The RT News
Newsletter of Division 11
December 2007
Message from the Chair:
As I sit at my computer on the day after Thanksgiving, I’m thinking about some of the people and things for which I am grateful:
- Nancy Paskin for her many consecutive years on the VRT Division Board as Secretary-Treasurer, Acting Chair, Chair, and Past-Chair (along with four years as newsletter editor).
- Susan Dalton for her dedication as Secretary-Treasurer since summer 2004.
- John McMahon, our Chair-elect, for his commitment to our profession and our consumers. He is going to be an excellent Division Chair.
- Debra Sokol-McKay for her very informative “Sugar Blues” columns in the VRT News.
- The many members who continue to offer their service on AER and ACVREP Committees, as authors and presenters, and as mentors to up-and-coming leaders.
- All the VRT’s who serve consumers and support each other.
- Nominations for Division Awards.
- Nominations/submissions for our new, Division Publication Award.
- Input for Division Day activities and programming.
I hope to see many of you in Chicago!
Mary Beth Harrison, CVRT, CLVT
Your Executive Team: 2006-2008
Mary Beth Harrison, Chair: marybeth.harrison@med.va.govJohn McMahon, Chair-elect: john.m.mcmahon@wmich.edu
Susan M. Dalton, Secretary/Treasurer: smdtvp@joltmail.net
Nancy Paskin, Past Chair: curlyredhead624@optonline.net
We Need You. It’s Time for Nominations – Awards & Officers. Chicago 2008
APH Ad: Reclaiming Independence
A video resource guide to help you learn how to successfully use rehabilitation and transportation resources.
Bruce McKenzie Award, Rising Star Award, and Meritorious Achievement Award
At the Biennial International Conference, the Vision Rehabilitation Therapy Division presents the following awards: The Bruce McKenzie Award for lifetime achievement; The Elizabeth Lennon Award for Meritorious Achievement; and The Alice Raftary Rising Star Award to recognize talented teachers who are new to their careers. The Executive Board of the VRT Division, in an attempt to recognize vision rehabilitation therapists who have written and published for the benefit of all VRTs , has created a new award entitled the Publication Award. The nomination criteria for all awards are listed below.
The Bruce McKenzie Award
Purpose: The Bruce McKenzie award is a biennial award established by the VRT Division to honor Bruce McKenzie for his pioneering leadership in the field of rehabilitation teaching. It is the Division’s highest award, presented to an exemplary individual for outstanding contributions to the field of rehabilitation teaching and independent living services. It is the Division’s Lifetime Achievement Award.
Criteria:
- A nominee shall be an active or retired vision rehabilitation therapist/vision rehabilitation therapy supervisor.
- A nominee must have 10 years or more of service in the field of vision rehabilitation therapy.
- A nominee shall have exceptional leadership qualities.
- The uniqueness of a nominee’s contribution to the field shall be given due consideration.
- A nominee’s contribution shall have been national or international in scope.
- A nominee shall be a member of the Vision Rehabilitation Therapy Division.
- All nominations should include biographical information, education and training, employment history, leadership qualities, contributions, achievements and professional memberships.
- All nominations must be submitted and seconded in writing.
- If possible, a copy of the nominee’s curriculum vitae should be included.
- The Division Awards Committee shall select the award recipient.
- Nominations must be submitted to Chair & Chair-Elect and Awards Committee Chair.
1973: Samie Rankin, Texas; Edmund Bird, New York
1975: Florence Horton, Kansas
1977: Billie Elder, Arkansas
1979: Norman Dalke, Oklahoma
1981: Velma Becker, Illinois
1982: Alice Raftary, Michigan
1983: Vera McClain, Alabama
1984: Linda Olson, Arizona
1986: Scott Oliver, New York
1988: Julia Richardson, Alabama
1990: Susan Ponchillia, Michigan; Paul Ponchillia, Michigan
1992: David Search, Michigan
1994: Patricia Bussen Smith, Arkansas
1996: Nancy Paskin, New York
1998: Don Golembiewski, Wisconsin; Anne Yeadon, New York
2000: Lynda Jones, Florida
2002: Maureen Duffy, Pennsylvania
2004: Barbara Hunt, IL; Lisa-Anne Mowerson, PA
2006: Margaret E. Cleary, MA
The Elizabeth Lennon Award for Meritorious Achievement
This award was named for Elizabeth Lennon in 2006 to recognize her dedication and pioneering work in preparing university professionals and supporting community programs for seniors and the handicapped. Purpose:
The award shall be presented to an individual who has made a significant contribution to the profession of Vision Rehabilitation Therapy, Rehabilitation Teaching, general rehabilitation, or community affairs. Such contributions may be in the form of published materials, presentations, leadership experiences, or work history.
Criteria:
- A nominee shall be active in or retired from the field of vision rehabilitation therapy (formerly rehabilitation teaching).
- A nominee should demonstrate outstanding professionalism and service to the rehabilitation field.
- The uniqueness of a nominee’s contribution to the field shall be given due consideration.
- A nominee shall be a member of AER.
- All nominations should include biographical information, education and training, employment history, leadership qualities, contributions, achievements and professional memberships.
- All nominations must be submitted and seconded in writing.
- If possible, a copy of the nominee’s curriculum vitae should be included.
- The Division Awards Committee shall select the award recipient.
- Nominations must be submitted to Chair & Chair-Elect and Awards Committee Chair.
1984: Patricia Bussen Smith; William Farrell; Thomas Hansen; Michael Nelipovich; Paul Ponchillia; Alvin Roberts
1986: Juliet Bindt Esterly; Sherrie Raymond; Ruth Kaarlela (special award)
1988: Beatrice David; Dolores Fricke; Judy Matsuoka; David Search
1990: Michelle Frazier; Lynne Luxton; Ramona Sangalli; JoAnn Search
1992: Patty Arnold; Lenore Dillon; Michael Nelipovich
1994: Nancy Paskin
1996: Cheryl Richesin
1998: Pamela Cory; Maureen Duffy; Gretchen Good
2000: Antonina Adamowicz-Hummel
2002: Barbara Hunt; Diane Weiss
2004: Debra Solko-McKay
2006: Jennifer Ottowitz
The Alice Raftary Rising Star Award
This award was named for Alice Raftary in 2006 due to her mentoring and support of many new professionals to this field and her years of creative and dedicated work. She is a Living Legend and her story can be found in the APH Hall of Fame.
Purpose:
The award shall be presented to an individual who demonstrates potential for exceptional leadership and is expected to provide a unique and lasting contribution to the field of Vision Rehabilitation Therapy (formerly rehabilitation teaching).
Criteria:
- A nominee shall be an ACREVP-certified vision rehabilitation therapist.
- A nominee should have no more than three years of VRT professional service.
- A nominee should demonstrate outstanding professionalism and service to the field.
- A nominee shall be a member of the VRT Division
- All nominations should include biographical information, education and training, employment, leadership qualities, contributions and achievements.
- A supervisor or professional mentor should submit the nomination.
- All nominations should be submitted and seconded in writing.
- If possible, a copy of the nominee’s curriculum vitae should be included.
- The Division Awards Committee shall select the award recipient.
- Nominations must be submitted to Chair & Chair-Elect and Awards Committee Chair.
2004 Vacent Garcia
2006 Sarah Heinrich
The VRT Publication Award
This award was established in 2008 to honor VRT Division members who have written and published for the benefit of the field and the enhancement of our knowledge base.
Purpose:
The VRT Division is offering a Publication Award to recognize a VRT Division member whose publication contributes highly to the field of Vision Rehabilitation Therapy. Submissions may include, but are not limited to, journal articles, books, chapters of books, and development of or significant contributions to websites. This award carries a $250 honorarium to further encourage VRT Division members to write and publish.
Criteria:
- Author(s) must be a member(s) of the VRT Division.
- The publication should be within the current biennium (July 2006—June2008)
- The publication submitted should contribute to the rehabilitation field and enhance our knowledge base.
- Nominations may be submitted by the author or by another member of the Division.
- A copy of the publication must be submitted to the Awards Committee. Only publications costing over $25 will be returned, please indicate as such with your submission.
- If possible, a copy of the author’s curriculum vitae should be included.
- The Division Awards Committee shall select the award recipient and the division of the honorarium, if necessary.
- Nominations must be submitted to the Chair-Elect and Awards Committee Chair.
- Cover letter must include: Author’s name and Contact Information; Nominator’s name and contact information (if different than author); A Brief Summary of the Publication (no more than 2 paragraphs) of the significance of the publication; Publication date(s)/ Website date(s); and Publication title and credits.
VRT Division Officers
This is the time of the year when we need you to think about becoming an officer of the Division. Two offices need to be filled for our next biennial: 2008-2010. Chair-Elect:
- This person will serve the Division in various aspects of leadership over 6 years.
- For the first 2 years the Chairperson-Elect shall perform the duties of Chairperson in case of the Chairperson’s absence or inability to serve, serves on the Council of Division Chairpersons and chairs the Division Program Committee, Marketing Committee, Awards Committee and In-service Committee.
- In the next 2 years, the Chairperson-Elect becomes the Chair of the Division.
- For the final 2 years, they will be the Past-Chair.
- A person who is the Chair-elect must be a voting member in good standing of the VRT Division and AER.
- The Secretary-Treasurer position is a 2-year term position.
- The Secretary-Treasurer shall keep minutes of Division business meetings, maintain official records and policies, maintain a current membership list, and manage Division finances in accordance with procedures hereinafter set forth in the Constitution and Bylaws or otherwise mandated by AER, and perform all other duties incidental to the Office of Secretary-Treasurer.
- A person who is the Secretary-Treasurer must be a voting member in good standing of the VRT Division and AER.
NOMINATE YOURSELF OR A WORTHY CO-WORKER (Speak to them first before nominating them!)
OFFICERS: Chair-Elect:
Secretary-Treasurer:
Send nominations to Nancy Paskin either at curlyredhead624@optonline.net OR 3771 Valleyview St., Mohegan Lake, NY 10547.
Nominations should be submitted no later than January 31, 2008 or ASAP.
AWARDS:
Bruce McKenzie Award:
Elizabeth Lennon Award:
Alice Raftary Rising Star Award:
Publication Award:
Send nominations to our current Chair-Elect, John McMahon at john.m.mcmahon@wmich.edu. Or to Nancy Paskin’s address above.
Nominations should be submitted no later than March 15, 2008
Definition, History and Challenges
By Brendan Tedrick and James Van Beverhoudt
Let’s examine who vision rehabilitation therapists (formally rehabilitation teachers) are, where they come from and the challenges that they face. There are many times in which a vision rehabilitation therapist has to explain in a practical manner what they do to their clients and client’s family members. To assist with defining what a vision rehabilitation therapist is let’s look at what Ponchillia and Ponchillia (1996) wrote about rehabilitation teachers as, “service providers whose emphasis in on providing rehabilitation instruction and guidance in daily living skills to people who have visual impairments” (p. 11). Vision rehabilitation therapists must be able to assess the needs of their clients, provide quality instruction and document their progress. One of the most important skills of a vision rehabilitation therapist is the ability to complete a holistic assessment. During the initial assessment, the vision rehabilitation therapist must ask questions about their vision lose and perform some daily living skills. In performing some daily living skills, the vision rehabilitation therapist gets a clear picture of how the client performs and what skills they need to work on. It is also, important to realize that the assessment is not just done during the first visit but throughout the client’s daily living skills instructional program. During the instruction period, vision rehabilitation therapists should remain positive and take into consideration the clients previous experience level with that particular area of daily living skills. Vision rehabilitation therapists (formally rehabilitation teachers) provide instruction in the following daily living skills: communication, home management, personal management, low vision, indoor orientation & mobility, and leisure. After each instruction session or rehabilitation session, vision rehabilitation therapists must document what the client learned and how the client progressed in the client’s case notes. By Brendan Tedrick and James Van Beverhoudt
It is essential that vision rehabilitation therapists know the history of their profession; so they know where they came from and where they are going. Let’s examine some key historical events in the field of rehabilitation teaching/vision rehabilitation therapy. In the 1880’s, Dr. William Moon was considered to be the first rehabilitation teacher. Dr. Moon founded the Pennsylvania Home Teaching Society and the Free Library for Blind. Dr. Moon’s focus was on teaching people that were blind to read the scriptures. Home teachers worked on teaching hand writing, reading and some daily living skills. Ponchillia and Ponchillia (1996) found that the majority of home teachers were women and had a vision impairment with a variety of education levels from high school to college degrees.
During the 1960’s the field shifted from home teachers to rehabilitation teachers. The first master’s degree in rehabilitation teaching was started at Western Michigan in 1963 and soon after, other programs in rehabilitation teaching soon followed. In 1965, the Commission on Standards and Accreditations of Services for the Blind Report accepted rehabilitation teacher as the official job title. Young, Dickerson and Jacobson (1980) found that, “Case Recording, Home Management, Communications, Counseling, and Other (Travel) activities accounted for 68% of the rehabilitation teacher’s work week. Orientation and Mobility, Personal Management, Community Resources, Social Skills, and Leisure Time Skill require 32 percent of the work week” (p. 388). In 1990 Leja’s research continued to evaluate the job roles of rehabilitation teaching and divided rehabilitation teaching into the following three factors: teaching activities, case management, and professional/administrative activities. Ponchillia and Ponchillia wrote the first Foundations of Rehabilitation Teaching text in 1996; which is important because rehabilitation teachers now have a central body of knowledge. The Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation and Education Professional (ACVREP) was formed in 2000 and in charge of certifying: rehabilitation teachers, orientation and mobility specialists, and low vision specialists. The ACVREP is a separate and impartial to the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AER) organization that only deals with certifying vision professionals.
In 2004 there was another shift in the field from rehabilitation teaching to vision rehabilitation therapy. In November of 2004, the ACVREP Board of Directors approved the title of Certified Vision Rehabilitation Therapist. This is an exciting time of learning and further definition of this profession! Let’s not lose focus in terms of assisting clients to become more independent and better adjusted to their vision impairment over a change of a job title. Ponchillia and Ponchillia (1996) feel that, “rehabilitation teachers strive to help clients regain the level of self-confidence they experienced prior to becoming visually impaired. Regaining the ability to function independently and effectively in daily life leads to a sense of control” (p. 4). It is all about getting clients back on track to become independent and improving their self-esteem.
Vision rehabilitation therapists face many challenges, below are just some of the challenges along with practical solutions for these challenges. The increasing amount of clients on a case load is one challenge. Scheduling two or three clients that live in the same area and relying on rehabilitation teaching assistants are two ways to deal with the increasing amount of clients. Another challenge is the lack of financial support. Vision rehabilitation therapist need to shop around for the best price on equipment, go to Dollar stores and write grants to support programs. Another challenge that vision rehabilitation therapist have to be aware of is staying current in the field with the latest trends, techniques and equipment. Vision rehabilitation therapist should go to conferences, join the rt list serve, take professional development courses and networking with other professionals in interrelated fields in order to keep current in the field. As vision rehabilitation therapist enter the new century we need to be strong and begin to think outside the box in terms of who we are, what we do and the rationale behind instruction with practical and objective research.
References
Commission on Standards and Accreditation for the Blind. (1966). The COMSTAC report: Standards for strength ened services. New York, NY: National Accreditation Council for Agencies Serving the Blind and Visually Handicapped.
Leja, J. Job Roles of Rehabilitation Teachers of Blind Persons. Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness, 1990, April, 155-159.
Ponchillia, P., and Ponchillia, S. (1996). Foundations of Rehabilitation Teaching: With persons who are blind or visually impaired. New York, NY: AFB Press.
Young, P., Dickerson, L., and Jacobson, W. A Study of the Job Responsibilities of the Filed Rehabilitation Teacher. Journal of Visual Impairment and Blindness, 1980, November, 386- 389.
ABOUT THE AUTHORS:
Brendan Tedrick and James Van Beverhoundt are the only two full time rehabilitation teachers that work for the Bureau of Blindness and Visual Services in the Philadelphia District Office. Both have a Masters Degree in Rehabilitation Teaching from PCO.
If You See Something, Say Something
By Nancy Paskin, CVRT
One of the things that make us unique in the rehabilitation field, its that every VRT, every CVRT, and every RT learns Braille. We may not all teach Braille on a regular basis these days. That is often due to the fact that our clientele or consumers are now more often older and partially sighted. Still, even if you are not using your Braille skills on a regular basis, you should revel in the fact that it is the skill that makes us most unique. By Nancy Paskin, CVRT
Also, it has been my experience that supervisors and co-workers who use Braille regularly, are often pleased to receive a memo or note in Braille from me. Even if you do not have a lot of confidence in your Braille skills...remember…. every Braille Grade 2 or Grade 3 user can also read the Alphabet, so your skill does not have to match theirs. This is the season for a lot of gift giving. Recently I spotted BAD Braille on a paperweight in a catalog. I called and tried to explain in detail the problem and how to fix the Braille. It took two more issues of the catalog, but they DID change and correct the Braille. SAY SOMETHING