[NFBAZ-EastValleyChapter] important legislative action needed by tomorrow, February 20 2023

[Mark Feliz]

Hello everyone,



Last week Senator    Wadsack from District 17, introduced SB1402 which
expands the scope of the Arizona State School for the Deaf and Blind
to serve students with all disabilities thus eliminating the
specialized education provided to students who are deaf blind.  This
bill is moving very quickly through the senate, and has already passed
through the education committee, passing 4 to 3.



This bill is being heard in the rules committee tomorrow, Monday,
2/20/2023,  at 1:00 p.m., and we need everyone to email or call all of
the senators serving on this committee.



The National Federation of the Blind of Arizona is strongly opposed to
this bill, as it eliminates the specialized learning environment for
blind students, minimizes the critical importance of teachers of blind
students, and minimizes the importance of the education in the
alternative skills of blindness like Braille, tactile graphics
literacy, expanded core curriculum with services like Cane travel.



Please email the following senators today:



District 14:  Senator Warren Petersen, (Chair)  WPETERSEN at azleg.gov



District 30: Senator Sunny Borrelli, (Vice Chair) SBORRELLI at azleg.gov



District 5: Senator Lela Alston LALSTON at azleg.gov,



District 11: Senator Catherine Miranda, CMIRANDA at azleg.gov



District 16: Senator Thomas T.J. Shope, TSHOPE at azleg.gov



District 25: Senator Sine Kerr, SKERR at azleg.gov



District 26: Senator Raquel Terán, RTERAN at azleg.gov





Here is a sample email:



Dear Senator,



My name is ---  and I am a member of the National Federation of the
Blind of Arizona.



The Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind is a specialized school
providing dedicated and specific educational programming targeting the
specific needs for students who are deaf, blind, or who are Deafblind.
Serving these populations require specific and targeted teacher
competency and curriculum and are completely unduplicated in any other
setting.



Expanding the definition of student eligibility to other types of
disabilities without the existence of blindness,  deafness, or those
with combined hearing and vision loss, Eliminates the specialized
learning environment for students with visual, or hearing impairments.



Please include a personal statement.  Here are a couple of examples.



As a student who attended a specialized school for the Blind, I
received hands on learning with other blind students where we all
learned in a tactile non-visual manner.  These specialized skills
allowed me to learn the critical STEM  concepts I needed in a
specialized way.  I learned Orientation and Mobility which allowed me
to travel independently in college and all aspects of life using my
long white cane.  When I learned Braille, I gained the literacy I
needed to attend college and in all areas of life in literacy.
Expanding the definition  will change the learning environment so that
blind students no longer have the dedicated learning environment they
need to gain the fundamental educational building blocks they need and
deserve.



If you did not attend a school for the blind you could say:



As a blind person, I know the importance of specialized blindness
skills like Braille, cane training, and hands on learning to gain
important concepts in math and science.  If you include all other
disabilities, you take away the learning environment blind students
need to gain the fundamental educational building blocks they need.



Regards,



Donald



Donald Porterfield, Esq.

President

National Federation of the Blind of Arizona

http://www.az.nfb.org

nfb.az.president at gmail.com