NCCB Logo – Blue color image of North Carolina with an overlay of NCCB & a star, underneath are the braille letters NCCB and the printed words North Carolina Council of the Blind. An outline of an eye is in the top left Corner.
The NCCB Newsletter
North Carolina Council of the Blind
Volume I Issue 1 Date: January 2022
Bill Graham – Newsletter Editor
Welcome to our newest Edition of the NCCB Newsletter. Our intent is that this newsletter will provide valuable information for all our stakeholders: Members, Potential Members, other local support groups, other ACB affiliates, the general public, governmental agencies and fundraising/Grants.
You are invited to help us select a name for our NCCB Newsletter that emphatically denotes the purpose of NCCB and its Newsletter. Please send suggestions to nccb.publicity@gmail.com
Table of Contents
President’s Message
First VP’s Message
Secretary Message
Treasurer Message
Board Update
Immediate Past President/ACB Director
Membership Message
Welcoming New Members
Committee Reports
Advocacy, Legislative Affairs and Resolutions Committee
Assistive Technology
Audit Committee
Brady Jones Committee
Convention
Employment Committee
Nominations
Publicity Committee
Transportation
NCCB Chapter Reports
Alamance
Charlotte
Greensboro
Durham
Raleigh Wake
NCCB Affiliates Reports
Braille Revival League
NCCB At Large Members Group
Letters to the Editor
Scholarships, Grants & Awards
Historian
Member Activities
NCCB website News
Messages from Other Organizations
Division of Services for the Blind
Governor Morehead School for the Blind
NC Reading Service
Newsletter Body
President’s Message
Lacey Coward, President
Greetings Members, Friends and Colleagues.
The President is responsible for the day-to-day operation and progress of the North Carolina Council of the Blind and for conducting all meetings. The President, upon approval of the Board, shall contract the services of any professional necessary to conduct the business of the North Carolina Council of the Blind. The President shall send to each Board member an agenda at least ten (10) days prior to any Board meeting, except the post-convention Board meeting. The President, within forty-five (45) days of election, shall ensure coverage of the Board by a policy of Directors and Officers Liability Insurance. The President, upon approval of the Board, shall appoint any committee necessary to fulfill a special task.
First VP Message
Becky Davidson, 1st Vice President
Hello, NCCB and Happy New Year! This is Becky Davidson, First Vice President. My husband, Ron, and I live in Charlotte with our two guide dogs.
As we look forward into 2022 there is much to consider. I serve as chair ofthe ACB national Environmental Access Committee and also of NCCB’s EAC. My focus is on advocating for a safe and accessible pedestrian environment. NC is a very diverse state in terms of both pedestrian access and transportation. Our state committee will be meeting very soon so stay tuned as we keep the lines of communication open.
The North Carolina Council ofthe Blind has a rich history of advocacy for and support ofthe blind and low-vision community. Still, we may be one ofthe best-kept secrets in our state. I look forward to doing my part to change that!
As those of us who work with guide dogs say at the beginning of our journey: NCCB, forward!
Secretary’s Message
Belinda G. Collins, Secretary
In addition to the usual duties, the Secretary shall furnish to each affiliate and members-at-large a summary of all conventions and/or meetings of the Board within thirty (30) days after the conclusion of said convention and /or meetings.
Maintain a roll of certified voting members of each affiliate and of members-at-large.
Tresurer Message
Jo Taliaferro, Treasurer
Jo Taliaferro and Jane Ferrita are the treasures of the North Carolina Council of the blind. What do we do, anyway? Do we sit around with the full boxes of checks and count and recount them? I think not! We stay ever watchful to make sure that all accounts are balanced, that our books are audited and that everyone pays their dues to the national office of the American Council of the blind. As well as to the state affiliate.
Jane and I have worked together for the past two years Going from using mostly paper to doing the best job we can, with all the perks of banking online.
Jane is the assistant treasurer, and it is her job to comb through all the paperwork and all the emails that I send, to make sure the check books are balanced. She does a wonderful job and I love it when she nags me and says, “you forgot to send this or, ““I can’t find my copy of…“…”
The treasurer makes payment to the American Council of the Blind at its national office, sends donations to charitable organizations as approved by the board as well as sending money to our scholarship recipients each year. the to those headed for Washington DC and the legislative seminar and pays other board approved expenses such as those we give to folks in need through the Brady Jones benevolence fund.
Wells Fargo has been very cooperative and still remain one of the most accessible banks I have dealt with. They are willing to do many things over the phone, not otherwise available to people with sight. We just have to keep climbing higher and higher to find the absolutely wonderful supervisor who helps us make some of our transactions.
Our assets and liabilities are reported to the board at each quarterly meeting as well as investments we have with Fidelity.
Jane and I are excited to have an investment committee once again, to keep us on our toes and invest wisely so that we continue to have a rainy day fund, whatever that is in the world of climate change.
Board Update
Bill Graham
Your NCCB At Large Board Members are Bill Graham & Peter Crumley. We are excited about helping to make the NCCCB an organization that makes a difference in peoples lives. One of the important functios of an At Large Board Member is look for wys to improve our organization. One wy we can do that is by hearing from your, our members. Please feel free to contact your at large members at: bill Graham – nccb.publicity@gmail.com; Peter Crumley –
Immediate Past President/ACB Director
Chris Bell, IPP
The ACB Board of Directors recently approved a budget for 2022. Revenue: $2,253,000
Expenses: $2,731,200
Net Additional Contributions from two Thrift Stores: $245,500
Although this budget is not balanced, ACB’s experience over the last several years is that revenues usually significantly exceed the budgeted expectation and expenses run consistently lower than anticipated, leading to a net gain rather than loss. Over the last several years. ACB also has considerable unrestricted and restricted reserve funds.
It is important to note that the amount of money ACB receives from dues is extremely small as a percentage of operating revenue:
ACB membership revenue: $55,400
Percentage of total revenue: 2.46%
The vast majority of ACB’s revenue comes from internal ACB fundraising, external fundraising efforts, corporate donations and grants.
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Based upon various news media reports, North Carolina is expected to receive billions from the bipartisan infrastructure law over the next five years:
- $1 billion for broadband expansion
- $910 million to improve public transit
- $7.2 billion for highway construction
- $457 million for bridge replacement
- $1 billion for improving water infrastructure and elimination of lead pipes
- A share of $7.2 billion for nationwide installation of charging stations for electric behicles
The question is how will NCCB advocate to ensure that this new federal money helps blind and low vision North Carolinians??
Membership Message
Lawrence Carter, Chair
Membership is vital to any organization. Members are why we serve and they are how we serve. Retaining existing members and recruiting new members is not the function of one person or one committee; membership is everyone’s role. Your Membership Committee is honored to lead this effort, but you play a vital role. Let’s all work together to increase the number of people we can help and to increase the number of people working to help others!
Welcoming New Members
Lawrence Carter, Chair
This section will welcome new members joining the NCCB. A membership application can be found at https://nccbinfo.org/membership/
Welcome Phyllis Barfield-Ollikainen, who joined as an At-Large member in January.
Committee Reports
Advocacy, Legislative Affairs and Resolutions Committee
Tim Snyder, Chair
Currently, we have 6 members plus President Lacy on our committee. We recently met to set goals. Many advocacy and legislative concerns were mentioned which may lead to action and the submitting of resolutions. As we move forward, you will be kept up to date with the progress of our committee and its work. Stay tuned. We will certainly need your help.
Assistive Technology
Peter Crumley, Chair
The NCCB Technology Committee members are Chair Peter Crumley, Co-Chair Belinda Collins, Lino Morales, Bob Warren, and Grace Minter. The mission of the NCCB Technology Committee is to provide advisory support on all technical matters before the NCCB as a whole and both Committees and Members individually. The NCCB Technology Committee will strive to advance accessibility for the Blind and Low-Vision through awareness of new technologies, applications, and direct interaction with developers. Additionally, partnerships will be established with supportive organizations to promote knowledge and placement of assisted technology into the hands of the Blind and Low-Vision to establish lasting results and provide a progression of knowledge that is transferable throughout the transitional progression of vision loss towards blindness. To accomplish our long-term goals will require working directly with the Advocacy, Environmental Access, Publicity, and Policy Committees and the Braille Revival League Group where there exists overlapping needs and required oversight to maintain all issues incorporating technology to mandate adherence to the governing principles of the “Blind Perspective Philosophy”.
The forward leaning goals to guide the work of the NCCB Technology Committee are:
NCCB Technology Committee 2022 Goals
1. Promote the establishment of partnerships with Blind supportive organizations to facilitate the transfer of knowledge concerning technology to aid the Blind for enhancement of independence and societal inclusion through applied Blind Perspective Philosophy.
2. Promote the establishment of partnerships with organizations supporting Low-Vision programs to provide transfer of knowledge and access to targeted low-vision technologies that aid throughout the many transitional levels defining low-vision as a means to gain knowledge for preparing to function as a blind individual if required due to continual visual degradation.
3. Educate all of assistive visual technologies as an honest source that states known pros and cons of any individual aid acting as an informational source only, without provision of advantageous endorsement of any product, this approach is designed to allow the end user to investigate competitive options and make purchase decisions based on achieving expected personalized desired results at justifiable price points in lieu of being disappointed by basing purchase decisions on unsubstantiated hype orSighted Perspectiveproduct preferences.
4. Identify members of NCCB with advance user knowledge of specific software packages from Apple, Microsoft, Google, Amazon, to act as representative voices of identified accessibility issues, document and provide suggested accessibility solutions to these major technology providers. The desired outcome will be to develop a unified Council voice representing the NCCB, that can be expanded to become the model for the ACB to develop a unified National Voice, capable of establishing channels of communication with these major companies to achieved corrective results than is possible through the current lone voice individual feedback contact format.
5. Develop a series of Apple IOS training modules to train all NCCB iPhone owners in the mastering of the iPhone Blind accessibility Functionality.
6. Develop direct relationships with Developers of apps for the Blind to refine and expand functionality to fit newly identified applied usage.
7. Develop a list of Essential Blind Apps to guide the Blind as a suggested roadmap to achieve independence and success.
8. Identify and support targeted technology programs training the Blind to live independently.
9. Provide technology content to NCCB WebMaster for posting on NCCB Website.
10. Provide technological support to the NCCB as requested.
Prepared by Peter Crumley – Technology Committee Chair – Released Date 12/11/2021
Audit Committee
Tim Snyder, chair
President Lacey has established an audit committee to perform audit functions until an audit committee is elected at the upcoming convention. Our committee is committed to confirming the fiscal soundness of NCCB. We appreciate the ongoing cooperation of all who will be assisting us in our audit process.
Brady Jones Committee
Dr. Ricky Scott, Chair
The NC Council of the Blind established the Brady Jones Benevolence Fund to provide financial assistance to eligible blind or visually impaired persons of North Carolina who are facing some financial hardship.
The Brady Jones committee will review applications and submit them to the board for approval. In any given year, our committee will approve no more than three grants. For more details about the application process and eligibility requirements, you may review on our website at https://nccbinfo.org, under the About NCCB tab, and clink on Brady Jones link for these details. Should you have any questions, feel free to contact me at (919) 673-8300.
Sincerely,
Dr. Ricky Scott, Chairman,
Brady Jones Committee
Convention
Lawrence Carter, Chair
The North Carolina Council of the Blind invites you to our state convention. It will take place in the capital city of Raleigh this year, on Sept. 23rd-25th. This year we will be staying at the beautiful Ramada Inn, at 1520 Blue Ridge rd., Raleigh NC 27607. This year our room rate will be $75.10 plus taxes per night. You can reserve your room today, just call 919-832-4100 and use code GCNCCB22. If you have any questions, please call Lawrence Carter at 919-856-0034 or cell 919-649-5915.
Employment Committee
Tim Snyder, Chair
The Employment Committee will be exploring barriers to employment as well as promoting opportunities for employment. We will be communicating in future newsletters what we hope to accomplish. We will need your help and participation. The lack of employment among blind people is a real problem we need to address on an ongoing basis. Let’s work together to ensure that more blind and visually impaired people find work.
Nominations
Lawrence Carter, Chair
2022 is not an election year for Officers & At Large Members. The next year for elections will be 2023.
Your Nominations Committee
Publicity
Bill Graham, Chair
The Publicity Committee shall consist of at least the following members: Chair, Vice-Chair and at least two other members. The President and/or Secretary are encouraged to actively participate as ex-officio committee members.
The committee’s mission will be to communicate the NCCB message to all interested parties: members, potential new members, other local support groups, other ACB affiliates, the general public, governmental agencies and fundraising sources.
The Publicity Committee will have the following areas of Focus: The NCCB Newsletter Editor, The NCCB website Content Manager, Media posts & NC Governor Proclamations and a Accessible Media coordinator and the NCCB.group.io Coordinator.
The Publication Committee Goals for 2022 are: Establish a NCCB Newsletter & issue 4 quarterly Newsletters, Have the NCCB Newsletter read on the NC Reading Service, Establish a NCCB Web page Content Manager, Submit NC Governor Proclamation requests for White Cane Safety Day – October 15, 2022 and Braille Literacy Month – January, 2023 (requests currently have 120 day advance notice).
Transportation
The North Carolina Council of the Blind recognizes that making transportation
more accessible is key to improving the lives of people who are blind or have
low vision.
Some Transportation Committee goals for 2022:
– create a directory of transportation services for the visually impaired in North Carolina
– become familiar with the many new “transportation network companies” (TNCs) that are playing a larger role in providing “on demand” paratransit service nationwide
– keep up with pilot projects around the state and country that are working with TNCs to provide riders with
– apps that allow the rider to manage rides, check arrival, etc
– same day trips
– trips with one stop along the way
– “micro transit” in areas not otherwise not served by regular transportation services
– keep up with the status of autonomous vehicles and the special issues surrounding their use by the visually impaired
– coordinate with the Advocacy Committee to push for new laws and new funding sources to improve transportation at the state and national level
Local efforts (Bob Warren)
– advocate for using NaviLens codes in the Chapel Hill transit system to facilitate finding bus stops, knowing when the next bus will arrive, identify the bus route, read signs inside the bus in multiple languages, etc. Note that such a system would benefit all riders, not just those who are visually impaired.
See https://www.navilens.com/en/ for much information and examples and usage of the NaviLens codes
San Antonio is pursuing such a pilot now:
App Will Help Blind, Visually Impaired Navigate San Antonio
https://texasnewstoday.com/the-new-app-should-help-blind-via-bus-sliders-navigate-routes/433253/
NCCB Chapter Reports
Alamance
By
Charlotte
By
Greensboro
By
Durham
DONALD RAINS – President
Greetings to all North Carolina Council of the Blind. From Donald Rains President of the Durham Council of the Blind. The Durham Council of the Blind is an active advocating organization advocating for the blind concerns of the residents of Durham NC and other blind persons across the state of North Carolina.
This past year, we took an active role advocating for employment, education, and healthcare for blind citizens. In August of this year, we advocated to several doctor’s associations including the North Carolina state medical board for doctors in North Carolina to report their blind and visually impaired patients to the North Carolina division of services to the blind. In that event, we were very successful and congratulated by a state, Senator Natalie Murdock, who represents Durham County.
Our goal is to continue to advocate for public safety, employment, healthcare, education, and legislative mandate. Enacted for the benefit and right of all visually impaired and blind residents of North Carolina. We
have regular monthly meetings, and at other times, we come together to enjoy each other’s company. In that, we are hoping and gearing towards face-to-face meetings this coming new year, depending on where we are with COVID 19 pandemic.
Submitted by,
Donald Rains
President of the Durham Council of the Blind
Raleigh Wake
Lawrence Carter – President
Exciting things are happening within the Raleigh Wake Council of the Blind chapter We are constantly learning and improving ways to meet and exceed the goals of the NCCB.
We begin each meeting sending up thanks and seeking guidance from the LORD above. Then We proceed to address topics of interest and concerns of the blind and visually impaired community and people with other disabilities.
We address issues such as accessible transportation and employment, independent living. We discuss educational opportunities, technology advancements, and even access to recreation and entertainment. We engage in sharing with the community by providing scholarships to needy students, giving to food banks, and Thanksgiving and Christmas care packages, to families in need.
We also support other organizations by attending their fundraising events, such as the Vision Walk and insightful Visionary. We have fund raising events ourselves, like Belk Charity and the selling of terrilynn products. We have a benevolence committee that reaches out to the sick, bereave members and families. Our Mayor’s committee keeps us up to date in the legislative aspect of concerns of the disability community.
We have had many guest speakers to inform us of the services they provide. Carolyn Covington from insightful Visionarys, City council member Kay Crowder of district D talked about affordable housing and ADA policies regarding employment, low-income housing and citizen involvement responsibilities. Ms. Kaila Gilbert from the Better Business Bureau, talked about how to recognize and report scams, identity theft, and the history and reputation of a particular business. Ms. Sue Ellen from the board of Elections talked about voter accessibility and Iris Green and Cash Saron from Disability Rights of North Carolina, talked about representing the disability community against discrimination and abuse, and advocating for children with complex needs. They also talked about their involvement in disaster relief. Other speakers included: Raleigh City council member Sage Martin of district D, Ms. Dee Foss from the department of services for the blind, Raleigh City council member Stormy Forte of district D, Sharon Banks ADA Coordinator for the City of Raleigh and others.
we have lots of interesting things going on here, in the Raleigh/Wake Council of the Blind. Come and join us in our quest to continue and improve life for persons with certain limitations, let’s eliminate our disabilities with knowledge and accessibilities.
NCCB Affiliates Reports
At present, these are not formal NCCB Affiliates
Braille Revival League
May Davis
Greetings, and best wishes for a happy and peaceful 2022 to all.
I am excited about the start of the NCCB newsletter and hope that it can be produced in braille for folks who do not have email, or those who just prefer that format – like me. I love my email, and it is fast and easy, but I really like having material in hard copy braille and, as I said, everyone does not have access to email. If you would like to have the newsletter in braille, send me a note to mayanddon52@gmail.com, or call me at 336-307-4070. If you get voicemail, leave a message and I’ll call you back.
The other thing that I’d like feedback on is our effort to start a chapter of The Braille Revival League in NC. The Braille Revival League is an affiliate of ACB, and there are 6 chapters across the country. We have several members in NC, and last fall there was discussion of perhaps starting a chapter. I would like to continue this discussion and will be setting up a Zoom call to do so soon.
NCCB At Large Members Group
Peter Crumley
The NCCB At-Large Group was formed in late 2020, to address the inability of NCCB Members to meet due to either not residing in one of the five localities where structured Chapters exist, or that they find meeting physically does not fit their individual desires. To grow the NCCB and harness the abilities and passion of those members across the State the At-Large Group became organized, facilitated by Peter Crumley, to hold monthly Zoom meetings, on the fourth Monday of each month at 7PM. These meetings have been held on the North Raleigh Lions Club zoom account, we thank Bill Graham for this access,. The At-Large Group has begun inviting speakers, this fall we had a presentation by a lead representative from the Braille Revival League and from the President of the Governor morehead School for the Blind; plan to Zoom in for the January meeting when a representative from the NC Blind/Deaf program is scheduled to speak. These presentations to date have lead to the establishment of a Braille Revival League associated group under the leadership of Mary Davis, and a relationship has been established with Governor Morehead School to support the Braille program and to work towards the establishment of a Mentor Program onan individual bases between students and NCCB members.
The At-Large Group is comprised of a diverse collection of talented individuals, representing many areas of interest and knowledge, which has already proven to be capable of providing results to support the greater NCCB mission of supporting the Blind of NC. We thank those who have chosen to participate, as these voices have made a difference, for those At-Large members who have not joined in we welcome your participation.
Please send an email to nccbatlarge@gmail.com to be added to the meeting invite list.
At-Large Group Facilitator Peter Crumley
Letters to the Editor
Bill Graham, Newsletter Editor
[Note: Letters printed in The NCCB News are submitted by the
subscribers and are not necessarily reflective of the membership
as a whole. The articles express only the opinion of the author.]
Subscribers are invited to submit letters to the editor at nccb.publicity@gmail.com. The editor reserves the right to not publish inappropriate content.
NCCB website
Your NCCB Board has plans to provide much more information, such as this newsletter, on or NCCB website, https://nccbinfo.org.
Scholarships, Grants & Awards
Historian
Past Successful Paratransit Service in the City of Raleigh as noted by Dr. Ricky Scott
In the late 1980’s the City of Raleigh contracted with Yellow Cab company to provide share ride transportation for persons with disabilities at a cost of $2 per trip. However, it soon became obvious that Yellow Cab service delivery was poor in that there were far too many instances where riders had to wait for two hours or more for a trip or they were never picked up because Yellow Cab prioritized its cash trips. Complaints were relayed to the city as a result.
In 1989, we began a dialogue with the transit staff on how to solve this problem. As a result, Council passed an ordinance establishing the ART program (Accessible Raleigh Transportation) that required all taxi companies with six cabs or more to accept the tickets. The ART program provided unlimited, on demand, 24-hour accessible paratransit service for persons with disabilities. To pay for the metered trip, users of the program had to purchase from the City of Raleigh a booklet of tickets. The per booklet cost was $12 where each booklet had $25 worth of tickets resulting in both the city and rider baring the cost of a trip (52 percent and 48 percent respectively.
With the passage of the ADA in 1990, I, along with other ART users met with transit staff concerning the new law and its impact on the para-transportation program in the city. Because the ADA stated that the fare for a paratransit trip could not be “more than twice” the fare of a fixed route bus fare, it was imperative that the ART program reflected this new ADA regulation. As a result of this collaborative effort between transit staff and us riders of Accessible Raleigh Transportation, the city council accepted the transit staff recommendation which maintained the existing system that provided unlimited on-demand comprehensive paratransit service, meanwhile adding the new component to the paratransit program that required advanced scheduling of trips and limited access to comply with the ADA regulations of service within a ¾ mile radius of a fixed route bus stop and the per trip fare to be no more than twice that of a fixed route fare. With this change to the ART program, now, it was referred to as Tier I and tier II respectively to reflect that change. For tier I, tickets continued to be purchased through the city for $12 per booklet with $25 value of coupons using the taxi cabs as a base to provide this service. For tier II, the city issued a separate booklet of tickets where there were ten tickets in the booklet which equated to ten trips. The same taxi companies were used to provide this service. As a result, riders could call any taxi to use the on-demand service commonly referred to as tier 1 and they could also call customer service that handled the scheduling of trips for next day trips commonly referred to as tier II. Under tier II, at that time individual riders were assigned to a particular cab company. This system worked extremely well for the riders because they could have comprehensive paratransit access 24 hours a day throughout the city of Raleigh.
With the change in ADA paratransit leadership in transit staff about seven or eight years later, staff administrator only wanted to provide ADA transportation required by the ADA and nothing else. When the Great Recession hit, staff took this as an opportunity to eliminate tier 1 as a necessary cost saving measure and allegedly bringing the city into ADA compliance. It is important to note that at that time, the “on demand” tier 1 only had a cost of 600 thousand dollars per year with the riders responsible for 48 percent through the purchase of the tickets. As a result, the actual cost to the city was 360 thousand dollars per year. At that time, I believe that the total cost of para-transportation approximated 11 million dollars per year. As a result of these actions by staff and council, today, persons with disabilities lack comprehensive accessible transportation service. Once known as the progressive and forward-thinking city across our state regarding the provision of paratransit service to persons with disabilities, our city reflect the status quo perspective regarding this issue of paratransit service delivery which is only to meet ADA requirement. That is the history and if you have any additional questions, please let me know.
Member Activities
[Note: Articles printed in The NCCB News are submitted by the
subscribers and are not necessarily reflective of the membership
as a whole. The articles express only the opinion of the author.]
Messages from Other Organizations
Division of Services for the Blind
NC DEPARTMENT OF HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES
Division of Services for the Blind (DSB)
Re-envisioning Our Future
2021 Annual Report
Below are selected items from the annual report. The full report can be found at https://www.ncdhhs.gov/divisions/services-blind/reports-and-publications/ncdsb-annual-report.
The NC Division of Services for the Blind (DSB), an agency under the NC Department of Health and Human Services (NC DHHS), provides services to people who are blind, visually impaired, or deafblind to help them reach their goals of independence and employment. This mission is in direct alignment with the mission of the NC DHHS goal to increase the health and well-being of all North Carolina citizens.
Mission of the State Rehabilitation Council
To develop and improve services for North Carolinians who are blind, visually impaired, or deafblind.
Functions of the DSB State Rehabilitation Council
- ïReviews and makes recommendations to DSB about the VR program’s performance regarding eligibility, scope and effectiveness of services provided and functions performed that affect the ability of individuals served to achieve rehabilitation goals
- ïIn partnership with DSB, develops and reviews the VR program goals and priorities and evaluates the effectiveness of the program
- ïPrepares and submits an annual report on the status of DSB’s vocational rehabilitation program and makes the report available to the public
- ïAssists the agency in developing the State Plan and amendments and evaluations
- ïReviews and analyzes the effectiveness of and level of consumer satisfaction with DSB’s VR services and employment outcomes achieved by recipients of services.
DSB Vocational Rehabilitation
The NC Division of Services for the Blind’s Vocational Rehabilitation (NC DSB) program provides vocational and rehabilitative services to individuals who are visually impaired, blind or deafblind to help them obtain, regain, maintain, or advance in employment. Services offered through our Vocational Rehabilitation program assist with reducing or removing barriers to employment. We believe that with the right supports and accommodations, the individuals we serve can be employed in competitive and integrated environments.
DSB is comprised of a strong team of case managers, counselors, and specialists that can assist an eligible individual with vision loss to be successful in the workplace and continue to live independently. Those specialists include Business Services Representatives, Community Employment Specialists, Orientation and Mobility Specialists, Nursing Eye Care Consultants, a Rehabilitation Engineer, Assistive Technology Consultants, Assistive Technology Instructors, the DSB Career and Training Center staff, including a Vocational Evaluator, as well as Deafblind Specialists. These services are coordinated through our Vocational Rehabilitation Counselors, Independent Living Rehabilitation Counselors and Social Workers for the Blind. In addition to the above, all support staff in the area and district offices, as well as the team of administrators in the state office, strive to find ways to assist people to achieve successful employment outcomes.
Governor Morehead School for the Blind
New Leader Selected for Governor Morehead School for the Blind
Melvin Diggs, Jr., has been selected as the new school director for Governor Morehead School for the Blind, effective January 17, 2022. Diggs has nearly two decades of experience in special education, supporting students with unique needs, including visual and hearing impairments. Over the course of his career, he has served as a teacher and administrator at the school, district, and state levels. Diggs brings to his new role a range of experience in the areas of academic programming, strategic planning, policy, and partnership development. He has also demonstrated an ability to ensure financial stability while expanding services for students.
Diggs is currently the executive director for exceptional children and academically/intellectually gifted programs for Chatham County Schools, where he oversees programming and compliance for over 2,200 students within the two programs. During the beginning stages of remote learning due to COVID -19, Diggs implemented listening sessions for parents and guardians to hear their concerns and identify strategies for addressing students’ unique needs. Those conversations spurred the development and implementation of a plan for offering a full continuum of services virtually.
Diggs initiated training for local first responders to assist students with intellectual disabilities and hearing impairments during times of crisis. Working with state and local stakeholders, he also helped develop a partnership to expand instruction, transition planning, job preparedness, and post-secondary opportunities for students who participate in the Occupational Course of Study.
“I am excited about the opportunity to lead this unique, historic school,” Diggs said of his appointment. “My vision is to honor the work that is already taking place while leading the charge to solidify GMS as a flagship across North Carolina and beyond. I am truly excited about the opportunity to engage with students, staff, and other stakeholders to problem-solve, remove barriers and increase positive post-secondary outcomes.”
North Carolina State Superintendent of Public Instruction Catherine Truitt said the school and its students will benefit from Diggs’ deep experience.
“We are excited to welcome Mr. Diggs into this role and know his strong leadership will be an invaluable asset to the Governor Morehead School for the Blind,” Truitt said. “He brings a proven track record of collaborating and cultivating effective partnerships to enhance opportunities for all students and creating an inclusive environment that empowers and supports each student regardless of their needs.”
NC Reading Service
The NCCB Newsletter will be available on the NC Reading Service.
NC Reading Service website, https://www.ncreadingservice.org.
The NC Reading Service is a great asset for people who are blind, Low vision and people who have difficulty reading. If you have not tried it I encourage you to check out their website.
The NC Reading Service Mission
Connecting people who are blind and print impaired with each other, their families, and the community by delivering news, information, and entertainment using the latest in audio technology.
NCRS enhances the knowledge and awareness of its listeners so they can take their rightful place in the active life of the community. Volunteers read the local news, editorials, obituaries, literature, and advertisements from daily, weekly, and biweekly newspapers. More than 65 percent of periodicals are read on a weekly basis.
We host special programs that discuss specific subjects such as education, tech tips, legal matters, and vision news. Over 95 percent of local programming is produced daily in Raleigh. NCRS broadcasts twenty-four hours a day, seven days a week.
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*** A publication of the North Carolina Council of the Blind, an affiliate of the American Council of the Blind