TEACHING INDEPENDENCE TO BLIND CHILDREN AND ADULTS
Orientation & mobility training (O&M) involves learning to go where you want, when you want, safely and efficiently.
Joanne's individualized and flexible teaching style creates a positive rapport with students of all age groups. She has an unusually high success rate with children who have been labeled as "spatially-challenged" or "cognitively impaired" that had previously been unable to learn mobility or cooking. She is a strong supporter of self-advocacy skills and firmly believes that blind people can be productive, contribute to their communities, and enjoy life to the fullest. Her goal is to empower students to achieve their dreams and desires.
TRAINING, CERTIFICATION AND EXPERIENCE
- K-12 blind and multi-handicapped children - South Carolina School for the Deaf and the Blind
- Adults and teenagers - Washington State Department of Services for the Blind
- M.A. in Orientation & Mobility (1998) Western Michigan University
- B.S. in Speech Communication (1997) Portland State University
- ACVREP Certified - by the Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation & Education Professionals
ADDITIONAL SPECIALIZED TRAINING
- Deaf-Blindness: Completed intensive training in Orientation & Mobility Techniques for Deaf-Blind Travelers at the Helen Keller National Center in New York (2005)
Deafness: Completed advanced level .Working Together Deaf and Hearing People. at the Hearing, Speech & Deafness Center (hsdc) in Seattle (2003) - Hard of Hearing: Completed .Working with People Who Are Hard of Hearing. at Seattle hsdc (2004)
An article about Joanne's fun and effective teaching style entitled, The Space to Try by Tracy Soforenko, was published in the May 2007 issue of the Braille Monitor and can be found at the following website: The Space to Try