About Us
NYDBC (New York Deaf-Blind Collaborative)
Value & Mission Statements
Value Statement
The New York Deaf-Blind Collaborative (NYDBC) believes that all individuals, including those who are deaf-blind, have the right to lead a full and rewarding life. All individuals should have access to the necessary skills and supports that provide them with the opportunity to do so.
Mission Statement
The mission of the New York Deaf-Blind Collaborative (NYDBC) is to achieve measurable improvements in the quality of life for children and youth who are deaf-blind throughout New York State. NYDBC will do so through the provision of needs-based technical assistance, training, and support to key agencies, personnel, and families. These initiatives will lead to an enhanced service delivery system, one providing quality, person-centered services responsive to the unique needs of children and youth who are deaf-blind.
Definitions
What is deaf-blindness?
Deaf-blindness refers to a combined hearing and vision impairment, often referred to as a dual sensory loss. The degree of loss for each sense can vary significantly thus affecting their life experience in individual ways.
Individuals who are deaf-blind do not have to be completely deaf or completely blind to qualify for services. In fact, a child or young adult may have very usable residual vision or hearing but, with the combined sensory losses, functions in a way that is developmentally different than hearing/sighted individuals. Individuals who are considered deaf-blind represent an extremely diverse population. The range of hearing and vision loss per individual can vary significantly. While one student’s primary disability may be profound deafness, another student’s primary disability may be vision loss. No matter the leading issue, the determining factor in receiving technical assistance from NYDBC is the combination of both a hearing and vision impairment.
NYDBC operates under the federal definitions for school age and early intervention in its identification of children who are deaf-blind.
Special Education (Ages 3-21) Federal Definition
Deaf-blindness means concomitant hearing and visual impairments, the combination of which causes such severe communication and other developmental and educational needs that they cannot be accommodated in special education programs solely for children with deafness or children with blindness. 34 CFR 300.8 (c) (2)
Early Intervention (Ages 0-3) Federal Definition
Infants and toddlers with disabilities means individuals from birth through age two who need early intervention services because they: Are experiencing developmental delays, as measured by appropriate diagnostic instruments and procedures, in one or more of the following areas: cognitive development, physical development including vision and hearing, communication development, social or emotional development, adaptive development, have a diagnosed physical or mental condition that has a high probability of resulting in developmental delay or who are at risk of having substantial developmental delays if early intervention services are not provided. CFR 34, Sec. 303.16
Who we serve
- NYDBC is a statewide project that provides technical assistance to professionals and families on behalf of children and young adults who are deaf-blind between the ages of 0 21.
- The project is funded by the Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) through the CUNY Research Foundation and is housed at Queens College in Flushing, NY. Any and all interested parties in New York State can access NYDBC, free of charge, as a resource on deaf-blindness.
What Ages do we serve?
Early intervention (0 3) NYDBC works with early invention providers and systems to ensure that children are appropriately identified, and that families who have a child with hearing and vision loss are receiving the services that meet the specialized developmental needs of their child by:
- Increasing the knowledge and skills of the family and providers.
- Connecting parents and providers with information and each other for mutual support.
Pre-school (3 5) NYDBC provides technical assistance to early childhood programs to support the development of transdisciplinary programs that meet the specialized developmental needs of children who are deaf-blind, while continuing to support families to do so at home. Critical areas include:
- Communication and language development.
- Social and conceptual development.
- Planning for the transition to school-age programs.
School-age (6 13) NYDBC provides technical assistance to professionals and families to develop knowledge and skills which will lead to better educational outcomes for students who are deaf-blind. The technical assistance may be centered on an individual child or may address the development of a program to serve multiple children.
Transition (14 21) NYDBC can provide critical information and support to transition-age young adults as they, their families, and educators begin to conduct long-range planning for the individual. Transitioning from school-to-work and from school to the adult community should be planned comprehensively and be transdisciplinary in nature.
Who do we serve?
Professionals NYDBC provides technical assistance to educators, administrators and related service providers through a multi-tiered T A delivery model (see Services). The type and level of intensity of T A will vary significantly depending on the needs of the professional(s) and their desired level of commitment to the process.
Families NYDBC provides information, support, resources, training, networking opportunities, and family-to-family linkages to family members of children who are deaf-blind with the expressed goal of increasing a family’s knowledge of and involvement in their child’s education.
Consumers NYDBC acts as a resource to assist individuals who are deaf-blind in being connected to the appropriate resources within their local community. Making peer-to-peer connections and linkages to adult service agencies, for example, are critical, particularly for young adults who are deaf-blind.
NYDBC Staff
The NYDBC team comprises of a Principal Investigator, Project Director, Project Coordinator, Family Specialist and Administrative Assistant. Each key staff person has been working in the field of deaf-blindness for over a dozen years, in some cases, almost two decades. Each staff member person brings a unique perspective related to deaf-blindness.
Patricia Rachal, Principal Investigator
Dr. Rachal has provided consultation in over twenty five states throughout the country on interagency collaboration, team-building, effective communication skills, systems change strategies, and transition planning for young adults who are deaf-blind. She has served as a consultant to two national deaf-blind technical assistance grants and to Helen Keller National Center. She has published on topics in deaf-blindness throughout her tenure of more than twenty years in the field.
Email: patricia.rachal@qc.cuny.edu Phone: 718.997.5470
Samuel Morgan, Project Director -
Sam has a background in orientation and mobility, vision loss, and early communication strategies for children with deaf-blindness and multiple disabilities. He most recently was the principal of the Children’s Learning Center early childhood program at Helen Keller Services for the Blind. He has worked as a technical assistance provider for deaf-blind projects in California and New York. He received his doctorate from Teachers College Columbia University. He brings a wealth of knowledge to the project in the areas of technical assistance provision, and vision loss and developmental strategies for early learners who have dual sensory impairments.
Email: samuel.morgan@qc.cuny.edu Phone: 718.997.4853
Susanne Morgan Morrow, Project Coordinator -
Susanne is a nationally certified sign language interpreter and transition specialist. Her work has focused on creating linkages between the interpreting, deaf and deaf-blind communities through her role as the chairperson to various national organizations and committees. Previously as a transition specialist with the national deaf-blind project she focused her efforts on topics such as self-determination, advocacy and transition planning for young adults who are deaf-blind.
Email: susanne.morrow@qc.cuny.edu Phone: 718.997.4854
Clara Berg, Family Specialist -
Clara is a parent of a young man with combined hearing and vision loss and is a parent leader across the country and abroad on topics specific to family and child concerns. Her work is strongly recognized around student and family advocacy and Person Centered Planning. As a multi-linguist (Spanish, Portuguese, Italian, and French), Clara has been able to create strong linkages between families across linguistic and cultural barriers.
Email: clara.berg@qc.cuny.edu Phone: 718.997.4855
Eneida Lamberty, Administrative Assistant
Eneida joins the project as the most recent member to the deaf-blind field. She assists the project staff in achieving its many goals by conducting outreach and through internal organization. Eneida’s bilingual skills (Spanish) are extremely helpful in communicating with many of our families throughout the state.
Email: NYDBC@qc.cuny.edu Phone: 718.997.4856
Advisory Board
NYDBC maintains an advisory board to assist the project staff in critiquing and validating project activities and procedures. The advisory board is a critical component of assisting the staff in reflecting on and improving project practices and therefore outcomes. The advisory Board is made up of individuals who have expertise in deaf-blindness or who work for key state and local agencies that provide services to children and youth who are deaf-blind.
- Gerry Bateman
- Professor, Secondary Education of Students Who Are Deaf or Hard-of-Hearing, Rochester Institute of Technology
- Karen Gourkey
- Director Computer Center for Visually Impaired People, Baruch College
- Sonia Hartmann
- Parent; President, NYPN; Bilingual Spec. Educ. Teacher
- Bernadette Kappen
- Superintendent, New York Institute for Special Education
- Maricar Marquez
- Consumer; Senior Instructor, Communication Learning Center, Helen Keller National Center
- Ellen McHugh
- Assistant Director, Parent to Parent of New York State
- Kathy McNulty
- Associate Director, National Consortium on Deaf-Blindness
- Jamie Pope
- Consumer; Executive Director, AADB
- Molly Rimer
- Regional Representative, Helen Keller National Center
- Dr. Rosanne Silberman
- Professor, Hunter College CUNY
- Frank Simpson
- Superintendent, Lavelle School for the Blind
- Sheri Stanger
- Parent; Past President and Advisor, National Family Association of Deaf-Blind
- Leonardo Villanueva
- Parent
Project Goals and activities
OBJECTIVE #1: Conduct on-going identification and needs assessment activities to provide technical assistance and training that are driven by the demographics of the population and the needs of the stakeholders.
OBJECTIVE #2: To provide on-going technical assistance and disseminate evidence-based products and materials through a multi-tiered T A delivery model.
OBJECTIVE #3: To augment the knowledge and skills of stakeholders through the delivery of Pre-Service & In-Service Training.
OBJECTIVE #4: To enhance local capacity and to produce systems improvement/change through leadership and coordinated activities.
OBJECTIVE #5: To create & deliver products and information to statewide stakeholders that reflects evidence-based research and needs assessment data.
OBJECTIVE #6: To analyze formative and summative data collected from relevant stakeholders and grant activities in order to support a continuous improvement process through: on-going needs assessment, the tracking of project efforts through Goal Attainment Scaling (GAS), consultation with the NYDBC Advisory Board, pre and post tests of T A and Training activity, and through case studies on a select number of individuals.
Partnerships
It is critical that NYDBC create partnerships with various state agencies, higher education institutions, professional organizations and parent and consumer organizations.
Other collaborating organizations and agencies:
American Association of the Deaf-Blind (AADB) The only national organization run for, by and of deaf-blind individuals. It is a social networking and advocacy organization that provides information, resources and linkages to deaf-blind people and interested parties across the country.
Commission for the Blind and Visually Handicapped (CBVH) The Commission for the Blind and Visually Handicapped provides supportive and rehabilitation services, and materials/equipment to individuals who are legally blind of all ages.
Hunter College, CUNY NYDBC staff teach courses within the master program for Special Education, including Deafblindness and Severe Disabilities. Student teachers have opportunities to participate in NYDBC-sponsored activities. NYDBC also offers a limited number of stipends to professionals to take an online course through Hunter.
National Consortium on Deaf-Blindness (NCDB) The national federal Technical Assistance project established specifically for supporting the state projects who serve children and young adults who are deaf-blind between the ages of 0 21.
National Task Force on Deaf-Blind Interpreting (NTFDBI) A national partnership between the National Consortium of Interpreter Education Centers (NCIEC), the Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf (RID) and the American Association of the Deaf-Blind (AADB) focused on interpreter education and preparedness of interpreters skilled in working with individuals who are deaf-blind.
Registry of Interpreters for the Deaf: Deaf-Blind Member Section (RID DBMS) A group of interpreter practitioners and educators interested in providing adequate interpreting services to individuals who are deaf-blind.
Vocational and Educational Services for Individuals with Disabilities (VESID)
VESID oversees all educational and rehabilitation services to individuals with disabilities in New York State. The Department of Special Education as well as rehabilitation services for individuals who are deaf and hard of hearing are part of VESID.
NYS Department of Health Early Intervention Program
The NYS Early Intervention program is administered by the NYS Department of Health, which approves service providers, as well as setting policy, regulations, and offering professional development and support for early intervention providers. Early intervention services are provided on the county level.
Commission for the Blind and Visually Handicapped
The Commission for the Blind provides supportive and rehabilitation services, and materials/equipment to individuals who are legally blind of all ages.