FamilyConnect

• Accessibility

  All services related to the provision of materials in accessible formats for visually impaired consumers and to bringing building facilities into compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).

• Advocacy

  Services directed toward ensuring that people who are blind or visually impaired have access to benefits, vocational rehabilitation, and other programs available to them in the community and that their interests are appropriately represented by their policymakers and government agencies.

• Assessment

  Specialized evaluative processes conducted by professionals to determine the present needs and skill levels of clients.

• Assistive Products

  All services related to the provision of assistive products and training in their use for clients who are blind or visually impaired, either for a fee or for free. These include technical support offered as well as repair services.

• Audiodescription

  Descriptions and explanations of the visual aspects of films, television programs, or plays to make them understandable to individuals who are blind or visually impaired. These services also encompass the training of guides, describers, docents, or anyone who provides or is interested in providing this kind of narration.

• Braille and Reading Instruction

  Instruction and training in alternate methods of reading, such as the use of braille and optical devices, to promote literacy among blind and visually impaired persons.

• Braille/Electronic/Audio/Large Print Production

  Creation or publication of materials in braille, electronic, audio, or large print formats.

• Community Outreach Programs

  Screening and other related activities conducted in the community to identify and assist individuals who are blind or visually impaired in need of assistance.

• Computer Training/Assistive Technology

  Training in the use of appropriate computers and assistive technology. Computer training encompasses training in the use of such equipment as closed-circuit television systems, computer operating systems, database software, optical character recognition systems, screen magnification systems, speech output systems, and word processing software. It also includes computer training for instructors of students and other individuals who are blind or visually impaired.

• Consultation/Technical Program Assistance

  Advice, assistance, and consultative support by specialized staff to local school systems, teachers of visually impaired students, and other agencies or professionals who work with blind and visually impaired persons.

• Counseling

  Clinical evaluations, counseling, referrals, and support provided by professionals, such as psychologists and counselors, to visually impaired individuals and family members.

• Daily Living Skills/Independent Living Skills Training

  Training in adapted techniques for daily living and work activities, such as home management, personal management, communication, and travel, and other adaptive skills.

• Distance Education

  Education or training provided through the use of audio and/or visual communications technologies. Includes online courses, satellite courses, videotaped courses, correspondence courses, teleconferencing, and other methods of delivery in which teacher and student are not physically in the same place.

• Dog Guide Training

  Instruction on how to work with a dog guide to negotiate the travel environment.

• Early Intervention/Infant Services

  Services provided to infants, including assessment of the child's condition and needs, developmental enrichment, and coordination of health, social, and related services.

• Education Services

  Services related to the education of blind and visually impaired children and young adults, usually from birth through age 21. These include services offered by agencies that provide adapted instructional materials and state and other agencies responsible for overseeing educational services to blind and visually impaired students.

• Employment/Job Training

  Career and skill counseling, prevocational evaluation, career preparation training, and vocational placement.

• Health

  General medical and related services including eye evaluations, treatment of eye conditions, and genetic counseling.

• Housing Services

  Housing facilities or a variety of assistance related to the provision of housing for individuals, such as information and referrals to independent living arrangements, nursing homes, or assisted living facilities.

• In-Home Services

  Services to individuals who are unable to avail themselves of services outside their homes as a result of an illness, functional limitations in activities of daily living, or disability. These services may be homemaker services, which include day-to-day household services such as housekeeping, laundry, limited personal care, grocery shopping, meal preparation, correspondence assistance, shopping assistance, and other nonmedical assistance provided in the client's home, and health care services, which include assistance for a health-related condition by paraprofessional personnel such as home health aides, personal care aides, and nursing assistants.

• Information and Referral

  General information about blindness and visual impairment and referrals to sources of other information and services.

• Legal Services

  Advice, counseling, information or representation with regard to legal matters provided by a licensed attorney or trained paralegal.

• Library Services

  Organized, often formal, collections of materials in print or other formats for blind and visually impaired individuals and the professionals who work with them.

• Low Vision Services

  Evaluation and testing of a client's vision; prescription of appropriate optical devices; support, follow-up, and referrals to other appropriate agencies and professionals. These services also include the provision of nonoptical (such as lamps, filters, bold-lined paper, writing guides) and optical devices (such as magnifiers, microscopes, telescopes) and training in their use.

• Personnel Preparation

  Degree programs and areas of concentration to prepare professionals to work in various capacities with individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Services in this category also include distance education or off-campus programs for students who are working toward degrees or certification in specializations in the field of blindness and visual impairment.

• Preschool Programs

  Programs for preschool-age children who are blind or visually impaired.

• Professional Training

  Programs such as workshops, seminars, and in-service meetings whose objective is to train personnel who work with blind and visually impaired people.

• Reading Services

  Radio broadcasts of newspaper articles, books, and consumer information for people with visual, physical, and reading disabilities, provided over otherwise unused radio frequencies; these services also include telephone reader or personal reader services.

• Recreation Services

  Leisure activities--such as those related to arts and crafts, sports, music, and drama, and other similar activities--provided for blind and visually impaired persons.

• Services for Students

  Services offered in college or universities for students who are blind or visually impaired. Such services include the availability of computers with assistive technology, such as screen readers and screen magnification programs; video magnifiers; braille or large print materials; or live readers.

• Summer/Day Camps and After-school Programs

  Activities provided for children after school hours and during the summer months.

• Support for Parents

  Training and workshops for parents and support services, such as in-home visits, respite care, and referrals to appropriate agencies for services.

• Support Groups

  Periodic meetings that provide participants with the opportunity to share information and talk about common experiences for mutual support, usually run by a facilitator or a professional who can provide guidance.

• Transportation Services

  Transportation provided either for free for eligible clients or for a fee to people with disabilities and senior citizens without transportation options or who cannot use public transportation due to their disability.

• Travel/Orientation and Mobility

  Training in the use of systematic techniques by which people who are blind or visually impaired orient themselves to their environment and move about independently.

• Volunteer Services

  Assistance with daily chores, reading services, and other personal services provided by volunteers.