Braille Institute Names Teacher of the Year for the Visually Impaired, Alaska Community Leader Jacinda L. Danner 2017 “Teacher of the Year”
Los Angeles – May 2017 — Braille Institute has named Jacinda L. Danner, a Teacher of the Visually Impaired and Orientation and Mobility Specialist for the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District, the 2017 Teacher of the Year for Excellence in Braille Instruction. The Palmer, Alaska resident is being recognized for her creative approach to education for her students, all of whom are visually impaired, her ability to promote resources that support unique complexities of teaching in rural areas of Alaska and most importantly, her ability to connect her students with their sighted peers to forge important friendships and partnerships.
“Braille Institute is proud to honor Jacinda Danner. She is a gifted teacher whose impact on the lives of students is immeasurable,” said Peter Mindnich, president, Braille Institute. “Jacinda is a tireless advocate for her students, using creativity and bold innovation to encourage them to realize their full potential. At the same time, recognizing that the future success of students takes teamwork, she promotes braille literacy for sighted family members, peers, school staff, and other community members, inspiring them to embrace braille—a vital communication tool that connects diverse communities.”
Ms. Danner, a teacher for 25 years, was nominated by Dennis Boyer, Behavioral Health Supervisor of the Matanuska-Susitna Borough School District (a school district the size of the Republic of Ireland!), where she has taught for the last 17 years. Her peers, as well as parents and students, enthusiastically supported the nomination, describing her as a problem-solver with contagious passion and expertise.
Ms. Danner exemplifies a passion for honing new teaching approaches that adapt to changing academic rigors, while also calling on her deep knowledge of the role of adaptive technology in the classroom and education fundamentals for students with visual impairment. Among the many programs she has introduced for sighted and visually impaired students in her district, some of the most celebrated include a Braille Club for middle school students, Running Buddy Program, Braille Book Clubs, Braille Trail Events, White Cane Awareness Day, and educational trips for her high school students to ‘the lower 48’. Over the years, her well-rounded students have won braille reading competitions, competed in sports competitions including archery, goalball and other sport competitions; and have found success in college and in the workforce.
“I am a great believer in independence, and I work hard on teaching those skills to my students” said Ms. Danner. “I also believe that people with visual impairments need to be ‘demystified’. Most people in rural areas have only seen people with visual impairments on television where they are either super heroes or in need of help and pity. Educating the public about visual impairments, about accomplished people with limited vision, and about the tools that create independent learners, creates important expectations and equal partnerships with peers, family and community. These partnerships reinforce the expectations that students with a visual impairment can do and achieve anything their sighted peers can.”
Ms. Danner’s leadership in the field of visual impairment continues outside the classroom as well. She is a state-wide contractor for infant and toddler services through AVISION, LLC Alaska Vision Impairment Services and Instruction, a company she founded in 2011, sometimes traveling to students and families in rural ‘Bush’ Alaska villages in single-propeller airplanes She has served as the president of the Association for the Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AER) in Alaska and has edited and published articles about service delivery for youth with vision loss. When new readers begin braille, she instructs a university level braille course for parents and school staff at the child’s school. Additionally, she has supported Camp Abilities Alaska as a vision specialist and tandem biking specialist and has led literacy efforts as the Co-director of the Alaska Braille Challenge Regional.
Ms. Danner earned her Master’s Degree in Visual Disabilities from the University of Northern Colorado and her Bachelor’s Degree in Visual Disabilities and Orientation and Mobility from Florida State University.
The Teacher of the Year award is an opportunity for all Teachers of the Visually Impaired (TVIs) to be recognized on a national level, for the indelible contribution they make to the lives of students who are blind or have severe vision loss. Any TVI in the US and Canada can be nominated by peers, students or parents. The Teacher of the Year is selected by The Braille Challenge National Advisory Committee and is invited to attend The Braille Challenge National Finals in Los Angeles, with all expenses paid. In addition to that, the Teacher of the Year receives a cash award and a BrailleNote Apex QT 32 Braille Notetaker, thanks to the support of HumanWare.
About The Braille Challenge
The Braille Challenge, sponsored by Braille Institute, is an annual academic competition that emphasizes the study of braille and ultimately, demystifies higher education during the final stage of this two-stage competition. Any school age student who is blind or visually impaired can participate in a regional event (held from January through March every year) in communities around the US and Canada. The top participants are invited to The Braille Challenge National Finals Competition (hosted this year on June 17 by Braille Institute on the campus of the University of Southern California in Los Angeles). Celebrating its 17th year, #BrailleChallenge2017 offered more than 1,100 students (this year alone) a chance to compete in five categories: reading comprehension, braille spelling, chart and graph reading, proofreading, and braille speed and accuracy.
About Braille Institute
Braille Institute is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to eliminate barriers to a fulfilling life caused by blindness and severe sight loss. It serves thousands of people of all ages each year through an array of educational, social and recreational programs and services designed to help people with vision loss lead enriched and fulfilling lives. Funded by private donations, all services are free-of-charge. Braille Institute’s Los Angeles headquarters are located at 741 N Vermont Ave, Los Angeles. For additional information, please visit www.braillechallenge.org or www.brailleinstitute.org. Follow on Facebook at https://www.facebook.com/brailleinstitute and on twitter @BrailleInst