[nfbmi-talk] Discovering Opportunities for Employment and Success Seminar

[Christine Boone]

JJ, Jordyn, Terri, Jeff, Fred and All:  I want to commend all of you guys for taking the initiative to hold this empowering seminar. From the dream, through the logistics to the enactment, you guys were focused, determined and totally committed to making this seminar a success.      

If you positively impacted the life of even 1 blind student I believe you could count the weekend as well worth your collective efforts.  And I am confident that the lives of many young blind students were enriched last weekend.  

Next year will be even better. I hope to be there with you in 2016.  Kudo's to you all!

Warm Regards,
 Christine
I
  .  
Boone Christine Sent from my iPhone

On Apr 1, 2015, at 11:16 PM, J.J. Meddaugh via nfbmi-talk <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:

Thank you Larry for your support of the DOES Seminar. We had roughly 25 in attendance throughout the weekend, many of which were attending an NFB event for the first time. Seeing the empowerment in students, whether it was learning skills necessary to get hired, or simply going from the meeting room to the restrooms without sighted guide for the first time, provided a first-hand reminder of why we need to continue doing events like this.

Students learned what to put and not put on a resume, how to present themselves at a business lunch, and strategies for approaching tough interview questions. We also had some great discussions surrounding tough questions such as when to disclose your disability and how or when to request accomodations. Fred presented an excellent talk on nonverbal communication that was well-researched.

In addition, we heard Terri Wilcox's story of how she got involved in the NFB, got some tips on useful iPhone apps from Jeff, discussed the importance of NFB training centers, and talked about state and national scholarships.

Participants were given a thumb drive with handouts from the presenters as well as NFB information, literature, and audio. Several of the participants were quite interested in both follow-up seminars on additional topics and attending state or national convention.

Logistically, the event ran under budget. In addition, we have the contact information for all participants so we can keep people up-to-date with future events. We'll also endeavor to connect people to local chapters.

Naturally, there will be areas where we can improve, and a feedback survey will be sent to the participants in the coming days. One of the challenges we recognized is that high school and college students are often at a different place when it comes to looking for jobs, whether it's a first job or a long-term career.

I need to give a ton of credit to Jordyn who put together the agenda for the weekend, which was packed and included a lot of useful information. Thanks also to Candice Chapman, who joined us representing the National association of Blind Students.

Thanks again, and I hope this event can serve as a foundation for the future.





Best regards,
J.J.

> On 3/29/2015 6:22 PM, Larry Posont wrote:
> National Federation of the Blind of Michigan
> 7189 Connors Rd.
> Munising, MI 49862
> 
> March 29, 2015
> 
> Dear Jordyn and J.J.:
> 
>      Thank you very much for the excellent job you did coordinating
> the Discovering Opportunities for Employment and Success Seminar this
> past week end. It was very successful. All of the speakers did a fine
> job. The Federation should do more of this since it gets students
> interested and involved. Students are Federation members now and
> potential leaders in the future. Once again, thank you for a job well
> done.
> 
> Sincerely,
> Larry Posont
> President
>  National Federation of the Blind of Michigan
>  (906) 387-3546
> Email: president.nfb.mi at gmail.com
>  Web page: www.nfbmi.org
> 
> Munising home of the beautiful Pictured Rocks.


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