries will be featured on the Accessible Bulletin
Board in the Betsy Zaborowski Conference Room at the NFB Jernigan Institute,
the blindscience.org Web portal, and in NFB publications. In addition, the
creator of the first place entry will receive a $25 gift certificate to
iTunes!
To enter this STEM-ulating contest, please visit
www.blindscience.org and follow the STEM-ulating Growth in New Fields
Contest link for the rules and to fill out an online entry form. Entries
are due no later than March 31, 2010. If you have questions, please e-mail
Natalie Shaheen at the NFB Jernigan Institute or call (410) 659-9314,
extension 2293).
Braille Initiative
2010 NFB Braille Enrichment for Literacy and Learning
(BELL) Program
On March 12-14, representatives from the five BELL sites
trained at the NFB Jernigan Institute in preparation for this summer's BELL
programs. Three new states will participate this year: Utah, Texas, and
Virginia. Maryland and Georgia, participants in the pilot project for the
NFBJI last summer, will host programs again this year. We are very pleased
with all the hard work these sites are doing to help advance the effort to
promote Braille literacy to young blind and low-vision children.
Onkyo Braille Essay Contest
The NFB administers the Onkyo Braille Essay Contest on
behalf of the North America-Caribbean Region of the World Blind Union.
Essays by contest participants, in English or their native language, must be
completely original in nature and written in Braille. Entries of no fewer
than 800 and no more than 1,000 words in length and submitted by April 30,
2010, are eligible for prizes ranging from $500-$2,000. For more
information, including how to apply, please visit the Onkyo Braille Essay
Contest Web page.
If you'd like to help support the Braille literacy efforts
of the NFB Jernigan Institute, please consider making a matching gift to the
Braille Readers are Leaders Campaign.
Advocacy
Joint Statement on Access to Books by Americans with Print
Disabilities
This month, we once again got the attention of the White
House. What made them notice us was a joint statement from major players
that are working to make books accessible to print disabled Americans. The
participating groups and their constituencies were: the Reading Rights
Coalition, representing thirty million Americans who cannot read print due
to disabilities; the Authors Guild, with a membership of eight thousand
American writers; and the Association of American Publishers, whose more
than three hundred members include most of the major commercial publishers
in the United States as well as smaller and non-profit publishers. The
statement read that "these groups agree to work together and through the
communities they represent to ensure that when the marketplace offers
alternative formats to print books, such as audio and electronic books,
print-disabled consumers can access the contents of these alternative
formats to the same extent as all other consumers."
Kareem A. Dale, special assistant to the President for
disability policy, commented in his blog post from the White House Blog, One
Step Closer to Full Access, on March 9:
Change. Finding common ground. These are hallmarks of
this Administration. And today, we move one step closer to full access to
books and materials for millions of Americans with print and other
disabilities. While much work remains to be done, the community of
stakeholders has taken a noteworthy and important step forward.
The Reading Rights Coalition, the Authors Guild, and the
Association of American Publishers have issued a joint statement stating
that "the contents of books should be as accessible to individuals with
print disabilities as they are to everyone else." They further agreed to
work together to reach this desired goal.
As a person who is blind myself and thoroughly enjoys
reading, I applaud these groups and organizations for coming together to
bring about needed change. We look forward to continuing to work with all
Americans to support access to materials for persons with print
disabilities.
Straight Talk About Vision Loss
A new video has been added in the Straight Talk About
Vision Loss Web-based video series. In Episode 29, NFBJI's executive
director talks with Parnell Diggs, chairman of the NFB's Imagination Fund,
which provides support for the outreach efforts of local Federation chapters
throughout the United States as well as the research, technology, and
education programs and initiatives of the NFB Jernigan Institute. Parnell
explains the Race for Independence-our imagination is putting us in the
driver's seat as we speed toward our goal of first-class citizenship in
society at an ever-increasing pace! This is no traditional race-it's more
about empowering the blind to do something most believe is impossible.
Product and Access Technology Talk
The Access Technology team has just returned from the
biggest Access Technology conference in the United States, the 25th Annual
International Technology and Persons with Disabilities Conference, hosted by
the California State University Northridge (CSUN) in San Diego. As
previously mentioned, the team hosted a record number of sessions-one
pre-conference workshop dealing with eBook accessibility and further
sessions on Cell Phones and Mobile Devices and Optical Character
Recognition: Flatbed Scanner vs. Camera-Based Solutions.
NFB and Blackboard jointly presented Nonvisual
Accessibility in Blackboard Learn. The NFB commends Blackboard's
investments that will provide blind students with an improved and more
accessible experience. The online education platform's improvements remove
a number of accessibility barriers. The NFB has awarded its gold level
Nonvisual Accessibility Web Certification seal to the company for enhanced
access in Blackboard Learn Release 9.1.
Readers of the Access Technology Blog can expect
interviews, reports, and updates on new and/or exciting products from CSUN.
Meanwhile, an article by Wes Majerus of our access technology team appeared
in the March 2010 Braille Monitor: "Leadership in Nonvisual Accessibility
in Consumer Electronics: A Report on the 2010 Consumer Electronics Show."
From the tenBroek Library
More BIG NEWS from the only research library on blindness
owned and controlled by the organized blind!! Last month we announced the
public launch of our online catalog.
Now we are pleased and proud to announce that we have
completed basic processing of the Jacobus tenBroek papers, and that a
series-level finding aid is available online. If you don't know what "basic
processing" means, and you're wondering what a "finding aid" is, you cannot
do better than to follow the link in this paragraph. This finding aid-the
result of several years' inventory work capped by a project funded by the
U.S. National Archives-is exemplary of the professionalism of the tenBroek
Library, reflecting current best practices of archivists and manuscript
librarians. In examining the finding aid, you'll also gain further insight
into the significance of our founding President as an activist, scholar, and
administrator.
We will soon open the tenBroek papers for researchers. We
are confident that scholarship based on this unique collection will have a
profound effect on disability studies, legal history, and every other area
where Jacobus tenBroek left his mark.
Independence Market
We are pleased to announce the release of Touch the Earth:
A Multimedia Book About the Earth's Biomes. This new large print/Braille
and tactile image book created in partnership with the National Aeronautics
and Space Administration is designed for junior high and high school
students to supplement their learning about the different ecosystems of the
Earth's continents. Copies of the book can be purchased through the NFB
Independence Market by calling (410) 659-9314, extension 2216, or by
visiting our e-commerce site. Books are $20 and include two instructional
DVDs and a print/Braille tactile poster map.
For further information about NFB literature, please
e-mail the Independence Market staff.
Parent Outreach
Braille Reading Pals Club-A Pre-Literacy Program for Blind
and Low-Vision Children
The new, improved Braille Reading Pals Club will commence
on April 1. Online registration is now open for families of blind and
low-vision children ages birth to seven. Our registration is already over
three hundred after being open only for a few weeks. Please e-mail the
Braille Reading Pals Club if you have questions. The Braille Reading Pals
Club is co-sponsored by the National Organization of Parents of Blind
Children (NOPBC).
2010 NFB Youth Track at National Convention
It's coming...the 2010 annual Youth Track at the National
Convention, and it's bringing with it some new additions. We will continue
to facilitate the NFB Youth Track for high school students ages 14-18, but
this year we will also have a Junior Youth Track for students ages 11-14.
More details and agenda information (timed to coincide with the main
convention week and activities of the National Organization of Parents of
Blind Children) can be found in upcoming editions of the Braille Monitor and
Future Reflections.
For those of you who are students ages 14-18, listen up.
We would like to announce that on Tuesday, July 6, the NFB Youth Track will
host a "Throw-Back" Party. Come dressed in your favorite digs from your
favorite decade. The evening will be filled with music and dancing from
across the decades as well as exciting contests. Come test your hips at the
hula hoop contest, name that movie theme song, or show us your best Michael
Jackson impersonation. It's never too early to start planning which decade
you'll represent.
Spotlight on the Imagination Fund
In establishing the National Federation of the Blind
Jernigan Institute on January 30, 2004, the nation's organized blind
movement committed itself to pushing the boundaries of imagination and
innovation in work with the blind. With its programs of research, training,
and technological development, the Institute has inspired millions of people
to look toward a tomorrow where the world for blind people is better than it
is today.
During 2010, the National Federation of the Blind Jernigan
Institute is working with students and faculty at the Robotics and
Mechanisms Laboratory at Virginia Tech University's Mechanical Engineering
Department to develop the world's first road-ready vehicle which can be
driven by a blind person without sighted assistance. Members of the National
Federation of the Blind were able to examine some of the interface
technology that is being considered for this ground-breaking initiative at
the annual Washington Seminar in February 2010. Using tactile information,
members navigated a simulated driving course. Parnell Diggs (pictured
holding the wheel of the demonstration vehicle, left) said, "The Blind
Driver Challenge is important because it demonstrates that, given sufficient
access to information, the average blind person can make rational, sound
decisions-even behind the wheel."
This work is being made possible by the men and women who
support the National Federation of the Blind Imagination Fund. You can read
about the Race for Independence and the Blind Driver Challenge project in
the article "What Should I Imagine," found in the March issue of the Braille
Monitor. To get involved in this exciting campaign, please visit
www.imaginationfund.org or www.raceforindependence.org. Come on: Let's
race!
NFB Calendar
It's time to prepare for the 2010 National Convention:
a.. Make room reservations for the 2010 National
Convention by writing directly to the Hilton Anatole Hotel, 2201 Stemmons
Freeway, Dallas, Texas 75207, or calling (214) 761-7500.
a.. Avoid the lines and save money when you pre-register
with the NFB. With online conference registration by May 31st, the
pre-registration fee for convention is $15 ($20 on-site), the cost of a
banquet ticket is $40 ($45 on-site), and the cost of the BBQ tickets is $40
($45 on-site).
a.. If you are interested in becoming an exhibitor,
complete an online application on the Exhibitor Information page.
a.. Show your support of the blind across the country by
becoming a convention sponsor! For more information, please e-mail Karen
Zakhnini or call (410) 659-9314, ext. 2297.
a..
Register as an Imaginator in the Race for Independence,
then achieve your fundraising goal. This will earn you the opportunity to
visit the exclusive showroom for the Blind Driver Challenge vehicle in the
Hilton Anatole hotel, and you can even compete for the right to serve as a
beta tester during the 2010 National Convention of some of the technology
being used in this prototype automobile.
See you in Dallas!
March 31, 2010 Deadline to apply for a 2010 NFB
Scholarship, thirty awards ranging from $3,000 to $12,000, plus a trip to
the 2010 National Convention, for blind postsecondary scholars.
March 31, 2010 Final day to submit nominations online for
the 2010 Dr. Jacob Bolotin Award Program. Please visit the Application
Information and Materials page for more information.
April 1, 2010 Program year begins for Braille Reading
Pals Club, A Pre-Literacy Program for Blind and Low-Vision Children,
Sponsored by the National Federation of the Blind and the National
Organization of Parents of Blind Children (NOPBC)
April 15-16, 2010 2010 Jacobus tenBroek Disability Law
Symposium, National Federation of the Blind Jernigan Institute.
April 16-20, 2010 NFB Leadership and Advocacy in
Washington (LAW) Program, for blind students in grades 6-9, National
Federation of the Blind Jernigan Institute and Washington, D.C.
April 30, 2010 Deadline for Onkyo Braille Essay Contest,
administered by the NFB for the North America-Caribbean Region of the World
Blind Union.
May 1, 2010 The Cane Event, National Federation of the
Blind Jernigan Institute.
Our annual fundraiser features casino games, live
entertainment, heavy hors d'oeuvres, drinks, dancing, and more! The
proceeds from the evening benefit our Imagination Fund, supporting programs
at the NFB Jernigan Institute and in our state affiliates. For more
information, tickets, or to become a sponsor of The Cane Event, e-mail Karen
Zakhnini or call (410) 659-9314, ext. 2297.
May 31, 2010 Deadline to pre-register online for the 2010
NFB National Convention, Hilton Anatole Hotel, Dallas, Texas.
June 10-12, 2010 Research in the Rockies international
seminar devoted to Braille reading and writing, Denver, Colorado. For more
information, please contact Dr. Judith Chwalow, NFB Jernigan Institute
Director of Research.
July 3-8, 2010 NFB National Convention, Hilton Anatole
Hotel, Dallas, Texas.
The annual meeting of the NFB and the largest gathering of
the blind in the country, drawing approximately three thousand blind people
from all across the United States. Become a convention sponsor or
exhibitor -contact Karen Zakhnini, (410) 659-9314, ext. 2297.
July 28-August 1 and August 4-8, 2010 2010 NFB Junior
Science Academy, A STEM program for blind children in grades 3-6 offered by
the NFBJI's National Center for Blind Youth in Science (NCBYS). See a video
about the 2009 NFB Youth Slam science academy for high school students.
Coming Summer 2011-NFB National Convention in Orlando,
Florida!
Citation
It seems to me that the point of education is not so much
to teach somebody something-transferring knowledge from the informed to the
uninformed-as it is to stimulate curiosity and the excitement of discovery
in the minds of those being taught. A book is a dull object until the cover
is opened, and some of them don't change with that event. However, the
others do, and the excitement, the thrill, and the joy that are stimulated
change the people who do the opening.
-Dr. Marc Maurer, "Opening Minds with Knowledge:
Intellectual Property in a Digital World," an address given at the Library
of Congress, January 21, 2010, March 2010 Braille Monitor
Back to Top
Thank you for reading the NFB Jernigan Institute's
Imagineering Our Future.
Support the Jernigan Institute through the Imagination
Fund
Interesting links:
Archive of Straight Talk about Vision Loss videos
National Center for Blind Youth in Science
Access Technology Tips
Blogs:
Access Technology
Voice of the Nation's Blind
Publication archives:
Voice of the Diabetic
Future Reflections
Braille Monitor
Visit us at nfb.org
Jernigan Institute, National Federation of the Blind
200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place, Baltimore, MD
21230
(410) 659-9314 Fax (410) 659-5129 E-mail
JerniganInstitute at nfb.org
Visit us at www.nfb.org
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