[Ohio-talk] President's Notebook

[richard]

President's Notebook


National Federation of the Blind


Mark A. Riccobono


officeofthepresident at nfb.org


(410) 659-9314


 

Dear Fellow Federationists,

 

A month from now, the convention will be over. This means that all energy is
pointed toward the final preparations for this year's national convention. I
encourage you to be sure that our convention rookies have good mentors and
that our convention veterans find new opportunities to help build the
organization. Additionally, I encourage you to make sure those who cannot be
at this year's convention receive the information about the live streaming,
which should be available later this month. Our internet and social media
tools should allow us to engage our members that cannot be at the convention
for one reason or another. Although there is no substitute for being at our
convention, there is no reason for us to miss the opportunity to increase
the excitement back home. 

 


News:


Convention Agenda Available:
The online version of the 2016 National Convention agenda is now available
on the NFB website <https://nfb.org/convention>  in Word and accessible PDF
formats, as well as in Spanish. 

 

Need Volunteers in Independence Market at Convention:
We are looking for volunteers to work in the Independence Market at the
convention. If you have some time to help, please contact Patricia Maurer at
(410) 659-9314, extension 2272, or Jen White at extension 2236. If we have
sent you a schedule please give one of us a call to let us know whether you
can work at that time. We appreciate your help to make the convention run
smoothly and to give our membership the opportunity to purchase from the
products in the market. We are in need of volunteers for only Friday, July
1, both shifts (8:30 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. and 12:45 p.m. to 5:00 p.m.), and
Saturday, July 2, both shifts (8:00 a.m. to 12:45 p.m. and 12:45 p.m. to
5:00 p.m.).

 

Space Available Status:
Last month, Senator Heller from Nevada introduced an amendment to the
National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) to add the same space available
language that is already in the House NDAA to the Senate's version. This
amendment, SA 4235, already has one cosponsor, Senator Tester from Montana.
Please call your senators and urge them to cosponsor SA 4235 so that
veterans with disabilities rated as total can participate in the space
available program. More on this subject will be coming out as it is
available.

 

USA JOBS Now Available in NFB NEWSLINE:
NFB-NEWSLINER has added USA JOBS to the job listings feature in addition to
the over one hundred thousand listings currently provided to subscribers by
CareerBuilder.com. USAJOBS.gov <https://www.usajobs.gov/>  is a free,
web-based job board enabling federal job seekers access to thousands of
career opportunities across hundreds of federal agencies and organizations,
providing public notice for federal employment opportunities.  As the
federal government's official source for federal job listings and employment
opportunity information, USAJOBS.gov provides a variety of opportunities.
Now, in addition to NFB-NEWSLINE's existing job listings, subscribers can
set up profiles to include opportunities offered by USAJOBS.gov
<https://www.usajobs.gov/> . Visit our website
<https://nfb.org/nfb-newsline%C2%AE-expands-feature-allowing-independent-job
-searches-blind>  for more information.

 

Video:
In this week's video, Caitlin Best describes how she found her way to the
National Federation of the Blind and the lessons she learned along the way.
It can be viewed at https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=D22aYyj52J8.

 


Dates to Keep in Mind:


.         May 23-August 26, 2016: NFB BELL Academy held at forty-six sites
throughout the nation. More information at https://nfb.org/bell-academy. 

.         June 7: NFB EQ teacher application deadline,
https://nfb.org/nfb-eq-teacher-application 

.         June 19-25: NFB EQ (first iteration)

.         June 30-July 5: National Federation of the Blind Convention, Rosen
Shingle Creek, Orlando, Florida

.         July 31-August 6: NFB EQ (second iteration) 

.         August 2-6: NFB EQ teacher cohort 

.         August 18-25: WBU and ICEVI General Assembly, Rosen Centre,
Orlando, Florida, www.wbu-icevi2016.org

 

The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles
between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want;
blindness is not what holds you back.

 

Mark A. Riccobono, President

National Federation of the Blind

200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place

Baltimore, Maryland 21230

Phone: (410) 659-9314

Fax: (410) 659-5129

Email: officeofthepresident at nfb.org

Twitter: @Riccobono and @NFB_Voice

Web:  <http://www.nfb.org/> www.nfb.org