The Resource Center for Persons with Disabilities is pleased to announce a brand-new initiative launching Fall 2020: RCPD will provide electronic braille displays to incoming blind students who use braille at no cost to them – the first program of its kind at any university in the United States!
Spearheaded by Director Michael Hudson, who saw the challenges students were facing in a changing world where it was not always possible for them to quickly obtain printed braille materials, RCPD offers this option so students may gain instant access to accessible books and other essential campus materials no matter where they happen to reside. “Pursuit of a college degree requires extensive reading and for people who are blind that means braille,” said Director Hudson. “This technology will build fluency, speed availability, and grow technical sophistication to assist students in reaching their fullest potential.”
Electronic braille displays are portable devices which feature strips of pins that raise and lower to generate the dots that comprise each braille cell. Braille readers use this to access a line of text from a document, then when they advance to the next line the pins refresh to display it in braille. In this way, materials can be made rapidly accessible without the challenges of paper braille printing, delivery, and transportation.
RCPD extends deepest gratitude to our donors through the Angela Sebald Ability Access Fund, Carlson Accessible Media Program, and Emerging Opportunities Endowment for their support in this important work. If you are interested in making a contribution, please visit our Make a Gift page!
Related news:
MSU Today Article: “First-of-its-kind Effort Supports Blind Students”