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<h1><b>FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE</b></h1> <br><br>
<b>CONTACT:<br><br>
</b>Chris Danielsen<br><br>
Director of Public Relations<br><br>
National Federation of the Blind<br><br>
(410) 659-9314, extension 2330<br><br>
(410) 262-1281 (Cell)<br><br>
<font color="#0076CC"><a href="mailto:cdanielsen@nfb.org">
cdanielsen@nfb.org</a><br><br>
</font><div align="center"><h1><b>Unable to Read or Write, New High
School Graduate Details Struggle</b></h1></div>
<b>Baltimore, Maryland (August 25, 2009):</b> Denzel Ferges graduated
from high school on June 6. But when he was asked to address a
gathering of students on July 29, he had to memorize his speech rather
than reading it. Denzel does not have enough vision to read print
effectively, and he was not taught to read Braille. For all
practical purposes, he graduated from high school unable to read.
<br><br>
<br><br>
“I wish that I could be reading my remarks to you in Braille, but I
am not able to do so because I was not given the opportunity to learn
Braille in school,” Ferges told an audience of two hundred blind students
and their mentors gathered for the National Federation of the Blind Youth
Slam, a summer science academy for blind high school students. “So
with that being said, I have to seek further training to learn Braille
and other important blindness skills.”<br><br>
<br><br>
Denzel is not alone. In fact, nine out of ten blind children in
America’s public schools do not know and are not being taught how to read
and write using Braille. But reading Braille, especially when
learned at an early age, is just as effective as reading print.
Braille is also the only system that allows blind people to write and to
read what they have written with speed and efficiency. That is why
the National Federation of the Blind wants to make sure that young people
like Denzel graduate from high school with the ability to read and write,
and that every blind child in America and every adult losing vision is
given the opportunity to learn Braille. But blind Americans need
your help to address the crisis in Braille literacy.<br><br>
<br><br>
Congress authorized the minting in 2009 of 400,000 Louis Braille
Bicentennial Silver Dollars to mark the two-hundredth anniversary of the
birth of Louis Braille (1809–1852) and to support the efforts of the
National Federation of the Blindthe nation’s leading advocate for
Brailleto promote literacy among blind Americans. This unique and
beautiful commemorative coin is the first U.S. currency to feature
tactile, readable Braille. These coins will no longer be available
after December 31, 2009. Today the National Federation of the Blind
is kicking off a national campaign in which its affiliates in each state
(plus the District of Columbia and Puerto Rico) and over seven hundred
local chapters will sell 100,000 coins by November 1, 2009. A
portion of the money from sales of the 2009 Louis Braille Bicentennial
Silver Dollar will be used to support the NFB’s “Braille Readers are
Leaders” campaign, a national initiative created to double the number of
blind children learning Braille by 2015, improve certification standards
for teachers of Braille, and conduct innovative programs to support
Braille literacy.<br><br>
<br><br>
Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said:
“The Braille Readers are Leaders literacy campaign and the sale of these
beautiful Louis Braille silver dollars are among the most important
initiatives the National Federation of the Blind has ever
undertaken. The education of tens of thousands of blind children
across the nation and the successful rehabilitation of adults who are
losing vision depend on our success. We are asking all Americans to
help us in ensuring literacy, education, productivity, and success for
every blind American by purchasing a Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver
Dollar today.”<br><br>
<br><br>
Those interested in ordering a Louis Braille Bicentennial Silver Dollar
should visit
<a href="http://www.braille.org./"><font color="#0076CC">
www.braille.org</a></font> or call 1-800-USA-MINT (872-6468). For
more information about the National Federation of the Blind and the
Braille Readers are Leaders campaign, visit
<a href="http://www.braille.org/"><font color="#0076CC">
www.braille.org</a></font>. <br><br>
<br><br>
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About the National Federation of the Blind<br><br>
</b>With more than 50,000 members, the National Federation of the Blind
is the largest and most influential membership organization of blind
people in the United States. The NFB improves blind people’s lives
through advocacy, education, research, technology, and programs
encouraging independence and self-confidence. It is the leading
force in the blindness field today and the voice of the nation's
blind. In January 2004 the NFB opened the National Federation of
the Blind Jernigan Institute, the first research and training center in
the United States for the blind led by the blind.<br><br>
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