APH in Higher Education

Media

Presented at 10:30am in Waverly on Friday, November 22, 2019.

Speaker(s)

• Dave Wilkinson, Director, Sales, American Printing House for the Blind

Session Details

• Length of Session: 1-hr
• Format: Lecture
• Expertise Level: Beginner
• Type of session: General Conference

Summary

We will look at a number of products specifically aimed at addressing the accessibility needs of students who are blind or visually impaired. These products include simple ways of creating tactile graphics. simple video magnifiers, braille translation software, etc.

Abstract

APH has been producing products for students k-12 for over 160 years with little attention payed to students after graduation. We are correcting this with products aimed directly at making the lives of students who are blind or visually impaired easier in their post-secondary pursuits. This is a natural extension for APH as we are in virtually every classroom in the US where there is a student who is blind or visually impaired. As part of this workshop we also hope to hear from attendees on how we can be most effective in the HIgher Education arena.

Keypoints

1. APH already has a strong relationship with virtually all blind/visually impaired students in the US.
2. APH has payed little attention to students after they graduate. We are correcting this.
3. APH has numerous products and services that can help blind/visually impaired students and their professors.

Disability Areas

Mobility, Vision

Topic Areas

Accessible Educational Materials, Alternate Format, Assistive Technology, Uncategorized

Speaker Bio(s)

Dave Wilkinson

Dave Wilkinson is the first Director of Sales at APH. He is currently building a sales department from scratch. Dave is a lifelong Braille reader and advocate for braille. He has been in the assistive technology field for over 20 years. He has presented nationally and internationally on a myriad of Assistive Technology topics including but not limited to GPS for the blind, refreshable braille and mathematics, utilization of various forms of electronic books, etc.

Before coming to APH, Dave was the National Training Manager for HIMS. He has also worked as an Access Technology Specialist for a number of other companies and organizations including World Services for the Blind, HumanWare, and Freedom Scientific.

Jobs outside of the adaptive technology industry include working as a college residence hall director, several clerical positions while working his way through college, and running his own piano tuning business in high school.

For several years Dave was a competitive cross-country skier. In 2003, after moving to the South, he started running as cross-country skiing wasn't a viable sport in that part of the country. He has run numerous marathons, half marathons, and other races and is currently training for the Louisville Ironman in October.

Dave has a Bachelor of Fine Arts in History and Radio and a Masters of Education in Student Personnel Administration in Higher Education from New York University.

When he's not surfing the Net or listening to outdated 70's art rock music, Dave enjoys spending time with his family, running, coin collecting, and a good book.