August 2003
inside THIS ISSUE:
APH Federal Quota! Are you getting the most for your kids? Page 2
Calendar of Upcoming Events Page 3
University of Arizona News Page 3
Set Your Sites Page 6
Job Announcements Page 7
AZ AER Annual Meeting Program & Registration! Insert
OFFICERS:
President Jacki Daniels
Vice President Rachel Jones
Secretary Vasant Garcia
Treasurer Ian Stewart
Past President Penny Rosenblum
Directors Kerry Duncan Christine Larson Tami Levinson Jocelyn Ruiz Judi Schneider Rob Schulenburg
AER District 1 Board Member Sandra Stirnweis
WELCOME! NEW AER MEMBER:
Fernando Tarazon
CALENDAR OF UPCOMING EVENTS!
NCLID Research Conference Oct 2-4, 2003Denver, CO
AZ AER Fall Conference Oct 23-24, 2003 Prescott Resort
GETTING IN TOUCH WITH LITERACY Dec 4-6, 2003VancouverBCCanada
AER O&M Division Conference Dec 13-16, 2003 New Orleans, LA
CTEVH ANNUAL CONFERENCE March 12-14, 2004 Los Angeles, CA
CEC Convention
New Orleans, LA
Apr 14-17, 2004
AER Biennial ConferenceJuly 13-19, 2004 Orlando, FL
Congratulationsto several Arizona Vision Rehabilitation Professionals who have demonstrated commitment to excellence in their chosen fields by completing the requirements for ACVREP recertification during the quarter ending June 30, 2003.
O&M Lohren CaceresKerry Duncan
Ed Gervasoni
Kartar Khalsa
RT Patty Arnold
Jeanette Berry
* * * * * * * * o&M Recruitment BROCHURE!
Judi Piscitello, TVI/COMS, has created an AER and ACVREP approved Orientation & Mobility recruitment brochure designed to promote interest in the O&M profession among high school students.Email Kartar Khalsa at for an emailed attachment of the brochure.
AZ AER: Annual Conference in cool breezy Prescott!
Oct 23-24, 2003
All the details can be found on the homepage of
the AZ Chapter of AER. The address is:
Visit for updates to the program, conference registration hotel reservation info, AZ AER Worker o/t Yearnomination form.
You can also link to and join or renew your membership in AER. This can be done online, by check or by payroll deduction.
AER members receive a reduced registration for the annual conference. Don’t wait!
Southwest Low Vision of Tucson announces the opening of a new office in Prescott. The office is located in the Prescott Professional Court at 240 South Montezuma, Suite 204 (one long block from the Courthouse Square) in downtown Prescott. For an appointment or for more information, call Toll Free 1-888-534-4321 or the Prescott office 928-771-2167. You can also visit Southwest Low Vision web site at .
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A new award-winning book on macular degeneration, entitled Macular DegenerationThe Complete Guide to Maximizing and Saving Your Sightis available! Go to
to read reviews. The book is available at for $11.17.
From the Editor of AERizona View:
Thank you to Inge Durre, Penny Rosenblum, Jane Erin, Irene Topor, Tami Sue Levinson, and Tom Perski for your contributions to this edition of AERizona View.
Deadline for submissions for the February 2004 publication is December 31, 2003. WRITE WRITE WRITE!
Kartar Kaur Khalsa
AERizona View
2314 N Richland St
Phoenix, AZ85006
(H) 602-252-0643
(W) 602-347-3438 (FAX) 602-347-3071
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HEADS UP! NEW ADDRESS FOR AER NATIONAL OFFICE!
AER
1703 N Beauregard Street - Suite 440
Alexandria, VA22311-1717
703-671-4500
877-492-2708 (toll-free)
703-671-6391 FAX
The Helen Keller International Art Show, sponsored by CEC Division on Visual Impairment, invites youth who are visually impaired, blind or deafblind to submit art work. Students may select the preferred art medium and submit up to seven pieces of art. The winning entries will be exhibited, beginning with the CEC International Conference in new Orleans in April 2004. Deadline for submissions is Jan 13, 2004. Download the submission form from. / President’s Message
Hey! It’s August! Along with starting school for teachers and wrapping up vacation time for other AER professionals, it’s time to think about the AZ-AER Fall Conference! The conference committee has put together a spectacular conference with the theme of "Coming Together to Make the Dream a Reality" in Prescott on Oct. 23 - 24. You'll find all the details in this newsletter. PLEASE MAKE PLANS TO ATTEND!
I would like to add a few Presidential Awards: one to a Rehabilitation Specialist, an Orientation and Mobility Specialist, and one to a Teacher of Students with Visual Impairment. Please email me at:ith an anecdotal story about an AZ-AER professional in your field whom you feel deserves recognition. I'm looking for positive, happy, fun stories about a single time or event in which this person showed enthusiasm, innovation, a sense of humor, creativity - you get thepicture. This person can be brand new to our field or a more "mature" professional. Thanks for your help with this.
Thanks again to all the Arizona AER members. I hope to see each of you in Prescott.
P.S. Think about running for an AZ - AER office or board
position!
Jacki Daniels
AZ-AER President
APH Federal Quota Annual Federal Quota Registration Procedure & Distribution of Funds in Arizona
In Arizona, the Federal Quota Program is handled statewide by the ArizonaInstructionalResourceCenter of the Foundation for Blind Children, with the sole exception of the ArizonaSchool for the Deaf and Blind, which registers the students in its programs separately. In Arizona, we handle things differently from other states.Please read on if you are a teacher and feel you are not totally sure about what you can order for your visually impaired students or how much funding you can access.
The Arizona Department of Education contracts with FBC to provide statewide media service to all students in the state who are blind or visually impaired. This includes provision of Braille, large print, and other adapted educational materials that are available on Federal Quota Funds from the American Printing House in Louisville, Kentucky. The AIRC goes far beyond that contract by attempting to provide all Braille and large print ordered for students. The media contract also encompasses the registration program of all students with a visual impairment, regardless of the severity of the vision loss, and it includes the registration in the Annual Census of persons who have documentation of legal blindness, and the establishment of an account based on per capita registration, which is also administered by the AIRC.
Here’s how the annual registration procedure works:
- APH sends out instructions to all account holders in the country. The AIRC follows and disseminates the instructions contained in APH’s FQ Census Registration Instructions.
- Every year in early January, the AIRC solicits registrations statewide from all teachers of the visually impaired, special education directors/coordinators of all school districts, ASDB Regional Co-ops, Charter Schools, as well as agencies with students who are legally blind. It is crucial for the AIRC to have current addresses of all recipients. Every year, the return deadline for those registrations is February 15.
- Based on incoming registrations anddata on file at the AIRC, a preliminary FQ roster is created and mailed on disk to APH by March 15. As additions are not allowed after that date, the AIRC’s roster includes all possibly qualified students, even if verification and documentation were not received by the deadline. In the following two review periods, the AIRC finalizes its roster by checking its own files on accurate data, as well as by calling teachers or others to verify information. This is a time-consuming process for the AIRC, as every year, there are approximately 500 students on whom data have to be checked, completed and verified.You could help us cut down on the work if you registered all your students on time, filled out all required information accurately, and if you told us about students who no longer qualify or are no longer on your caseload and for what reason.
- Around the end of May or early in June, APH returns the roster as a paper printout for corrections. The final review takes place at the end of September or beginning of October. At that time, all unclear candidates are taken off and the final roster is determined.
The FQ amount allocated to the AIRC by APH is based on per capita registration each year. The per capita amount is determined by Congress in the Annual Federal Budget Agreement. Often, we don’t know what the new allocation amount will be until well into the next federal fiscal year, sometimes until May. However, the new funds can be accessed based on the previous year’s allocation amount. So, there is no hold-up in the ordering process for students.The AIRC pools the amount to purchase adapted materials from APH as needed by all students with a visual impairment in Arizona’s school districts, not just those that are legally blind. However, the funds are not meant to be used to borrow materials for use by teachers or other staff. There is no annual limit as to what can be ordered per student, until the annual allocation to AIRC has been depleted. The AIRC does not charge a fee for the loan of its adapted educational materials. As the AIRC operates on a loan basis, all materials, including equipment available on FQ funds, must be returned at the end of the school year, unless a renewal request is submitted. Recycling allows us to spread the materials to all students in need of those materials.The fund distribution to agencies registering with the AIRC for FQ funds is handled slightly differently.
Inge Durre—AIRC/FBC
University of Arizona Announcements New & Soon-to-be Graduates
Congratulations to the spring and summer graduates of the programs in visual impairment at The University of Arizona! Several other students are very close to graduation and will receive their degrees in the fall.
Rehabilitation Teaching
Jorge Fernando Tarazon has completed his Master’s degree and is now employed as a Rehabilitation Teacher at the ArizonaCenter for the Blind.
In August and December, four professionals well known to AER members will complete their Master’s degrees after five years of part-time study. Attending classes on weekends has been demanding, but instructors Joan Ellis and Patty Arnold were their mentors and cheerleaders throughout. Congratulations to Kathy Carlise, RiverForest, Kathy Morrell, and Julia Davis for their persistence in achieving their degrees! All four women are employed by the Arizona Rehabilitation Services Administration based in Phoenix.
Teachers of Visually Impaired Students
Cathy Fenn, a teacher at the Tucson campus of the Arizona Schools for the Deaf and the Blind, and Leslie Anderson, a new teacher in the Desert Valley Cooperative, completed all of the requirements for a Master’s degree this spring. This summer and fall, several more TVIs will complete their degrees: Lynette Mullis of Flagstaff, Raejean Vennendaal of Holbrook, Charlotte Faris of Tucson, Karen Ortega of Tucson, and Cathy Wendell of Carson City, NV are planning to complete their requirements for certification as Teachers of Visually Impaired Students.
Orientation and Mobility
Jeanne Martin of Show Low completed her requirements for a credential in Orientation and Mobility this spring. Jeannie is already working as a TVI for the Eastern Highlands Cooperative of ASDB, but she will now be dually certified.
Drs. Jane Erin, Penny Rosenblum, Ian Stewart, Irene Topor—University of Arizona
Sports Education Camp 2003
If you were in Southern Arizona on Sunday, June 29th, you may have sizzled in our summer temperatures. Not so for the 33 athletes who attended the Arizona Association for Athletes who are Blind or Visually Impaired (AAABVI) Sports Camp 2003 in Tucson from June 28th—July 2nd. Both the juniors, ages 9-12, and seniors, ages 13-17, from Arizona and Nevada, enjoyed a cool temperature of 50 degrees while skating at the ice skating rink! All the young athletes had a great time as they donned their skates and set out to show us their “fire on ice”.
Other activities the athletes participated in included: judo, yoga, swimming, tandem cycling, track and field, rock climbing, salsa dancing, bowling, goalball, and baseball. We held events at the Jewish Community Center, UofA Recreation Center, Arizona State Schools for the Deaf and Blind, LuckyStrikeBowlingCenter, Rock and Ropes Climbing Gym, GatewayIceCenter, the Tucson Mall and the BreakersWaterPark.
Athletes realized some of their dreams and goals about sports as they participated in different events. Several athletes stand out because of their success in conquering fears about trying a sport. Joey Jarbee, an athlete from Sierra Vista, returned to camp for his third year as a senior athlete. Tandem cycling was a new event for him, and he sat on the seat of a tandem cycle rather than ride with the group on the first cycling outing. His uncertainty about riding was short lived. Two days later, he comfortably rode 20 miles on the tandem cycle with his pilot. His comment: “It felt like being on a roller coaster ride.” Joey had some initial reservations about ice-skating, but two helpful female athletes encouraged him onto the ice. Joey didn’t get off the rink until it was time to leave for the next event.
Stephanie Dyke of Chandler, an athlete and junior camper, was a newcomer to sports camp. She was a nimble rock climber, and succeeded in climbing all six walls (including the most difficult ones) at the Rocks and Ropes climbing gym.
Many athletes established friendships with other athletes during the camp, exchanging phone numbers and E-mails to maintain contact throughout the year. Following the last day’s awards ceremony, athletes, parents, and teachers wished each other farewell and promised to stay in contact.
The camp operated smoothly because of the loyalty and commitment of UofA faculty and students, present and past, community volunteers, parents, and paralympic athletes who provided coaching, mentoring, and support for the athletes. Eight UofA students earned internship credit for their diligence in supporting athletes at camp. . Former U of A students who are now teachers in Nevada and Arizona provided experienced mentorship and coaching. Several Tucson community volunteers returned to teach yoga, coach track and field events, talk to the group about being a paralympic athlete, and organize the tandem cycling event. Four out-of-state coaches, Natalie Kelly, Walter Dean, Vince Martin, and Kathy Zwald, provided instruction in tandem cycling, judo, track and field, and beep baseball.
We owe a debt of gratitude to our volunteers and to our sponsors, including the Tucson Conquistadores, Nevada Council for the Blind, parents and relatives of athletes, Rincon Optimist Club, Tucson Lion’s Breakfast Club and other donors who helped to sponsor the camp. We hope to expand our fund raising efforts to ensure that the sports camp is ongoing in future years.If you would like to participate in a future sports camp, contact Irene Topor at or 520-626-3863.
Dr. Irene Topor—University of Arizona
Fall 2003 - U of A New Course Offering
The University of Arizona’s vision program will offer a 3-credit course entitled: Visual Conditions and Functional Vision: Early Intervention Issues. The course was developed by the EarlyInterventionTrainingCenter for Infants and Toddlers with Visual Impairments at the University of North Carolina Chapel Hill. The course consists of five sessions, including accompanying families to medical appointments, visual capacity, common visual conditions among young children, functional vision assessment and age-appropriate learning media assessment, and interventions for the family. The audience expected to benefit from the material are early interventionists, teachers of students who are visually impaired, related service providers, parents and administrators. The course will be offered over four Friday/Saturday combinations from 5-8PM and 8-2:30PM. Three sessions will be offered in Phoenix and one session in Tucson. The dates for the course are Sept. 26/27, Nov. 7/8 (Tucson), Nov. 21/22, and Dec. 5/6. All Phoenix classes will meet at Foundation for Blind Children. The Tucson class meeting will occur at the Infant Vision Research Laboratory at Children’s Rehabilitation Services at the University of Arizona. Instructors for the course are Dr. Irene Topor and Ms. Jackie Daniels. The first 20 students enrolled will have their tuition and reading packet cost covered through the EarlyInterventionTrainingCenter for Infants and Toddlers with Visual Impairments. . Others who wish to take the course at their own expense will pay approximately $600 for tuition and $50 for reading materials. Priority for funding will be given to those working directly with young children with visual impairments and their families. For further information about the course, contact Dr. Irene Topor, 520-626-3863, or .
Adult Literacy Survey
As part of a research study on emergent literacy in young children with
visual impairments called Project Emerge, Dr. Allen Stutts, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, invites you complete an online survey of highly literate adults with visual impairments/blindness. The purpose is to learn more about the factors that contributed to your literacy learning success. Please forward this information to colleagues and friends who are visually impaired or blind. Specifically, we are trying to learn about early learning environments that are most likely to support literacy learning for young children with visual impairments/blindness. We hope that this knowledge can be used by families and teachers of young children with visual impairments/blindness to promote early literacy. The online survey will take about 35-40 minutes to complete. Please go to to complete the survey.
Set Your Sites
Three Steps for Gaining Access to the General Education Curriculum for Learners with Disabilities, by Margaret King-Sears
The University of Kansas Center for Research on Learning-Strategic Instruction Model
Examples of Graphic Organizers online free downloads
Power of Two-Inclusion Resources
Technology Guide to Assist Students with Visual Impairments in Meeting Curriculum Goals in the general education class room (good for TVIs and general education teachers)
Neuro-Optometric Rehabilitation (ideas for dealing with various eye conditions)
Games created by users who are blind and visually impaired-free downloadable demos
The AZ DOE has approved the Math and Language Arts "new" Articulated Standards. These are available on the AZDOE website for viewing/downloads. AZ school districts have until Spring 2005 to begin implementation. Check with your district on how they plan to begin implementing this change for the 2003-2004 school year. The main change for IEP use is that the present level of performance is done by grade level, not with the language of "foundations, essentials..."
Tami Sue Levinson—UofA Doctoral Candidate & Graduate Assistant
Job Announcements
- Position: Technology Instructor
- Position:Job Developer
experience with vision loss or disabilities preferred. Extensive travel in
the community including transportation of clients required. Contact: Send resume to Sarah Jones .
Medicare Vision Rehabilitation Services Act
We’re Making Progress!
Great news! The Medicare Vision Rehabilitation Services Act (S.1095) has
passed the Senate, as part of the Medicare prescription drug bill (S.1). A major battle is still ahead to ensure that vision rehabilitation remains in the final Medicare package that the House and Senate must agree on in conference before this bill can actually be signed into law by the President. We must keep up the pressure on our Representatives. Visit to follow the progress of this legislative effort.
Lorraine Lidoff, Director—National Vision Rehabilitation Cooperative
Congratulations to Betty Kepner, talented TVI, upon her retirement from WashingtonElementarySchool District! Betty continues to substitute and mentor in the WESD Vision Resource Department. She also pursues her love of travel in the USA, Europe, Mexico and South America. Good luck and safe travels, Betty!
In October 2002, the American Foundation for the Blind launched the National Campaign for Literacy, Textbooks, Transcribers and Technology. The National Campaign is a public awareness and advocacy program that promotes the new career of Braille Textbook transcriber as a new community college level educational program. For information on how you can support AFB in this effort, visit and .
“It would be nice if J. K. Rowling were a little less verbose in the next one.”
National Braille Press’ Diane Croft, on the Braille edition of Harry Potter and the Order of the Phoenix, which contains 13 volumes and stands more than a foot high…
Kartar Kaur Khalsa
AERizona View
2314 North Richland Street
Phoenix, AZ85006
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