[nabs-l] being scholastically social?

[Arielle Silverman]

Hi Jamie and all,

Jamie, I'm so sorry that you had to deal with such ridiculous
shenanigans from your school's "vision department". I think their
requiring a teacher to chaperone you during a school dance and not
letting you sit with your class at pep rallies was particularly
egregious and discriminatory. I'm glad you were able to bounce back
and put yourself out there to join clubs again in college.

I think this also illustrates the sad truth that often the schools
with "the most for the visually impaired" are really offering "the
most institutionalized, custodial, superfluous services" for the
visually impaired. We see a similar phenomenon in colleges and
universities who have such an active and involved DSS office that
students are, ironically, facing more discrimination and hardship
through over-protection and bureaucracy than if they had no DSS office
at all. True enough, in my own experience and that of many other
stories I've heard, sometimes the best "accommodation" is no
accommodation at all. Of course there are certain situations when we
do need accommodations--print accessibility, for instance--but in
situations where our own alternative techniques are enough to let us
do something right along with our sighted counterparts, not getting
extra accommodations is incredibly liberating.

Arielle

On 3/21/10, Jamie Principato <blackbyrdfly at gmail.com> wrote:
> In middle school, I would jump at the opportunity to get involved in as much
> as my parents would allow. I did Student Government, Jazz Band, and a  Youth
> Leadership organization that focused on competitive debate and public
> speaking (think like a junior Toastmasters International). I couldn't wait
> for high school when I'd have even more interesting groups and activities to
> choose from.
>
> When I got to high school, I encountered a lot of...problems...with the
> school's Vision department (which is sad since I only went to this high
> school because we were told it offered the most for visually impaired
> students). I could go on all day with the details here, but I'll spare you
> that. One of these issues was the fact that blind students at this school
> tended to be very...disconnected from the rest of the student body, avoiding
> activities and student events. I learned shortly after joining Model UN and
> Psychology Club, attending the first Freshman dance, and planning to go to a
> pep rally that the Vision department wasn't happy with the fact t I joined
> and attended these clubs without telling them first, and that if I was going
> to keep attending, they'd need my mother to write up a permission note (no
> other student needed to do this) and they would have to first find a teacher
> to stay late in the day and basically babysit me while I attend these
> activities. Oh, and I wasn't allowed to go to that pep rally unless I sat
> with my TVI and the other teachers, not in the Freshman stands with my
> class. My mother and I told them that all of this was unnecessary, and we
> complained to the principal, but between this and a number of other issues,
> we just ended up taking matters into our own hands.
>
> We registered as a home schooling family, and joined a home school support
> group with about 70 or so other families in the county. I took advantage of
> my new freedom and got involved in a ton of extracurricular activities in my
> community, even sports (something that never would have flown at that
> school). Now that I'm in college, I try to get involved on campus and in the
> city when ever I can. I joined the university's fencing club, a volunteer
> organization, and I'm currently applying to Psi Chi. I also try to get the
> most out of campus cultural events like plays or concerts, and make use of
> campus facilities like the gym. THe only issue I've been having is that
> transportation in my city. The only bus that comes near by house recently
> changed its schedule and now stops running early in the evening. The only
> way to really go out in the evening for any sort of event or get home from a
> club meeting is to take a cab or ride with a friend, but you need to get out
> a bit first to make those sighted friends. I find that if money is tight one
> month, it's pretty unlikely that I'll be doing much outside of attending
> class, including attending free activities or events. I guess that's just
> one price of living off campus though.
>
> On Sun, Mar 21, 2010 at 4:28 PM, Darian Smith <dsmithnfb at gmail.com> wrote:
>
>> Hi list,
>>
>>  I'm curious to  here what  people's thoughts are about  becoming
>> involved in  clubs and campus  activities in school (high school or
>> college). do you  jump at the oppertunity to meet new people? do you
>> feel nervous about it. have you met some of your  best friends at a
>> ralley,  social club, campus society? how did your  self- identity as
>> a blind person factor into  your interactions with people? how did
>> people interact with you?
>>  Thoughts?
>>  Best,
>>  Darian
>> --
>> Darian Smith
>> Skype: The_Blind_Truth
>> Windows Live: Lightningrod2010 at live.com
>> The National Federation of the Blind has launched a nationwide teacher
>> recruitment campaign to help attract energetic and passionate
>> individuals into the field of blindness education, and we need your
>> help!   To Get Involved  go to:
>> www.TeachBlindStudents.org
>>
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-- 
Arielle Silverman
President, National Association of Blind Students
Phone:  602-502-2255
Email:
nabs.president at gmail.com
Website:
www.nabslink.org