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Education Resources

Welcome to my Education Resources page. I will be listing some resources that can help blind and visually impaired students in furthering their education. These include sources for applying for grants, scholarships, internships and more. I will also be listing some sources of consumer organizations to contact in order to meet other students who have similar interests.

Blind students can participate equally with sighted peers by using nonvisual techniques such as using readers to read what is shown on the board, projector, computer screen, etc. The classmate can serve as a reader to gain credit if the instructor wishes to do so. The reader can also be used to read tests if necessary. It is also helpful to have a classmate to describe any pictures, diagrams, charts, figures, etc. so that a blind student will know what is being shown when showing concepts of a particular topic.

On this page, I will be listing some articles available on the Internet discussing alternative techniques in surviving in a college environment.

Resources for Blind and Visually Impaired Students

The U.S. Department of Education's Federal Student Aid (FSA) office has a variety of information resources available for blind and visually impaired students enrolled in education beyond high school.

Student Aid Audio Guide:

The Audio Guide contains an overview of the Department's federal student aid programs including

Eligibility criteria

Application procedures

Loan repayment options

Deferment and cancellation provisions

The Audio Guide also provides information on nonfederal sources of aid. Students can listen to the Audio Guide online at www.studentaid.ed.gov/audioguide. The Audio Guide is also available on compact disc. To order copies, please call the Federal Student Aid Information Center toll-free at 1-800-433-3243.

The following FSA print publications are available online through the use of a screen reader. All but Repaying Your Student Loans are available in Braille through the Federal Student Aid Information Center.

Free Application for Federal Student Aid (FAFSA):

Students use the FAFSA to apply for the Department's federal student aid programs. Although the Braille FAFSA cannot be submitted, students may use it as a reference aid. Apply online at www.fafsa.ed.gov.

The Student Guide:

This is the most comprehensive resource on student financial aid from the U.S. Department of Education. Grants, loans, and work-study are the three major forms of student financial aid available. The guide explains the programs in detail, including how to apply, and also includes sources of nonfederal aid. The guide is available online at www.studentaid.ed.gov/guide.

Funding Your Education:

This is an introductory publication for students in junior high and high school. It provides general information about the federal student financial aid programs and how to apply for them. It is available online at www.studentaid.ed.gov/fye.

Repaying Your Student Loans:

This publication, designed for borrowers about to enter repayment, explains loan repayment plans, offers tips on budgeting, and explains options such as loan consolidation so that borrowers can avoid repayment problems and successfully manage and repay their debts. It is available online at www.studentaid.ed.gov/repayingpub.

Braille Bookmark:

Now available in a Braille version is our FSA bookmark. These handy pocket-sized items encourage students to apply online at www.fafsa.ed.gov, apply for a PIN at www.pin.ed.gov, and visit our Student Aid on the Web site at www.studentaid.ed.gov.

If you have any questions, please contact our Federal Student Aid Information Center toll-free at 1-800-433-3243.

Contact the school you are planning to attend to locate sources of scholarships. Check to see if they have a disability coordinator and find out what services, programs, and facilities are accessible to you as a blind student. They will be able to tell you additional sources of grants, fellowships, internships, and the like.

If you are a recipient of Supplemental Security Income (SSI), you can contact your local Social Security Administration office to see if you can fill out a Plan to Achieving Self-Support (PASS). You can put a certain amount of money aside each month to achieve your goals such as starting a small business, purchasing assistive technology, paying for your own college education, etc. Contact the Social Security Administration office by calling 1-800-772-1213 or by going to http://www.ssa.gov/online/ssa-545.html.

American Council of the Blind (ACB) awards several scholarships each July to blind and visually impaired students at its National Convention. For further information you can reach them by calling 1-800-424-8666. You can also write to:
The American Council of the Blind
1155 15th Street, Northwest, Suite 1004
Washington, D.C. 20005
or you can go online at http://www.acb.org/resources/finaid.htm for additional financial resources.

National Federation of the Blind (NFB) awards scholarships to 30 college students at its National Convention in July of each year. The deadline to submit a scholarship application is by March 31 of each year. You can apply online at http://www.nfb.org. Once you get to that site, select "Services and Resources." You can obtain a paper application by writing to:
Ms. Peggy Elliott, Chairman
National Federation of the Blind
Scholarship Committee
805 Fifth Avenue
Grinnell, Iowa 50112.
The telephone number is 1-641-236-3366.

You can also contact the Heath Resource Center. This is a national clearinghouse on postsecondary education for people with disabilities. The Center's toll-free number is 1-800-544-3284. Their web address is http://www.heath.gwu.edu.

Also check with local community service organizations such as the Lions Clubs, Kiwanis Clubs, or the J.C.'s. These organizations help you seek funding for equipment, services, or funds.

Check other sources too such as libraries, foundations, and religious organizations. You can also search on the Internet for other information on financial aid by using keywords such as "financial aid," "student aid," "scholarship," or "blind and visually impaired student."

To know if any sources of companies that you are considering is legitimate or not, you can contact the Federal Trade Commission at http://www.ftc.gov/scholarshipscams. You can also call them at 1-877-382-4357 to file a complaint or to obtain free information.

Be sure to safeguard all your personal information. The Federal Trade Commission (FTC) contains information about identity theft. Their web site is http://www.consumer.gov/idtheft or call them at 1-877-438-4338.

Free Application for Federal Student Aid--Online application for federal student aid. Fastweb--Free online database of over 600,000 scholarships worth over $1 billion. FinAid--This award-winning site has grown into the most comprehensive annotated collection of information about student financial aid on the web. Financial Aid Channel--Sponsored by Peterson's Education. Education scholarships maintained by American Council of the Blind.

If you are looking for sources of funding assistive technology, check out Financial Aid - Other Sources of Financial Assistance.

Check out another source for funding assistive technology Information and Association of Blind Citizens Scholarship Information and Application sponsored by Association of Blind Citizens.

Another scholarship program for young people is the Mouse Hole Scholarship sponsored by Blind Mice Mart.

For persons with disabilities, there is a comprehensive listing of grants, scholarships, fellowships, internships, and more listed at American Association of People with Disabilities's web site. Select the link that says Scholarships.

Select this link to find your state rehabilitation agencies for additional scholarship sources.

Sources of locating adaptive aids and appliances for Daily Living While in School

Many companies manufactures or sells many aids and appliances for blind students. Your state rehabilitation agencies may help fund some of these daily tools such as talking watch, braille watch, talking clock, braille clock, talking calculator, braille paper, slate and stylus, tape recorders that is adapted to play Library of Congress tapes from National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS) and Recording for the Blind and Dyslexic (RFB&D). In addition, students in k-12 arena can have their teacher or school systems purchase educational materials from American Printing House for the Blind not only for aids and appliances but also for textbooks in braille or large print.

Below is a list of some of the companies I have used in the past when purchasing aids and appliances over the years. If you need companies selling adaptive technology, check out my technology page which contains many resources.

National Federation of the Blind (NFB) Store sells many aids and appliances for daily use as well as books and literatures about blindness. These books and literatures are available in braille, print, and on audio cassette. Some of the videos are available on VHS cassettes. You can call National Federation of the Blind at (410) 659-9314 for more information.

Beyond Sight, Inc. is a superstore for the blind that sells a variety of aids and appliances for daily use. They also sell talking computers, talking and braille notetakers, braille displays, braille embossers, speech synthesizers, tutorials and more.

Independent Living Aids, Inc. sells several low vision devices, calculators, clock, and many other items. Even a talking thermostat is also available to keep your home or apartment comfortable.

Ferguson Enterprises, Inc. is another store selling a variety of computer products as well as some low tech items. They are also selling some health related items as well.

Maxiaids, Inc. is another company that sells a variety of aids and appliances for blind consumers. This was one of the first company that I have started with several years ago.

LSS Group, Inc. is another company that I have used many years ago that sells a variety of products for blind and visually impaired consumers.

Lighthouse International, Inc. is another company selling lots of low vision products for consumers with low vision. They also provide rehabilitation services to people who are struggling everyday in learning to deal with their vision loss.

Howe Press of Perkins School for the Blind sells Perkins braillers, slates and styluses, braille paper, and many other products for educational use.

Innovative Rehabilitation Technology, Inc. (IRTI) sells several products such as tape recorders, portable CD players capable of playing digital DAISY books and many other items.

Mons International is another company selling a variety of products for educational use for students who are blind or visually impaired.

Speak To Me offers a wide variety of talking products to give to anyone who have just about everything.

The Carroll Store sells several products for blind and visually impaired consumers. This company helps people adjust to blindness as well since they provide rehabilitation programs for their clients in Massachusetts.

Lighthouse of Houston's Reflections Store sells a variety of aids and appliances such as watches, clocks, writing paper, slates and styluses, kitchen appliances, and many more.

Lighthouse for the Blind in New Orleans sells a variety of blindness products useful for everyday activities such as canes, watches, games, kitchen appliances, and many more.

Blind Mice Mart located in Houston, Texas sells a variety of gift items for all occasions including some blindness products which includes oven mitts, placemats, paper towel and napkin holder, and so much more. They even sell talking clock, talking watch, and many more.

Exceptional Teaching Inc. offers several educational products including the well-known Sally Mangold Braille Learning Series. These include Combined Beginning Braille Reading and Math Programs, The Mangold Developmental Program of Tactile Perception and Braille Letter Recognition, The Mangold Developmental Program of Tactile Perception and Nemeth Numeral Recognition, Braille Codes and Calculations, Space Saver Braille Reading Platforms, Raised-Line Coloring Books, Video Corner, Labeling, Marking, and Writing Aids, and Transcribing Aids. They also offer other products including Wikki Stix�, Braille Blocks�, Braille for the Sighted, DoubleDecker Dominoes�, Peel & Stick WonderFoam�, Hammers �N More, Geometric Shape Sorter, Lacing Beads in a Box, Deluxe Magnet Wipe-Off Board and Holding Magnets, Geometric Shapes Jumbo Knob Puzzle, Shape Sequence Block Board, Hot Dots� Flash Cards States and Capitals, Tracker, LumiClear� Clip-On/Swivel-Head Booklight, Hands-On Soft� Geometric Solids, Shape Sorting Pounder, Merriam-Webster Concise Dictionary Large Print Edition, and so much more. They carry products for children with autism, babies with down syndrome, children with visual impairments, choices in deafness, children with fragile x syndrome, children with cerebral palsy, and children with Spina Bifida. Check the site out for further information.

Are you always needing a Perkins Braillewriter repaired for your school, organization, etc.? If so, many companies around the country have technicians that are certified by Howe Press of Perkins School for the Blind to do maintenance and repair of these Perkins Braillers.

ACKLEY APPLIANCE SERVICE Provides COMPLETE Perkins Brailler repair. For the finest care your Braille writer can receive, let Alan Ackley make it right. He has reconditioned more than 2000 Braillers for individuals, schools, and agencies in over forty states. He is Factory Trained. He maintains a complete inventory of Factory Parts. The National Library Service certified him as a Braille Transcriber in 1975. Prompt Turnaround Reasonable Charges All Work Guaranteed. Do you have a brailler to sell? I will buy it as is, or I will recondition it for you to sell on your own.

Select this link for a complete list of braillewriter service companies.

If you are looking for a source to purchase computer braille paper in many different sizes including index cards plus free shipping for the blind, go to BraillePaper.com.

Select this link to obtain a list of braille transcribing groups around the nation.

Articles Written by Blind Students

For additional reading materials of blindness check back issues of The Braille Monitor--a news monthly in the blindness field, Future Reflections--a quarterly magazine for parents and teachers of blind children, Voice of the Diabetic--a quarterly newspaper for diabetics and professionals, Voice of the Nations Blind--an online publication of the National Federation of the Blind.

In addition, Check out NFB Publications page for additional reading materials about blindness.

To read about Access Technology Resources, select this link.

To read about Sources of where to find electronic Texts on the web select this link. This is a favorite hobby of mine.

To read about Braille select this link.

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Send Lisa Hall an email. If you like me to add something to this site, please let me know.

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Education Resources

Resources for Blind and Visually Impaired Students

Sources of locating adaptive aids and appliances for Daily Living While in School

Articles Written by Blind Students

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