LWSB-General Overview

General Overview

Psycho-social Services

Emotional adjustment is one of the most important phases of the training at Lions World Services for the Blind. Learning to function without sight is the major problem facing a person who is blind. The LWSB trainee is guided by the psycho-social staff through individual counseling, group counseling, assessment, and evaluation throughout his or her stay at the center. Each trainee works individually with a counselor who serves as case manager. A consulting psychiatrist and a psychological examiner are members of the psycho-social team.

Personal Adjustment Services

To live an independent life, a person who is blind or visually impaired must make some adjustments. There are over 30 areas of skill development in personal adjustment. Among these adjustments are learning such skills as Braille, typing, oral communications, clothing care, cooking, grooming, housekeeping, independent travel through the use of a long cane, orientation to the environment and use of transportation systems.

Personal adjustment training includes the development of self-confidence in areas of social skills, physical conditioning and recreation.

Vocational Evaluation

Vocational evaluation plays an important role in the training offered at LWSB. Evaluation is made through a variety of tests, such as assessment of aptitudes, interests and academic skills, and work samples. The vocational evaluation process has provided an advantage in assessing and developing an individual's work potential.

Vocational Training

Always a leader in vocational training, LWSB offers a variety of programs to prepare individuals who are blind or visually impaired for careers in both white and blue collar jobs.

The center currently offers 13 vocational programs, which include three courses that teach trainees to work for the Internal Revenue Service. The three IRS courses are: Contact Collection Representative, Service Center Collection Representative, and Taxpayer Service Representative. The other vocational programs are: Assistive Technology Instructor, Bicycle Assembly and Repair, Enterprise Solutions Programming, Clerical Skills, Customer Service, Horticulture, Microsoft Computer Systems Engineer, Small Business Management, Small Engine Repair and Word Processing.

Specialized Courses

Individuals not requiring a full vocational training program may enroll in a component of a course (with the exception of the Internal Revenue Service-related courses).

Individualized programs can be designed by combining components of several programs to meet specific, identified training needs. Components include:

Computer-related

Introduction to Computers and Data Processing
COBOL Programming Language
Introduction to PC DOS
370 Assembler Language
d-Base
LOTUS 1-2-3
WordPerfect 6.0 (for DOS or Windows)
Informix
UNIX
UNIX Shell Programming
Local Area Network (LAN)

Assistive Technology

The Assistive Technology Learning Center has an extensive selection of the latest hardware and software products to adapt personal computers to be accessible by people who are blind or visually impaired. A person can review the choices and learn to operate one or more assistive technologies. Some of the inventory includes screen reader systems (for speech output, large print, refreshable braille display), scanners, and braille printers and devices.

The training is useful for job retention, upward career mobility, academic work for high school or college students, and for personal use.

Job Seeking Skills

The LWSB Career Training Center offers classroom instruction, one-on-one tutoring, and job searching. The instruction covers practical applications (forms, resumes, job shadowing, mock interviews), an overview of assistive technology, and orientation and mobility. The classroom instruction and group activities cover job site issues, goals, dress and grooming, self-organization, job retention, and much more. The Center has a computer workstation that is accessible with assistive technology and on-line with internet services for nationwide job searches.

Transition Courses

College Preparatory Program
The purpose of this program is to bridge the gap from high school to college. The nine-week summer program has an entry date of the first week in June. The curriculum includes academic skills (freshman English), adaptive skills (computers and assistive technology, lifeskills), and socialization skills.
Transition from School to Work
Training is for vocational readiness and/or to obtain a General Educational Development (GED) diploma. The course includes counseling services, vocational exploration and observation, academic courses taught by a certified teacher, and training in socialization skills and adaptive skills.

Other Services

LWSB offers a number of other services. Among them are:

Individualized independent living skills for elderly people who are blind.
A low-vision clinic with vision rehabilitation services
Employer education workshops
In-service training for rehabilitation professionals

Public Relations

Find out what's happening at Lions World Services for the Blind by reading our quarterly newsletter, New Life. Current and past issues of New Life can be viewed on our website by clicking here.

Braille and audio cassette versions of our newsletter are available for the blind and visually impaired. To receive Braille or cassette newsletters, or to be placed on our newsletter mailing list, please e-mail development@lwsb.org.

Lions World Services for the Blind also publishes detailed brochures covering each of LWSB's comprehensive services. In addition, a 7-minute video which provides a general overview of the services at LWSB is available in DVD or VHS formats. To obtain brochures or a copy of our video, please e-mail development@lwsb.org.

Lion's World Services For the Blind