Success Stories
Visually
Impaired Student Sees Bright Future Ahead
by Gloria Biersdorff
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Deidre Blevins, who has a vision disability, is enrolled in Lane's E-Business program. She plans to become a web page designer. |
A petite woman with long blonde hair and hazel eyes peers intently over her spectacles at the computer screen in Kaaren O'Rourke's web project development class at Lane Community College. The woman, Deidre Blevins, deftly navigates a Visio site map while her classmates look on and ask questions. Another women sits nearby with an AlphaSmart keyboard in her lap, taking notes for Blevins.
Blevins, 40, is in her second year at Lane, studying to become a web page designer. Diagnosed at age 15 with Plars Planitis, an inflammation of the eye disease, Blevins understands she may lose her vision, now cloudy, at any time. She credits the support of instructors and Disability Services personnel for her achievements at Lane -- she is a 3.95 GPA student in a challenging program, and recipient of five scholarships to date.
" Without the love and care of my instructors and the people in Disability Services, I wouldn't be here. They've given me the tools to be successful. They make me feel like I could fly to the moon if I wanted to," she laughs.
A former homemaker who ran a housecleaning business in Eugene for 15 years, Deidra Blevins entered Lane in fall 2001 to obtain her GED. Three months later, at the urging of instructor Alise Lamoreaux, Blevins applied for and won a $1,000 William and Betty Forrest scholarship. More financial awards ensued, enabling Blevins to pursue an associate of science degree in Business Support with a focus on e-business.
" Deidre's very bright, very determined," says O'Rourke. "She's quite creative in her projects. She's probably my most enthusiastic student."
Deidra Blevins, who has a vision disability, is enrolled in Lane's E-Business program. She plans to become a web page designer.
Blevins' enthusiasm brims as she describes her camaraderie with fellow student Ty Schwab, 28, whom she met fall 2002. Schwab lost his sight eight years ago upon recovery from a diabetic coma, and is currently a Lane intern working as a networks operations administrator. He plans to earn an associate of science degree in network operations.
" He's such an inspiration to me," she says. "He shows me you're only limited to your own dreams."
On Blevins' request, Schwab is teaching her Job Access With Speech, or JAWS, a Windows program which translates text into synthesized voice. Few instructors or students at Lane know this program in depth, says Schwab. He is confident that Blevins will quickly learn, and be able to teach others, this vital software for the visually impaired.
