Overview
Assistive technology (AT) is vital to employment success for people who are blind or who have low vision (B/LV), but we need to understand their experiences with AT in the workplace. Based on findings from the first two surveys of employed and unemployed participants in a 5-year longitudinal study, we will share information about the way AT is utilized in and out of the workplace and the AT challenges that people who are B/LV experience. We will also compare and contrast AT skills and training needs, AT self-efficacy, and AT challenges between employed people and job seekers.
Learning Objectives
- Describe at least five of the most commonly used assistive technologies (ATs) by people who are blind or have low vision in the workplace, including their satisfaction levels with the ATs for specific tasks.
- Compare at least three characteristics of assistive technology use for job seekers and employed participants who are blind or who have low vision.
- Discuss at least three overarching themes for features that are desired in assistive technology for job seekers and employed participants who are blind or who have low vision.
Primary & Secondary Strands
Vision & Hearing Technologies; Research
Target Audience
- Accessibility Professional
- ADA Coordinator
- Administrators
- AT Specialists
- Consumers/Individuals with Disabilities
- Consultants/Trainers
- Faculty/Instructors - Higher Education
- Government/Non-Profit Agencies
- Rehab Therapists
- Teachers of the Visually Impaired
- Transition Coordinator
- Visual Impairment Specialists
- Vocational Rehabilitation
Experience Level
All
Primary Life Cycle Addressed
Higher Education; Adult/Senior
Session Delivery Format
In-person presentation with live-stream
Course Schedule
This course was given at the ATIA 2023 Virtual Event on Thursday, February 2 from 1:00 PM - 2:00 PM (EST)
Continuing Education Credits
For Satisfactory Completion and Continuing Education information, please visit: ATIA Learning Center CEUs
This course is offered for the following CE Provider Credits:
ACVREP; AOTA; IACET
For: 0.10 CEU Units or 1.0 CEU Hours.
End date of CRC CEUs offering: January 30, 2024
As this course was included in the ATIA 2023 Virtual Event series, please refer to the ATIA Learning Center CEUs page for further information on how to submit your CRC CEUs for this course to CRCC.
Speaker/s:
Michele McDonnall, PhD, CRC
Biography
Dr. Michele McDonnall, Ph.D., CRC, is the Director of The National Research and Training Center on Blindness and Low Vision at Mississippi State University. She has 28 years of experience in the field of rehabilitation for persons with disabilities and has been conducting research involving individuals with blindness and low vision for the past 19 years. She is the Principal Investigator of the Rehabilitation Research and Training Center on Employment of People who are Blind or Have Low Vision grant, funded by NIDILRR. Her research in the field of blindness and low vision has covered a wide range of populations and topics including predictors of employment for youth and adults, the effect of sensory loss on depression, employer attitudes, training for VR professionals on interacting with businesses, and the effectiveness of different approaches to employer meetings. In 2020, Dr. McDonnall and her team began a longitudinal study about assistive technology use in the workplace by people who are blind or have low vision.
Relevant Financial Relationship: Yes
I receive a grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research and a salary from Mississippi State University.
Relevant Non-Financial Relationship: No
Rachael Sessler Trinkowsky, PhD, CRC, CATIS, CPACC
Lighthouse for the Blind of the Palm Beaches and UMass Boston, AT Program Coordinator/Manager
Biography
Rachael Sessler Trinkowsky, Ph.D., CRC, CATIS, CPACC is the Technology Training and Vocational Coordinator for the Lighthouse for the Blind of the Palm Beaches, where she oversees services for a 5-county territory. She is the Program Coordinator for the Assistive Technology for People with Visual Impairments program at the University of Massachusetts Boston and has developed programs through UMass Boston to prepare professionals for the new CATIS credential through ACVREP. Additionally, she is an adjunct faculty member at the University of Illinois Chicago (UIC) where she teaches a course in the Assistive Technology Certificate Program at UIC. Dr. Sessler Trinkowsky holds a B.A. degree in Special Education and a Masters of Health Science in Rehabilitation Counseling from the University of Florida. She has also earned an Educational Specialist and a Ph.D. from Nova Southeastern University's College of Engineering and Computing in Computing Technology in Education. Her dissertation topic focused on accessibility awareness and practices in online learning environments. Dr.. Sessler Trinkowsky has been a Certified Rehabilitation Counselor (CRC) since 1999 and she was the recipient of the Florida Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (Florida FAER) award for Outstanding Rehabilitation Professional for the Blind Award (2017). Rachael is serving as the member-at-large Rehabilitation for Florida AER from 2018 to 2019 and she is serving on the Accessibility Committee for AER. She is also a Google Chromebook Accessibility Ambassador. She was honored to be a member of the Subject Matter Expert (SME) Committee for the development of the new and much-needed specialization, called Certified Assistive Technology Instructional Specialist for People with Visual Impairments (CATIS) through the Academy for Certification of Vision Rehabilitation & Education Professionals (ACVREP).
Relevant Financial Relationship: Yes
Dr. Rachael Sessler Trinkowsky is the Strand Advisor for the Vision & Hearing Strand for ATIA 2023. For this role, the ATIA Conference registration fee has been waived for participation in ATIA. As a pre-conference speaker, the presenters earn a revenue share. All profits from the revenue share or other participation as a strand advisor for ATIA 2023 will be submitted to the Lighthouse for the Blind of the Palm Beaches. Rachael receives a full-time salary from the Lighthouse for the Blind of the Palm Beaches, and half-time salary from the University of Massachusetts Boston as AT Program Coordinator. Additionally, she receives compensation for work as an adjunct faculty member with the University of Illinois, Chicago. Rachael is also a contractor with Mississippi State University on research related to Access Technology in the Workplace.
Relevant Non-Financial Relationship: Yes
Dr. Rachael Sessler Trinkowsky is on the Subject Matter Expert (SME) Committee for the CATIS certification, and was also on the Study Guide Committee for CATIS through ACVREP. These are volunteer positions. Rachael is a board member for the Florida AER. This is a volunteer position. Rachael is a Chromebook Accessibility Ambassador with Google. This is a volunteer position. Rachael is the Accessibility Committee Chair for AER. This is a volunteer position.