My biggest IEP goal, learning to self advocate, and how it has helped me more than I ever imagined

Shortly before the day of my high school graduation, my mom received a phone call from the state department for visual impairment services asking if I was graduating from high school and if I was interested in their services for vocational rehabilitation for college students.…

On July 7th, I had the opportunity to attend a virtual event with the West Virginia affiliate for the Association for Education and Rehabilitation for the Blind and Visually Impaired (also known as AERBVI or simply as AER). During the event, I shared some of…

My tips for being successful in college admission interviews

Recently, I received a message from a Teacher of the Visually Impaired asking about the most common tech skills for virtual classes that I use in college, as they were helping to prepare their students for taking online and hybrid classes in college by giving…

Dealing with medical emergencies while living in the dorm/on campus housing

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 a student with low vision, I am used to requesting and explaining disability accommodations in my college classes and in other testing environments. However, one of the things that surprised me when I started taking primarily virtual classes and exams is that I needed…

I’m taking a couple of classes at a community college this summer to transfer back to my university, and one of the first things I did after enrolling as a visiting student was contact the Disability Services coordinator so that I would be able to…

As students of all ages begin planning registration for upcoming classes, I have received many messages asking questions about choosing virtual classes and how to figure out whether a class will be accessible or not for students with disabilities or other access needs. As a…

A few weeks ago, I had the opportunity to present a short talk at A Future Date, a free virtual conference event that showcased talks on topics related to accessibility and assistive technology. While I am currently working on a write-up about attending A Future…

When I was first researching colleges in high school, I spent dozens of hours completing online activities that help prepare for college transition that I found on my own. Since then, I have been able to share many of these resources with other students who…

Even though I took over a dozen online classes in high school (and over three dozen in college), I seemed to always find ways to practice self-advocacy in the virtual classroom. While it may have seemed frustrating at the time, my case manager and other…

Over the years, I have met many older siblings who refused to let their younger sibling attend the same college as they did, because it was “their” school and they couldn’t even fathom having their sibling sharing the same space as them, no matter how…

Part of living on campus is being prepared for emergencies-make sure you know your campus alert system