Tag Archive

Education

Announcing Transition Summit 2013 – “Next Steps to Becoming the Consummate Professional”

03/01/2013 Andrea Ogarrio 1 Comment

The LightHouse is proud to present the second installment of its Future Leaders series with Transition Summit 2013.

In adhering to our 4T philosophy: THINK, TRAIN, TRANSFORM, and THRIVE, the LightHouse Youth Services Program is offering this intensive three day workshop to blind and low vision youth between the ages of 16-25 who are enrolled with the Department of Rehabilitation.

Building upon skills and concepts introduced at Transition Summit 2012, this exciting three day workshop at our beautiful Enchanted Hills Camp promises to be another enriching and educational experience for anyone interested in learning the skills necessary for vocational, academic, and personal success. Participants will explore, discuss, and engage in a wide variety of fun yet meaningful interactive activities covering such topics as: cultivating and maintaining a positive attitude in the workplace; the importance of job enthusiasm; professionalism: what it is and what it is not; identifying and understanding workplace etiquette and boundaries; developing strong interpersonal skills; creative problem-solving and critical thinking; non-confrontational conflict resolution, leadership skills, and more.

Transition Summit 2013 will be a fun-filled event you won’t want to miss!

When: Friday, April 19 through Sunday, April 21, 2013
Where: Enchanted Hills Camp Napa, California

Cost: There is no cost to apply for the summit, however; a referral and authorization from your Department of Rehabilitation counselor will need to be submitted with your application. Individuals who are not Department of Rehabilitation clients may apply for a scholarship.

**Space is limited to 20 Participants. Priority will be given to those folks who attended Transition Summit 2012.

For more information please contact Jamey Gump, Youth Services Coordinator at jgump@old.lighthouse-sf.org, (415) 694-7372 or John Liang, Director of Community Services at jliang@old.lighthouse-sf.org, (415) 694-7334.

LightHouse News

Special Chemistry Camp Informational Phone Conference

02/28/2013 Andrea Ogarrio

When: Tuesday, March 12 from 6:00-7:00 p.m. Pacific time
Call (218) 339-2500 and use access code: 958093

During this call you’ll get an overview of camp by founder and coordinator Hoby Wedler, and get important information about filling out the application and applying for Chemistry Camp, details on camp logistics, and perhaps most importantly, hear testimonials from past mentors, instructors, and student alum! There will be plenty of time for your questions and comments throughout the call.

If you want more information on how blind students can study extremely visual subjects or want information on talking constructively with people who tell you that you can’t study visual subjects, this call is sure to answer some of your questions about accessibility and most importantly, about how you or a blind or low vision high school student you know can easily participate in the 2013 chemistry camp.

LightHouse News

Have You Taken A Major Open Online Course?

02/19/2013 Lisamaria Martinez

Disability Rights Advocates (DRA) is investigating experiences, both positive and negative, of users of Major Open Online Courses (MOOCs) available through web sites such as Coursera, Udacity, and EdX. If you are legally blind and have taken or attempted to take one of these courses, DRA would like to hear from you.

To share your experiences, please contact Michael Nunez by phone at 510-665-8644 or by e-mail at mnunez@dralegal.org.

LightHouse News

Think you know ZoomText? Think again!

02/15/2013 Andrea Ogarrio

Ai Squared and LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired are proud to announce ZoomText training in San Francisco.

What: Ai Squared ZoomText Training
When: Thursday, March 14, 2013 and Friday, March 15, 2013
Time: 9:00 a.m. to 4:00 p.m.
Where: LightHouse San Francisco Headquarters

If you are a teacher that needs to know how to use the latest screen magnification technology, an IT professional that needs to assist low-vision clients, a student or current ZoomText customer who needs to know how to get the most out of ZoomText; then this hands-on training is just for you.

What do you get when you sign up for ZoomText training? You get the following:

Hands-on training with a Ai Squared Trainer
How to use all of the advanced features of ZoomText 10
Knowledge of Microsoft Office and using ZoomText effectively
Knowledge of the Internet and how to use it to its full advantage with ZoomText
Knowledge of how to customize your ZoomText for your specific preferences

Unlike other training courses that can cost up to $1,000 or more, ZoomText training is only $399 per student for a two-day class! Ai Squared accepts most major credit cards, checks, money orders, and almost all state authorizations.

To sign up for the training, please contact Kimberly Cline at Ai Squared 802-367-6152 or kcline@aisquared.com or sign up for training here. For directions to the training location, please call (415) 431-1481.

Space is limited, so sign up soon!

LightHouse News

Blind Chemistry Camp for High School Students

01/31/2013 Lisamaria Martinez 1 Comment

Would you like to learn how blind people tackle the very visual subject of organic chemistry successfully? Do you have a general love for science? Are you a blind or low vision teenager considering a career in chemistry? Then the 2013 California Chemistry Camp is for you!

During this exciting and action-packed 3-day experience, students will get to learn how blind and visually impaired people use chemistry in their careers. We will explore techniques to make chemistry accessible. Take part in hands-on chemistry experiments, apply chemistry to cooking, and do magic with chemistry.

When: Friday, May 3, 2013 through Sunday, May 5, 2013
Where: Enchanted Hills Camp in Napa, California
Who: Up to fifteen blind high school students ages 14-18 will be selected to participate
Fee: Free

Transportation will be provided to and from Enchanted Hills Camp from pick-up points in the Bay Area and in Sacramento. Campers will arrive back at drop-off spots at 4 PM on Sunday, May 5. Or parents can choose to drive their child to and from Enchanted Hills Camp.

For an application or questions for this free camp, contact Angela Fowler, Director of Planning, Accessible Science at fowlers@syix.com or 530-902-0987. We hope to see you this spring at Enchanted Hills!

LightHouse News

Expanded Eligibility for 2013 Through the Looking Glass Scholarships

01/29/2013 Andrea Ogarrio

Through the Looking Glass and its National Center for Parents with Disabilities and their Families have expanded the eligibility requirement for its 2013 Scholarships for Students who have Parents with Disabilities. In addition to students enrolled in a two- or four-year college, students who attend an accredited technical or vocational school are also eligible to apply for these scholarships.

A total of fifteen $1000 scholarships will be given out Fall 2013. There are separate eligibility requirements for high school seniors and for college students:

1. High School Seniors. To be eligible, a student must be a high school graduate (or graduating senior) by Summer 2013. The student must be planning to attend a two-year or four-year college in Fall 2013, or enrolled in an accredited vocational or technical school during 2013. The student must be pursuing a certificate, license, AA, AS, BA or BS degree, and have at least one parent with a disability.

2. College Students. To be eligible, a student must be currently enrolled in a two-year or four-year college in Fall 2013, or enrolled in an accredited vocational or technical school during 2013. The student must be pursuing a certificate, license, AA, AS, BA or BS degree, be 21 years of age or younger as of March 11, 2013, and have at least one parent with a disability.

All application materials must be postmarked by March 11, 2013. Individuals may submit only one application per award period.

Selection criteria for all scholarships include academic performance, community activities and service, letter of recommendation and an essay describing the experience of growing up with a parent with a disability. Five of the fifteen scholarships will also consider financial hardship and academic potential in addition to the other selection criteria.

Please go to http://www.lookingglass.org for more information, including the application form, complete application directions and an FAQ page that answers many common questions as well as offers helpful suggestions.

Through the Looking Glass
3075 Adeline Street, Suite 120
Berkeley, CA 94703
(800) 644-2666
(510) 848-2005 (TTY)

www.lookingglass.org

scholarships@lookingglass.org

LightHouse News

Online Survey on Emergency Communications

01/25/2013 Andrea Ogarrio

The Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center for Wireless Technologies (Wireless RERC) is asking for individuals to take its new online survey on emergency communications. The survey questions address emergency services, public alerts and warnings, and social media use during emergencies.

The Wireless RERC conducted this survey once before, almost two years ago. Because technology is changing so rapidly and new government rules are being implemented, RERC think it’s the right time to conduct the survey again. The data will be of great interest to regulatory authorities and other professionals working to improve emergency response and disaster relief for people with disabilities.

New to this version of the survey is the inclusion of a question for the respondent to identify if he/she is a caregiver. In this way, the RERC hopes to collect data on the caregiver experience as it relates to emergency communications technologies and behaviors, as well as the experiences of individuals with disabilities.

Take the Survey on Emergency Communications and People with Disabilities

LightHouse News

Dan, Dan, The Baking Man Boosts his Skills at LightHouse for the Blind

12/19/2012 Lisamaria Martinez 1 Comment

“My chocolate chip cookies are chewy and big. The joke is I make them big so it is easier for me to see them.” These are the words of Dan O’Connor, a 62-year-old blind baker who has been developing tasty gluten free baked goods for Sans Grocery Store in Marin.

How does Dan do it?
“That’s where LightHouse and my rehab counselor Molly Buchanan were a big help,” says Dan. He’s learned tips about lighting and adaptive cooking tools that help him create his cookies and bread.

LightHouse has helped Dan in many other ways outside of the kitchen. He is currently trying to get better at reading braille. He has learned how to use JAWS and Zoomtext. “The support and the help I have received from the LightHouse has been phenomenal.” Dan is proactive by nature. When Ralston (his guide dog) retires he is considering switching to cane travel. He knows that his biggest challenge will be in discriminating different sounds when crossing the street. “I plan to work on my cane skills through the LightHouse. I want to undergo blindfold training to develop better spatial awareness.” said Dan.

Born in New York City, raised in Philadelphia, Dan moved to California in 1980. “I went back to college at San Francisco State and tried to get an undergraduate degree in rehabilitation. I didn’t really know what to do.” Dan had tried everything imaginable from bike and shoe repair to an assistant supervisor at a half-way house for hard of hearing individuals where he learned sign language. One day, while walking to the Student Union, Dan had an epiphany. “I decided I wanted to work with my hands,” he said.

“I tried sculpting and found it wasn’t for me. I tried working at a restaurant where I was willing to mop and clean. One day, the restaurant asked if I knew how to bake bread. I said yes. I had baked in a big kitchen at a school before and wasn’t intimidated to try. They were excited to try me out and it worked.”

One day, Dan found himself walking into Sans Grocery Store in Marin—where a loaf of his cornbread won the friendship of the owner. This turned into an enterprise, and Dan cranks out about 15 dozen cookies a week and 32 to 42 loaves of bread, all gluten free. Local cafes have begun to buy Dan’s bread to serve to their customers.

Are you ready to learn useful adaptive skills in the kitchen or in other areas of your life? If Dan’s story has motivated you to change your life, call Debbie Bacon at 415-694-7357 or email her at dbacon@old.lighthouse-sf.org to sign up for classes that will truly make a difference.

LightHouse News

New! LightHouse Presents: Jam Class at the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance

12/11/2012 Lisamaria Martinez 1 Comment

Everyone has jammed out at one time or another, whether it was at a wedding or late at night to a song on the radio. Jam Class turns spontaneous jam into practice. The class operates by listening to and following the rhythms, soulfulness, funkiness, histories, memories, and many shades of joy that already live inside our bodies. Jam Class does not aim at teaching anyone how to dance, but rather at bringing out the inherent ability to dance that everyone already has within them. The class starts slow and quiet, discovering the seeds of rhythm deep within one’s body and momentum. This class is intended for young adults ages 17 to 30. The only precondition for participants is the ability to stand for one hour.

If you want to move and be moved, Jam Class is for you. Jam Class will be held on the third Saturday of each month through May, 2013.

Here is the schedule:

January 19, 12 to 1:00 p.m.
February 16, 12 to 1:00 p.m.
March 16, 12 to 1:00 p.m.
April 20, 12 to 1:00 p.m.
May 18, 12 to 1:00 p.m.

The class is led by Malinda LaVelle and Emmaly Wiederholt and is limited to ten people, so sign up now! To reserve your space or for more information, please contact John Liang, Director of Community Services at jliang@old.lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7334.

Malinda LaVelle is the artistic director of Project Thrust, a dance-theater company based in San Francisco. Since its inception in 2010, Project Thrust has performed at Z Space as part of the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance’s Summer Dance Series, at ODC Theater, at The Garage as part of Resident Artist Workshop (RAW), and in the Women on the Way Festival. Project Thrust is currently in residence at the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance, Malinda’s alumni, where she currently serves on the faculty. Originally from Colorado, Malinda LaVelle graduated from the University of Arizona with a BFA in Dance. Malinda has performed with Alex Ketley’s The Foundry, Alyce Finwall Dance Theater, Manuelito Biag’s Shift>>>Physical Theater, and in 2012, she was awarded a 2012 Isadora Duncan Award for Outstanding Performance.

Emmaly Wiederholt resides in San Francisco and is a founding member of Malinda LaVelle’s Project Thrust. She also writes about dance; she founded, edits, and writes for Stance On Dance (stanceondance.com), and has contributed to In Dance, The San Francisco Examiner, and the San Francisco Bay Guardian. She is originally from Albuquerque, NM and graduated from the University of Utah with a BFA in ballet and a BS in political science. She is an alumna of the San Francisco Conservatory of Dance and has performed with Vabang! Dance Company, Amy Lewis’ Push Up Something Hidden, Christine Cali (Cali & Co.), Alyce Finwall Dance Theater, Katie Faulkner’s Little Seismic Dance Company, and in David Dorfman’s choreography with AXIS Dance Company.

The San Francisco Conservatory of Dance was established in 2004 by veteran dancer/teacher Summer Lee Rhatigan with a team of collaborators whose principal goal was to create a new kind of dance school specifically designed to guide and support young people in their discovery, understanding, development, and application of the tools necessary to thrive as an artist. Since its inception, some one thousand talented young dancers have participated in the Conservatory’s programs, studying classical and modern technique and learning/performing a huge number and variety of works. Located at 301 8th Street (at Folsom), the studios are drenched with natural light through skylights and north and west facing windows.

LightHouse News

CANCELLED: Eschenbach Magnification Day at the LightHouse

12/05/2012 Andrea Ogarrio

Please note this event has been cancelled.

Let the folks at Eschenbach show you the latest advancements in personal magnification devices. From desktop video magnifiers to monoculars to compact handheld magnifiers, we will be showcasing a wide range of products to suit your personal magnification needs.

When: Thursday, December 13, 10:30 a.m. to 1:00 p.m.
Where: LightHouse San Francisco Headquarters

Everyone in attendance will be eligible for a raffle to win an Eschenbach Magno handheld magnifier. Also, anyone purchasing a Presto Lite Desktop Video Magnifier will receive a $100 gift certificate eligible towards any purchase in the LightHouse’s Adaptations Store.

Early registration is encouraged! Seating is limited. For more information or to register contact Rich Russo at rrusso@old.lighthouse-sf.org or 415-694-7352.