clarification

I want to tell you a bit about my qualifications. I have been speaking publicly since I was a teen-ager, when my dad took me to speak to student nurses. I have a passion for seeking new solutions to old problems, or at least to seek multiple methods of communication to work out situations. Though, I might "rant" or give my years of perspective about our value as people, (whetehr we are disabled or not) I would contract concerning web accessibility evaluations as a user and not a techie, and started on an Apple 2C computer in around 1987, and e-mail using Pine and Lynx in 1995, and then migrated to Windows 95, perhaps in 1999. I taught assistive technology, which includes auxiliary devices such as this screen reader which speaks to me in a synthesized voice (JAWS which stands for Job Access with Speech) and worked with another called Window-Eyes, and another company which produces System Access. I have used some PowerPoint, and created one for my final "Capstone" (project for the master's in Public Administration) and a little about Excel, and Microsoft Word, Outlook Express and Microsoft Outlook. I have helped evaluate web-based training evaluations, website recommendations, and web conferencing software. None of the web conferencing software can deal with dynamic properties such as the chat, which does not buffer and refresh, and though Adobe Connect was the best, the chat was less than laudable. They did not say there would be major improvements on this either. I attended a workshop about this very topic at the International Technology and Persons with Disabilities Conference in San Diego from arch 14-19 at one of the schools of which I have attended which is CSUN, California State University Northridge. I attained my social work degree at University of Southern California. During a keynote presentation yesterday, two people from Hope Community Resources in Anchorage spoke about wellness for employees. While I did not hear the whole discussion, I was glad to hear them speak about Employee Assistance Programs since because my emphasis was in Industrial Social Work, workplace balance and Employee Assistance Programs and Organizational Development were the topics that were at the core of that emphasis. Wellness was not about health wellness, as far as I could see, and it is necessary for all of us to define terms so that everyone is on the same page when discussing ideas and solving problems. I have been conducting training on topics ranging from blindness-specific psychology or "what tips and tricks we use from low-tech to high-tech" and bringing long canes and blindfolded FAA personnel. I also trained students in understanding social work values, and trained folks on the Americans with Disabilities Act, and trained with curriculum that empowers people with information about risks of interpersonal violence. I had a small hand in writing some curriculum for service providers, but the training I delivered was entitled Alaskans Speak Up! produced by the Center for Human Development which is part of the University of Alaska, Anchorage. I have coordinated conferences, and partnered with agencies to get a transportation expert here last year who sppoke at three conferences. Much of my time has been in volunteering, especially for the conference for Alaska Independent Blind, an affiliate of American Council of the Blind, which is a blindness-centered advocacy organization. Because I have a mother with dementia, a twin brother with brain damage, and had two grandmothers with forms of so-called mental illness, I have a feel for all disabled people. I was co-chair of a Speakers' Bureau many years ago, and spoke about disabilities on panels for private, state and national audiences. I really enjoy team-work, and working with people, and really enjoyed being a program analysts for the Department of the Navy Comprehensive Casualty Care Working Group in Arlington, Virginia for the Navy Annex under the Workforce Recruitment Program. The people there were wonderful, and I chose that position because my mother had been newly diagnosed with dementia, and I had the chance to visit my parents once a month in New York. I must have known that would be the last summer she would be living at home full-time, and the last time they would be living in New York half the year. I am a professional person, but want this to be a multi-faceted blog. I hope this meets the needs of many people, not the least of which is contracting and consulting with as many people as possible. I hope if you don't like something I'm saying, please let me know. If I can help you, that would be wonderful. I like win-win, cooperative, respectful situations. I have a sincere interest in people, and I prefer the big picture and not the small picture. I have done some mentoring with a blind youngster, and would not mind doing more of that. I have many skills, and it is not whining to explain taht blind people are unemployed or not employed to their skills and abilities at more than 70%, even though the numbers are not certain. With two master's degrees, I do hope that people will notice my diverse skills and utilize to help you or your organization. Koraling Lynne