AFB Staff

Most of us are probably familiar with Wikipedia, the free Internet Encyclopedia that anyone can edit. For Dr. Skylar Covich, his journey with Wikipedia stretches back to 2003, almost as long as the site has been in existence. In light of Wikipedia’s 20th anniversary on January 15th, Skylar recently reflected upon his journey with this vast knowledge-based resource, and suggested where he would like to see it go. Skylar was born totally blind, with Leber's congenital amaurosis -- a group of…

Teachers and parents! Did you know that the American Foundation for the Blind—where Helen Keller worked for over 40 years—has created free, accessible lesson plans for teaching disability history? Now is a great time to teach your children or students what blind and deafblind writers, activists, and leaders have accomplished. The lessons are designed to teach middle and high school students how to do their own research using digital and physical archives. Topics include the…

On December 18, EdSurge, an educational technology company that publishes newsletters and operates databases used by venture capitalists, teachers, and school administrators, published a story titled “COVID-19 Is Costing Visually Impaired Students Time That Can’t Be Made Up.” The story features interviews with AFB Director of Research Dr. L. Penny Rosenblum as well as parents of K-12 students who are experiencing the challenges that come with remote instruction during the pandemic, especially…

TIME publishing company has produced a terrific video on Helen Keller's role in disability history, "Co-Founding the ACLU, Fighting for Labor Rights and Other Helen Keller Accomplishments Students Don't Learn in School." The piece reflects upon Keller’s activism in the sphere of women’s rights, workers’ rights and civil rights—as well as her fierce advocacy for people with vision loss. The video interviews academics and activists such as Professor Georgina Kleege, the…

We are grateful to the thousands of individuals who have responded to our surveys. As you well know, the research reports that we released for Flatten Inaccessibility and Access and Engagement demonstrated significant impacts of the pandemic on access to education, transportation, employment, and healthcare. As AFB continues our efforts to ensure that policymakers recognize and resolve these issues, we have prepared a set of resources that you can use in your own self-advocacy. For each…

Lost in last week’s Thanksgiving holiday shuffle were some noteworthy media appearances and mentions of AFB Consulting and AFB Staff experts. To recap: Director of Research Dr. L. Penny Rosenblum authored an op-ed for Education Dive, a site that provides in-depth journalism and insight into the most impactful news and trends shaping K-12 education. “How COVID-19 is affecting students with visual impairments and their educators” provides Dr. Rosenblum’s insights on the Access and Engagement…

Thank you! We're so grateful to everyone who helped us surpass our #GivingTuesday goal of over 100 donors to celebrate AFB's 100 years—and deeply thankful to those of you who were able to make your gift a monthly, recurring donation. It makes a huge difference to nonprofits to have that steady, ongoing support. Your generosity could not have come at a more critical time. While this year has been hard on everyone, it has revealed great concerns for people who are blind or have low vision…

On November 24, CNET, a global outlet that publishes reviews, news, articles, blogs, podcasts and videos on technology and consumer electronics, ran a story titled “How blind engineers are fixing the online job hunt.” The story largely features an interview with Chief Program Officer Megan Aragon as well as the work and mission of AFB Consulting. Finding meaningful employment during the pandemic can be particularly difficult, and is exacerbated further for jobseekers with disabilities. For…

Photograph of Helen Keller, Anne Sullivan Macy and Polly Thomson with friends in their garden in Forest Hills, circa 1920s. From all of us at AFB to everyone of you in our community, Happy Thanksgiving! May these words from Helen Keller's 1946 address in London on the nature of Thanksgiving provide us with the strength and wisdom necessary to safely guide us into next year as 2020 comes to a close. "I am indeed happy and honored to be with you on an occasion endeared to us by countless…