[NFB-Science] Introduction from Your New Vice President

[John Miller]

Hello Avery and others,

First of all, I want to thank you so much Avery for posting an introduction yourself to this list.
I believe this list has been on ice for some time and it would be very helpful if we revitalized this list.
One reason this list gets little traffic is because when you pay dues to the Science and Engineering division it is a separate task for the division member to opt in to this list.
It is likely that many of the 2026 31 dues paying members have not opted into this list.
I will work with David Andrews to see how I can get a list of those who are a part of nfb-science.
I will work on cross referencing that list to those who have paid 2026 dues.
I will be asking science division board members to help me gently remind current division members to opt into nfb-science.

And now to my answer to Avery's post specifically.
Sadly, I hear the following from other blind individuals studying or working in STEM and in my personal experience.
1. Blind people can not do STEM.
2. Because of your blindness you are not welcome in this STEM oriented workplace.
3. Thank you for pointing out that this application has accessibility challenges for blind users.
However, for this year and this workplace this application will be the sole application used for doing or tracking this kind of work.

I live in California and applied to an engineering PHD program in California.
During my PHD program I asked the California Department of Rehabilitation for a refreshable braille display so I could complete a PHD in Electrical and Computer Engineering.
Let it be noted that I already had a Master's degree in this field of study.
It has been a while but I assume this request was part of my Individual Plan of Employment (IPE).
At the NFB national convention I was told at one-on-one meetings that my request would likely fail and that I should follow through on all of the appeals.
The California Department of Rehabilitation rejected my IPE.
I believe I was also rejected on 2 more appeals and that the final (third?) appeal the California Department of Rehabilitation approved my request.
The department purchased my braille display, I got a PHD in engineering, and the rest is history.
I do recall that as part of my IPE I explained that I needed a PHD in electrical engineering so that I could teach as a professor at a San Diego engineering university.
This point seemed to help with getting my IPE approved.
Every blind person I meet who is studying or working in STEM is incredibly resourceful and persistent.
Avery, you are a resourceful and persistent individual.
I am sorry that you have had a tough time with the California Department of Rehabilitation.
Perhaps other blind chemists or biologists will come forward on this list about the issue of persuading those in power that it is safe for the blind individual to do STEM work in the lab.

During a phone screen or on-site interview I do the following.
1. I do know that in my own interview experiences I make a point of showing my braille note taker to my hiring manager.
I just do not think that sighted hiring managers know what braille is or have ever seen pins that pop up and down to make the shape of braille cells.
Seeing the pins moving up and down seems to put the hiring manager at ease that blindness tech perhaps really does make a blind person an effective stem individual in the workplace.
2. I state that I use a screen reader that makes the computer talk and sends the text on the screen to a refreshable braille display.
3. I also explain that I will do the job I am interviewing for using the same skills that I did for my academic work and my prior professional experience.
4. I highlight my transcript GPA and have a paper copy of the complete transcript listing letter grades that I leave the hiring manager with on interview day along with my paper copy of my resume.
To your point maybe the hiring manager is thinking this candidate has a good GPA but got a D on their lab courses so I leave them the transcript and they can scan through the lab courses or the signal processing courses or whatever to see that I am a legitimate candidate.
5. I also state that I have the names of blind individuals with their contact information working in a similar field if the hiring manager were to have any questions.
These individuals would be happy to answer a phone call or email about how they do work in the field of interest.

Very Best,
John Miller
________________________________
From: NFB-Science <nfb-science-bounces at nfbnet.org> on behalf of avery ingram via NFB-Science <nfb-science at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Sunday, August 16, 2026 12:02 PM
To: nfb-science at nfbnet.org <nfb-science at nfbnet.org>
Cc: avery ingram <avery8ingram at gmail.com>; nfb-science at nfbnet.org <nfb-science at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [NFB-Science] Introduction from Your New Vice President

Good afternoon,

My name is Avery Ingram, and I have a Bachelor's degree in Biochemistry and Biophysics. I also have strong interests in endocrinology and exercise physiology. I have been Beta-testing math software for blind people, and am a participant in the RISE program. I am also a member of Phi Beta Kappa. In addition to the areas you have mentioned planning to focus on, which would be excellent, here are some hypothetical scenarios I hope the list could help people with:
What to do when someone believes people are choosing not to hire them because they believe a totally blind person cannot work with dangerous chemicals, but they cannot prove it.
When someone recommends workflows to a Disability Resource Office, and they choose not to implement the changes, even after complaints have worked in the student's favor.
What to do when a vocational rehabilitation agency tells someone their case is considered a low return on investment, and repeatedly denies requests that would allow someone to pivot to a computational science job, or delayed requests so long that the student missed the window for the Medical College Admissions Test.

I recognize that DRO and VR professionals operate under budget constraints and often do not have enough staffing, so this is not meant to criticize them. I am also grateful that some of them are in the NFB to learn and be as helpful as possible. Still, I sometimes wish I had a safe space to ask for guidance. I would also be very glad to help people struggling to succeed in their science classes. I know all of us have faced similar challenges or are here to support people who do, so I would like to thank you all for your dedication. I look forward to connecting with more of you.

All my best,

Avery

On Aug 16, 2026, at 12:27 AM, Harry Staley via NFB-Science <nfb-science at nfbnet.org> wrote:

Hello everyone,

My name is [Your Name], and I am honored to introduce myself as the newly elected Vice President of the National Federation of the Blind Science Division.

For those of you who may not attend the NFB national convention each year, I wanted to take a moment to introduce myself and let you know how excited I am to be serving in this role. I look forward to getting to know many of you and to working with the division's leadership and membership to strengthen our community.

One of my goals as Vice President is to help make NFB-Science an active and welcoming community for blind students, scientists, engineers, technology professionals, researchers, educators, and others interested in STEM. I believe there is tremendous value in creating opportunities for us to share our experiences, exchange information and resources, mentor one another, and encourage blind people who are considering careers in STEM.

I am also excited about helping revitalize this listserv and making it a place where members can learn about career and educational opportunities, accessible technology, conferences, scholarships, research, and other topics of interest to the blind STEM community.

I would love to hear from you as we move forward. If you are a student, professional, educator, researcher, or simply someone with an interest in STEM, please feel free to introduce yourself to the list and tell us a little about your interests and what you would like to see from the Science Division.

I am looking forward to working with all of you and helping build an even stronger NFB Science Division.

Best regards,

Harry Staley
330-718-1876
staleyh at gmail.com
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