Matilda Ziegler Magazine for the Blind the source for blindness news and information since 1907

Hadley is a distance education institution which was founded in 1920 by William Hadley and Dr. E.V.L. Brown. Hadley’s first student was from Kansas. She took a course on learning Braille. Now, Hadley has an enrollment of 10,000 students from all 50 states and 100 countries.

Hadley offers four main areas of study. They include adult continuing education, family education, Hadley School for Professional studies and their High School program. Their adult continuing education courses or (ACE) include Braille and academic studies as well as independent living and technology courses. Other courses that are offered in this category include business and employment skills as well as recreation. Family members related to the blind person are also eligible to take these courses.

Family education is another category that Hadley specializes in. Courses which the severely visually impaired person and their families can take include child development, independent living, and Braille reading and writing to adjustment to blindness issues. Family education is really helpful to the newly blind.

Hadley School for Professional Studies is a unique Distance Education Program for professionals who want to work with the blind and visually impaired. HSPS for short is a great program for busy professionals who want to either want to work in the blindness field or volunteer in the field. In addition, you can also earn continuing education credits. Students who are enrolled in a college program or university program may apply as well.

If you are 14 or older, Hadley has a high School program. You can either take a full high school curriculum through Hadley or take courses and transfer credits from Hadley to your local high school.

Hadley also has a variety of web courses. Many of these courses emphasize using the computer.

In September 2011, Hadley launched a new program called Forsythe Center for Entrepreneurship. The objective of this program is to help people launch and grow their own businesses or advance in their careers. The goal of this program is to assist in making a dent in the 70 to 80 percent unemployment rate for the blind.

Hadley has some great course offerings for the blind and professionals going into the blindness field. Hopefully, people will continue to take advantage of these offerings and improve the quality of their lives.

In the first article in this series I said that dogs are powerful creatures and they don’t even know it. They change lives, providing safety and independence for people with disabilities and comfort for those in need.

Dogs also love to be given a job, whether it’s as a loving family pet or service dog. The organizations that train and place service dogs meet these goals but differ in the types of training they provide. So far we’ve heard about dogs helping families with autistic children and other psychiatric disabilities. The next kind of specialty dog is one that assists the deaf and hard of hearing. There are at least 7 training programs offered for dogs that help the deaf, maybe even more if the private trainers and self trained teams are included. For this article, however, I am concentrating on the most popular programs, most of which require new teams to train on campus for two to three weeks. Some programs, like the one offered by Canine Companions for Independence (CCI) and Susquehanna Service Dogs (SSD), among others, offer a program for a two person team to work with the new dog as well as follow up from instructors once they arrive home with the new dog. The third person, often a family member, helps the handler and new dog to practice behaviors and target new sounds. This isn’t a requirement but can be a benefit for new teams. One deaf couple, who each have a hearing dog, actually went back to CCI together and were able to each be matched with dogs from the same litter. Each dog alerts to the alarm clock of the person handling the dog. Now that’s what I call very handy, for sure. One woman tells how her Labrador retriever kept her out of harm’s way while crossing a street. A car ran the stop light and she didn’t hear it but the dog pushed her out of the way of the oncoming car. She said this was a behavior that wasn’t practiced as part of their training, but the dog’s instincts took over.

What breeds of dogs are used as hearing dogs? Pretty much any breed and size, from poodles to German Shepherds. Some people prefer the smaller dogs, some the larger. Some programs breed dogs and others look for dogs in shelters and take donated dogs. The dog has to be tested for sound reactivity, temperament and willingness to work before they are accepted into formal training. Training takes about three months to one year, depending on the program and the needs of the person to whom the dog will be matched.

Interestingly, different countries identify hearing dogs in varying ways. The United Kingdom requires dogs to wear a burgundy service vest; in Australia dogs who help the deaf wear orange collars and leashes. The United States leaves it up to the individual, as the ADA does not require service dogs to wear service vests but many hearing dogs do wear them to help the public understand not to distract them when they are out working with their handler.

Dogs for the deaf make it easier for a person to go out in public and also live a more independent life.

For more information:

CCI home page:
www.cci.org
Wikipedia:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hearing_dog

Although I have worked off and on since 1975, November 2005 was the first time in 25 years that I was preparing for full-time employment. Part of my new position involved extensive computer use which I was not looking forward to. My reason was my preference for Braille displays and my extreme dislike of the synthetic speech produced by every screen reader with which I was familiar. Once I learned how to use JAWS, however, I was so proud of myself that I became addicted to it – addicted, that is – to everything except the price. The Pittsburgh Office of Blindness and Vision Services, now part of OVR, paid a good bit for JAWS. Were I starting that same job in 2013, and asked if I wanted JAWS or WindowEyes, I would say “no.” That’s what Robert Kingett – author of an informative article in the May, 2013 Braille Monitor about NVDA-said when a vocational rehabilitation counselor asked that question. What follows is a summary of both advantages and disadvantages of NVDA as presented in Robert Kingett’s article, “My Ongoing Search for Accessibility.” There will also be a brief history of this program’s development.

Having debuted in 2006, NVDA, which stands for non-visual Desktop Access, was developed by an Australian company called NV Access. Unlike commercial screen readers, NVDA is a free, open source screen reader which can be downloaded onto any Windows-based computer by going to http://nvda-project.org. NVDA can also be downloaded onto a thumb drive, enabling the user to have portable accessibility right in his or her pocket. In addition to being compatible with the Microsoft Office suite of products like Excel, PowerPoint, and Word, NVDA also works with Windows platforms from XP to 8. In his article, Robert Kingett also mentions the 36 languages into which NVDA has been translated: Afrikaans, Arabic, Brazilian Portuguese, Chinese (both simplified and traditional), Croatian, Czech, Danish, Dutch, Finnish, French, Galician, Georgian, German, Hebrew, Hindi, Hungarian, Icelandic, Japanese, Norwegian, Polish, Portuguese, Romanian, Russian, Serbian, Slovak, Spanish, Swedish, Tamil, Thai, Turkish, Ukrainian, and Vietnamese.

I couldn’t agree more with Mr. Kingett when he lists NVDA’s strengths as being free (though donations are always welcomed and encouraged), community driven and not profit driven and a program which is constantly being updated at a rate of three updates per year with 20 enhancements and 30 fixes.

As with any product or service, NVDA has its flaws and is not right for everyone. If you enjoy NVDA and find it as useful as Robert Kingett has, then you might feel, as I also do, that affordable, universal accessibility has been transformed from a longed-for dream to a welcomed reality.

To read Robert Kingett’s article in its entirety, go to nfb.org and locate the May, 2013 edition of The Braille Monitor. You can also e-mail me at twinaught@comcast.net, and I will gladly send you Mr. Kingett’s article. Robert Kingett is a film critic, motivational speaker, and performing arts critic who lives in Chicago, Illinois. Additionally, Mr. Kingett has cerebral palsy, is partially sighted, and is a technology enthusiast.

To find NVDA add ons, visit stormdragon.us/nvda and addons.nvda-project.org. If you are on the Philmore Productions Voicemail system, you can learn more about NVDA by entering Box 3070 and asking to join Debbie’s NVDA group. To join a more technical, web-based group, e-mail David Goldfield, Access Technology Instructor at Associated Services for the Blind e-mail: dgoldfie@asb.org.

If any readers use NVDA, share your experiences in Readers Forum.

Hello Everyone,

I hope you had a great week.

Unfortunately my experiment with spacing the emails out last week did not solve all of the email distribution problems we’ve been having. I’m still working on it. I’ve set up an automatic response on the editor@matildaziegler.com email address that will send either the magazine or supplement to you if you do not get the emails initially. All you have to do is send an email with the subject “Did not get magazine” or “Did not get supplement” and it will be sent to you right away. I will update these emails every week going forward.

Thanks to those who wrote in to the Reader’s Forum.

Thanks for reading and have a good week.

Sincerely,
Ren Brighton, Editor

Submitted by Dave Hutchins

Slow-cook the ribs during the day and they will be ready to finish on
the grill when you get home.

Yield: 4 Servings
Preparation Time: 5 minutes
Cooking Time: 6-1/4 hours

Ingredients:
2-1/2 pounds pork baby back ribs, cut into eight pieces
5 cups water
1 medium onion, sliced
2 celery ribs, cut in half
2 teaspoons minced garlic, divided
1 teaspoon whole peppercorns
3/4 cup barbecue sauce
1/4 cup plum sauce
Dash hot pepper sauce

Directions:
Place the ribs in a 5 quart slow cooker. Add the water, onion, celery, 1 teaspoon garlic and peppercorns. Cover and cook on low for 6 hours or until meat is tender.

In a small saucepan, combine the barbecue sauce, plum sauce, hot pepper sauce and remaining garlic. Cook and stir over medium heat for 5minutes or until heated through.

Remove ribs. Discard cooking juices and vegetables.

Moisten a paper towel with cooking oil; using long-handled tongs, lightly coat the grill rack.

Brush ribs with sauce. Grill, covered, over medium-low heat for 8 to 10 minutes or until browned, turning and basting occasionally with remaining sauce.

Phil Jones wrote:

I’m writing to express my appreciation to John Christie for sharing with us the article Georgia Man Gets No Break in Life. The reason I say this is because all too often many of us who are blind or visually impaired become too focused on the negative side of blindness and the native attitudes board us and the barriers that we face. The fact is that the vast majority of us have it pretty good and most of us can turn our situation around if we really want too. We’ve made a lot of progress over the years and the fact that we have shows that we still can if we really want to. The individual written about in this article had no breaks at all, was never given a chance and died at a very young age. So folks let’s try to keep that in mind the next time things don’t seem to be going the way we think they should.

In response to Terri’s comment in last week’s Reader’s Forum, David McElroy wrote:

Regarding marriage to an SSI beneficiary, that benefit is technically a Welfare program. Therefore, significant restrictions apply which would not be as onerous were this spouse receiving funds under his own account. Would this couple not have been better served by dropping SSI initially and remaining in one apartment?

In 1981, I joined one of the largest consumer organizations of blind people in this country. I learned about how and why the organization was founded, what its focus was, and how blind people in the movement fight for their rights. I also learned that there were approximately 50 thousand members throughout the United States. My own chapter had close to 40 members, and we were very strong.

As the years went by, the membership in my chapter diminished by leaps and bounds, until finally in 2006, the chapter didn’t have any members left. I believe that the reason for this dramatic drop in membership was very simple. While the older members resigned or passed away, it was very difficult to recruit young, ambitious people. I later learned that other chapters in my state suffered the same fate, and in two cases the chapters were dissolved. Then I began to wonder if my state was the only one with this problem, because I find it hard to believe that in an organization with 50 state affiliates, my state would be the only one which was rapidly losing membership. Yet despite several chapters drained of members, I still hear that the organization is fifty thousand strong.

On one hand, it is very sad to hear that consumer groups are having problems recruiting younger people, blind or sighted. Could it be that younger people don’t want to be bothered? Is it that young blind people of today, given how they are integrated in society more than ever, are suddenly too busy to join something new, even if it’s for their own good? Could it also be that transportation isn’t as affordable as it once was? No matter why it’s so hard to recruit the younger generation, it is a known fact. With that said, have we seen the peak of powerful consumer groups? What are their futures, and will they be as effective in their advocacy as they have been?

I welcome your input.

Channel Two, Pittsburgh Pennsylvania’s CBS affiliate, airs a program Monday through Friday called Pittsburgh Today Live.

Their May 8th program was entirely Mother’s Day themed with one segment having been called, “Mother May I?” That segment featured a nutritionist from the University of Pittsburgh Medical Center testing the hosts’ knowledge of food facts. I thought of Ziegler readers immediately and decided to share the quiz the TV hosts took.

1. Moms should focus their diets on “super foods.” If you answered “false,” you may take a step forward. Good though so-called “super foods” might be, to focus almost exclusively on them would be to deprive oneself of valuable nutrients.

2. Sugar is always toxic. Again, while too much sugar consumption can be problematic, sugar is not toxic. Also keep in mind that few things are “never” or “always.”

3. Soy is bad for a pregnant woman. Since soy can serve as an excellent source of protein, this, too, is false.

4. Frozen vegetables can sometimes be better than fresh. Interestingly, this is true. Frozen vegetables, especially if not overcooked, contain the nutrients found in fresh produce.

To access the entire quiz, go to kdka.com and follow the links to PTL for Pittsburgh Today Live. You can also access a variety of health topics by going to www.upmc.com.

I hope that all Ziegler female readers had a wonderful Mother’s Day.

Do you visit the YouTube website often? If you’d asked me that question a few years ago, my lukewarm response would have been, “Not much”. Sighted friends and colleagues would send videos that were fairly visual or I would occasionally receive a few really fun or unique videos through email and/or Twitter but that was it. I’m certain my lack of enthusiasm stemmed from the fact that YouTube was not a bastion of accessibility. Pressing the letter “B” would move from button to button but there was always the annoyance that the music would often overpower my JAWS screen reader and it was difficult to hear the “Pause” button.

When I visited the YouTube website on my cherished HTC Ozone Windows phone back in 2009, searches took forever! I only ventured to the site when at a medical office where I knew I’d have some time to spare. I won’t deny that it was still thrilling as I’d previously only been able to enjoy videos on my PC.

My use of YouTube escalated during preparation for our first cabaret show as I’d search for renditions of songs I wanted to perform. Once found, I’d purchase the song on www.amazon.com/mp3. It was an unbeatable combination. Still, this was a sporadic thing. As you know, I also use an accessible YouTube alternative found at www.povidi.com/yourtube.

Using YouTube on my iPhone has been a pleasant enough experience but as tech companies are prone to do, they fiddle with and tweak their products. These changes sometimes come at the expense of accessibility and it can be quite disturbing. The YouTube app was just fine and when the new version was rolled out, blind and visually impaired users groaned. I recall scratching my head in bewilderment to try to figure out why the developers felt it necessary to hide the video controls once the player opened. Double-tapping returned the controls but it just seemed a waste of a good gesture. The view has changed yet again, but with exploration, viewing is a reasonable experience.

Lately, my viewing has skyrocketed as I’m currently hooked on the educational and humorous Mental Floss and Sci-Show videos. Packed with facts from A to Z, you can learn a great deal in a few minutes. Their theme song, however, is driving me slightly mad but I’m certain they chose it for some obscure reason only they know. Now, if only the videos wouldn’t continually start and stop.

I’m now giving the You Player app a go and find it quite Voiceover friendly. You’ll find a fine demonstration at www.applevis.com.

By the way, how do you feel about paid channel subscriptions coming to YouTube?

For more than a century Spelman College has had one commencement ceremony after another, but co-valedictorians is something they have never experienced before. Spelman, located in Atlanta, Georgia, will conduct its 126th Commencement this coming Sunday, and this time the occasion will be historic for several reasons. Not only is this the first time the school will feature co-valedictorians, but the academic stars happen to be sisters too. To be more precise, Kirstie and Kristie Bronner are identical twins, who obviously share much more in common than just their looks.

Explaining how they were both able to maintain perfect 4.0 GPA’s, the sisters emphasized the importance of prioritizing, accountability, and faith. “People would ask us, do you want to go do this or that on a weekday and the response was an automatic no”, said Kirstie. “We saved recreation for the weekend.” When her sister chimed in, she talked about the difference between asking for something as opposed to working for it. “Prayer accounts for things you can’t do,” said Kristie. “What you are able to take responsibility for, do it. Don’t act like God is supposed to do it all for you.”

In the immediate future, the sisters plan to work at a youth ministry in Atlanta, where their father happens to be the pastor. Eventually, Kirstie and Kristie, who each earned a degree in music, aspire to record a gospel album. Future plans also include publishing a book, geared towards educating teens on accomplishing scholastic excellence.

Knowing their history, it comes as no surprise that Kirstie and Kristie value education so much, because the twins are not the first members of the family to graduate from Spelman. Their mother and grandmother also earned degrees from the prestigious college for African American women, so that always supplied motivation to continue the family tradition. Now that the mission is complete, Kristie summed up the impact Spelman has had on her life. “It’s been a nurturing environment for my overall growth as a Black woman.”

Source: http://www.spelman.edu/about-us/news-and-events/2013/05/02/kirstie-and-kristie-bronner-named-co-valedictorians-for-spelman-college-class-of-2013