By Richard Strong, Director

Communication Center and Senior Services Unit

Minnesota State Services for the Blind (SSB)

(Editor’s Note: This presentation was given at the National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota annual convention on November 3, 2007.)

Madame President, thank you for the opportunity to meet with you today and share with you recent events at State Services for the Blind (SSB).

It was just a short time ago that I joined many of you in Atlanta, and in the streets of that city for the March for Independence at your annual national convention.

I was alongside Jordan Richardson for part of that march and I want to recognize him today for his most recent giant step towards full independence – selection to the National Honor Society at his school. Congratulations Jordan!!

This has been a very eventful and productive year at SSB. It has also been a year filled with many changes.

A major change took place with the State Rehabilitation Council for the Blind. The chairperson’s gavel was passed from Jennifer Dunnam to Rebecca Kragnes in February.

Five members completed their terms and left the Council including Ms. Dunnam. The contribution she and others made the Council’s work during their terms was greatly appreciated. The Governor appointed new members, including Tom Scanlan.

It was a productive year for SSB as we worked towards realizing our mission. The following are some important highlights:

• Achieved significant success at the Minnesota State Legislature: received a $900,000 appropriation to the Communication Center replacing Vocational Rehabilitation (VR) dollars that are needed to provide services to people preparing for employment; a $100,000 increase to match future VR federal funds; and assured SSB’s participation in the study of the open document format by the state. We thank you, the National Federation of the Blind of Minnesota, for your critical support in this effort.

• Reinstituted a major marketing effort by again having a booth in the Education Building of the Minnesota State Fair. SSB distributed 10,000 handheld fans with a message in braille and SSB contact information, braille alphabet cards to 120 teachers, 145 volunteer application packets, and thousands of other pieces of information regarding blindness.

• Negotiated a new 10-year lease at SSB’s present location after evaluating the possibility of relocating to another site in the Midway area of St. Paul.

• Continued to monitor the Minnesota State Capitol restoration project to ensure continued and appropriate space for the Business Enterprises Program vendor - a site SSB has had since the 1940’s.

• Welcomed a new Commissioner to the Department and provided education and information on SSB services to him and other key department staff. I must note that Commissioner McElroy volunteered and served a shift at the SSB booth at the Fair.

• Secured an outside entity to complete the Adjustment to Blindness Vendor Customer Satisfaction Survey, assuring a higher survey completion rate.

• Piloted a survey of Radio Talking Book users.

• We are still refining data for the year that ended on September 30 but we do know:

The Workforce Development Unit assisted a lower number of customers this year than last to secure employment.

The Senior Services Unit served over 3,500 persons in the year.

• Fundraising efforts have resulted in over $210,000 in gifts since October 1, 2006; with a substantial amount (over $21,000) earmarked for the Senior Outreach Program.

We are on the verge of DAISY (Digital Accessible Information System) recording of textbooks in our Audio section of the Communication Center. We have completed the first of three training phases for volunteers in that section and are moving into the final two phases later this fall;

We’re about to place a request for bid for new digital radios for the Communication Center.

We are working with the Department of Education here in Minnesota to renew our interagency agreement to continue to provide high quality braille to the children of the state – an essential ingredient to their academic and future vocational success.

I can’t emphasize enough the importance of that last item – high quality braille to the success and full independence of blind youth.

Dana Gioia, Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), commented earlier this summer on the impact of reading on the lives of Americans.

He noted that in its “Reading at Risk” study, the NEA found:

Every group of Americans is reading less than they used to. And there's actually a broader thing that's happening. Because people read less, they read less well; because they read less well, they do less well in school and less well in the job market. Interestingly, because they read less well, they participate in their communities less.

But, he goes on, for those who do read:

Readers are four times more likely to do volunteer and charity work.

The poorest group of Americans who read do twice as much volunteer work and charity work as the richest Americans who don't read.

So it says that reading is something that has more to do with literature and culture; it's a building block of civic life and democracy.

That’s what the NEA reported.

Reading and literacy are assets to all, including blind persons, and I feel strongly that braille is critical to the future success of blind children.

We know that blind persons who are braille readers are more likely to be employed and they earn more than blind persons who are not braille readers.

Last year our braille section produced or provided nearly 900,000 pages of braille from our Center - an increase of over 140,000 pages over the previous year.

All of these accomplishments were possible because of the input and commitment of the Rehabilitation Council, its committees - including active and valued participation by members from the National Federation of the Blind - the quality and dedication of SSB staff and our 640 volunteers, the hard work of SSB customers, and the contributions of other partners-truly a “Formula for Success”.

As some of you know, I’m from New York. I’m proud of New York. New York has a rich history and I like to quote New Yorkers who are part of that history.

Dean Alfange wasn’t a native New Yorker. He was born in Turkey and adopted New York as his home. He was one of the founders of the Liberal Party in New York back in the last century. He said:

“I do not wish to be a kept citizen, humbled and dulled by having the state look after me. I want to take the calculated risk, to dream and to build, to fail and to succeed. I want to enjoy the benefits of my creations and face the world boldly, and say, this is what I have done.”

SSB believes it can and does play an important role in facilitating the achievement of personal and vocational independence by blind and DeafBlind Minnesotans. It will, working with its partners, continue to assist blind Minnesotans to dream and to build, to fail and to succeed and to say “this is what I have done.”

Madame President, thank you for giving me this opportunity to meet with you today.