[Trainer-Talk] Remote assistive technology training

[Chris Nusbaum]

Hi Skylar:

It was wonderful to meet you at the career exploration fair, and welcome to the list! Regarding your question, Chris Murphy is correct that the Blind Professionals Network current offers only volunteer positions. However, it may be a good place to advertise services as you get started. I would also suggest Allied Instructional Services, which I believe I mentioned in my presentation. I don't know if they have any open AT placements at the moment, but it's worth a try, and even if they don't, you can get on their list for future placements. Your prior experience at Braille Institute would be a big plus there. Let's chat off-list when you have time (see the calendar link in my signature) about the specifics of how this might work.

Hope this helps!
Chris Nusbaum
CAN Access Solutions
(443) 487-6262
canaccesssolutions at gmail.com
Schedule a meeting with me: https://fantastical.app/cnusbaum/cas

> On May 1, 2026, at 6:38 PM, skylar covich via Trainer-Talk <trainer-talk at nfbnet.org> wrote:
> 
> Hi, I'm new to this list, but I have been around NFB and the assistive
> technology field for a while. I was reminded about the list because of this
> week's virtual career fair. I live in Santa Barbara, California, and was
> lead Technology Instructor at the Braille Institute before that position
> was cut last year. I have done a variety of part time work since, including
> working with a few assistive tech clients through a local agency that is a
> vendor for California Department of Rehab, and a few remote private clients.
> Even my local agency does a lot of remote training now; I actually just did
> my first in person home visit recently, which I enjoyed, but remote work is
> going to be more sustainable most of the time in my area.
> 
> I am trying to revive a thread from last month about remote assistive
> technology training; not sure if this message will do that or create a new
> thread. I am currently looking in to becoming a California Department of
> Rehab vendor, and also seeking more remote private clients, either through
> my own new company or as a contractor for other companies. Someone
> mentioned the Blind Professionals Network as a potential source for work at
> the career fair, but they've got a lot of broken links on their web site,
> so I'm curious if anyone has updated information about how they are doing.
> I do not have a certification, and am leaning toward avoiding that at this
> time.
> 
> While I am happy to do more traditional training on JAWS, Voice Over,
> braille products, etc. I am most passionate about teaching new AI tools;
> not just image description, but also research and document generation. I
> completely understand this can lead to people taking too many shortcuts,
> which for students and those new to vision loss, can particularly mean they
> don't learn core fundamental skills. Yet these tools have lots of workplace
> applications that may open up a lane for me in the field especially with
> state vocational agencies, and I also find that people who struggle with
> assistive tech are motivated by opportunities to do more tasks
> independently. I also have used AI tools a lot for more complex tasks like
> invoice generation and job applications, and have enjoyed sharing that with
> clients.
> 
> Thanks for reading this, and I'm happy to connect about these ideas.
> Skylar
> 
> --
> Skylar J. Covich, Ph.D., Political Science
> Vice President of the Board of Directors, Xavier Society for the Blind
> Member of Santa Barbara Access Advisory Committee
> Freelance assistive technology trainer, AI advisor and public policy
> researcher
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