[Pibe-division] TVI Training

[Allison Hilliker]

	Hi All,

I went to Louisiana Tech for the TBS program for about 6 months in 2007. It absolutely has the best blindness philosophy and beliefs in the capability of blind people around. You'll definitely get the best teacher education there. 

That said, Jewel is right, it is located in the middle of nowhere. I didn't care for Ruston at all and that's why I left the program. I loved my instructors and my classes, but they only lasted for about 12 hours a week and the rest of the week I was still stuck living in the small town south. And the lack of transportation is a huge problem when trying to do your field work as most blind students do not live in Ruston and you'll need to hire drivers to get to neighboring towns. I was able to get rides with friends sometimes, but when a quarter's worth of classes require more than 30 hours of field work then depending on friends is not necessarily practical. I was spending a lot of money on drivers to do field work. Also, I was the only blind student in the program, and most of my instructors were also sighted, so  I didn't necessarily feel like I was getting many alternative technique suggestions for how to be an effective blind teacher. While The Louisiana Center does have many blind instructors, Louisiana Tech did not and those were the people I was working with in my grad program. And most of all, I just did not like the small town culture. Many people may love it, but I'm not one of them. 

Sorry fellow NFB members. I realize this post won't be popular, but I felt moved to be honest. I've been in the NFB for years, consider myself a philosophical purest, and am  a Louisiana Center graduate. Even so, I have to be honest about Ruston. It's not the greatest place to spend two years of one's life. We desperately need more than one NFB-focused graduate program in this country because Ruston is not an option for everyone. It has many limitations that I feel we need to be real about. 

JMO,
Allison





-----Original Message-----
From: Pibe-division [mailto:pibe-division-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Jewel
Sent: Sunday, February 16, 2014 6:22 PM
To: Professionals in Blindness Education Division List
Subject: Re: [Pibe-division] TVI Training

I looked into Louisiana Tech, too. I really liked the program description, and I really like their director, who took the time to speak to me. However, this school is in the middle of nowhere. There is no bus system. The only way to get to any good shopping is by Greyhound bus. And getting around town unless you're walking is difficult. You would have to bum rides from fellow students. That is the bad side of Louisiana Tech, but their program looks really good.
Jewel who went to Louisiana Tech last June to visit

Sent from my iPhone

> On Feb 16, 2014, at 8:07 PM, Mikayla Gephart <mikgephart at icloud.com> wrote:
> 
> Hi,
>    As I have said, I want to be a TVI. I am looking at training programs, and am leaning towards the College of New Jersey and Louisiana Tech, as I live in New Jersey. What are your experiences with these and other programs.
> 
> Sent from my iPad
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