When I was in middle school, I began to experience academic ableism in the classroom, primarily from my teachers. While I was fortunate to have many wonderful teachers who helped me to develop a love of learning and a sense of belonging in the classroom,…

A little over a year ago, I was diagnosed with Postural Orthostatic Tachycardia Syndrome following a fall on campus and subsequent hospitalization. I’ve learned a lot about how to manage this condition over the course of a year, and my professors have been very supportive…

My family and friends frequently tell me that I am the type of person that can handle any situation that life throws at me and that many of my experiences can make great blog material. As a result of this, I have decided to start…

As part of my work as the Microsoft Content Specialist for AIM-VA and as a Microsoft Certified Educator, I had the opportunity to present a short talk as part of the AT Lab at the I’m Determined Summit, a virtual conference for students with disabilities…

Every year, people from all around the world gather to celebrate Global Accessibility Awareness Day, and this year is no exception. I’ve noticed that many of the events are targetted at professionals who want to learn more about accessibility and people who are already involved…

Recently, I was talking to another college student about different options for using visual assistance apps for virtual classes and how they could use different apps on their iOS and Android devices to help them with accessing visual information. While I frequently use visual assistance…

A high school-aged clarinet player reached out to me on Pinterest a few days ago asking me if I had any tips for how to read marching band drill sheets and talking to their director about marching with low vision. The conversation made me think…

A while ago, one of my friends and I were reflecting on my experience joining anime club with vision impairment. It seemed like a strange thing to do at the time, because I knew absolutely nothing about anime or any of its related entities, and…

Earlier today, I was saddened to learn that my favorite TV show, “Speechless,” has been canceled after three seasons. I was first introduced to the show by one of my professors when it first started airing in September 2016, and have since then continued to…

One of the fun facts I like to share about myself is that I play bass clarinet for my school pep band, the GMU Green Machine. Anyone who is from the area is frequently surprised that I am able to play in the pep band…

At an assistive technology conference I recently attended, I visited the booth for the Described and Captioned Media Program. I was excited to meet the people behind the project and learn all about how their program helps to support students in the classroom by giving…

When the Taylor Swift Reputation Stadium Tour premiered on New Year’s Eve, I wasn’t sure if I was going to be able to watch it. I have low vision and photosensitive migraines as a result of a brain condition, so often times I have to watch…

Earlier today, my mom and brother discovered that our pre-lit Christmas tree had an interesting glitch. One half of the tree displayed multicolored lights, while the other half displayed white lights. This would change as the lights would change colors, though each half of the…

Including campers with vision impairments in summer day camps.

Whenever I go somewhere that features a lot of visual information, I always look to see if there are audio description services available so that I can get information about my surroundings. Unlike closed captioning, which is required by law in public places and for…