Lantern: Fall 2009
Letter from the President
A beautiful song. A medical breakthrough. A career in graphic design. A greener world. Arts and sciences touch our lives every day, in so many different ways.
The students we serve on campus, in the community and internationally have boundless opportunities to immerse themselves in the arts and sciences. We offer a wide variety of academic classes in music, art, science and math. Our Expanded Core Curriculum focuses on life skills, problemsolving and more. Our educational methods sometimes differ from traditional classrooms, but our goals are the same. Today’s world is a competitive place, and our students – like those at any other school – must be ready to compete.
Starting this fall, our commitment to this goal will be strengthened through two transformative construction projects. I'm excited to announce the groundbreaking of our Lower School project, which will include the construction of a new building and renovation of the old, resulting in accessible, modern facilities that will allow our students to flourish for years to come. Equally profound, our campus will also see the addition of The Grousbeck Center for Students and Technology, a new headquarters for stateoftheart, accessible technology. The building, Perkins' first campuswide space for socializing and recreation, will be one more way we can prepare our students to participate in the real world of technology.
For 180 years, we at Perkins have witnessed the fact that when given the tools to learn, differentlyabled students not only meet the challenge of learning set before them; they frequently surpass it.
Sincerely,
Steven M. Rothstein
President, Perkins School for the Blind
Contents
Campus
- Art and science classes at Perkins invite every student to learn
- Unlocking his passion
- Stitching a story
- A lesson for life
Community
- Experimenting outside the classroom
- Investing in an ecosystem
- Braille and beyond
- Perkins Training Center reaches a new audience
- On the road
Perkins Landscape
Around the World
Perkins
- Perkins reaches out to its roots
- A grand time
- Spreading possibility
- Reflecting on five decades of involvement
- Calendar
- The Perkins Annual Fund
- Support Perkins Gifts: Holiday Cards & Calendar
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Art and science classes at Perkins invite every student to learn
Arts and sciences have long had an important place at Perkins, where educators have always worked to help students break barriers. The fact that not all students are able to read printed music or see a chemical equation on a chalkboard has led our teachers and staff to find new methods of teaching, and driven them to share those methods with others.
Exploring sound
Jill Buchanan’s classroom at Perkins Early Learning Center is small, but the joyful bursts of music coming from inside it are anything but.
“We’re gonna shake, shake, shake and play,” sings Buchanan, playing a Baldwin piano with 4-year-old Naomi Bateman banging happily alongside her. “Now, get ready to STOP.”
But Naomi’s fingers keep on drumming.
“Shhh,” Buchanan whispers, reaching out her hand to press the child’s busy fingers into silence on the keys. “Stop.”
The 30 minutes that Naomi will share with Buchanan is much more than a sing-a-long. In addition to introducing children to instruments and fostering an early appreciation for melody, music therapy is a proven tool for teaching a variety of social and behavioral skills to children who are blind, visually impaired or with additional disabilities.
“We’re having a socialization experience, really,” explained Buchanan, a classically trained pianist and music therapist. “We’re working on impulse control, knowing how to stop and start together, follow directions and expand attention skills. Music helps the kids participate in something and feel successful when they’re done.”
Discovering science
Some students may not be able to see a printed drawing of the structural differences between a solid, a liquid and a gas. But their fingers can feel the difference in the number of marbles contained in dishes representing each.
“Many students have been told elsewhere that they can’t do science, or they haven’t had an opportunity to be in a science class,” said Perkins science teacher Kate Fraser. “If a student can come in here and learn problem solving skills, to be an intelligent consumer and to be excited about the natural world, that’s a big piece of it.”
Fraser wanted a way to support other science teachers of students who are blind or visually impaired. After years of work, she and fellow teachers recently launched Perkins Accessible Science webcast and pilot website – an online resource of ideas, strategies and models for adapting science lessons on all topics that can be found at www.Perkins.org/accessiblescience.
“The best science teaching is multisensory and hands-on. And that’s universal,” said Fraser, who is currently working on developing a campuswide science curriculum that adheres to the Mass. Curriculum Frameworks. “Students are generally very excited about the opportunities we offer here. One of the most common remarks I’ve heard is, ‘Boy, I’ve never had a chance to check that out before.’”
Unlocking his passion
Searching for the works of the Deafblind Program’s resident graphic artist?
Just walk through the doors of the Hilton Building, climb the steps, hang a left and there they are – a wall blazing with color, shapes and the ingenuity of a 10-year-old boy named Mike Macolini.
Mike, whose hearing and vision are impaired due to CHARGE syndrome, a complex, genetic pattern of birth defects including heart and respiratory problems that occurs in about one in every 10,000 births worldwide, discovered graphic art last year using the computer program Clicker Paint as a way to express himself.
Since then, there’s been no stopping the ideas and emotion exploding from Mike’s computer.
He begins every school day with his art, sitting before the computer screen with a focused expression, oblivious to the buzz of activity around him.
“He would sit there for hours – all day, if we let him,” says teaching assistant Betsy DeLorenzo.
The time Mike has spent in front of the computer has also helped him develop new motor skills, adds teacher Sarah Merwin.
At the beginning of the year, he couldn’t use the mouse very well,” she says, watching as Mike deftly guided the cursor across the computer screen. “Now, with the months he’s spent doing this, he’s amazing.”
Thanks to the help of his teachers, Mike will continue honing his skills at home. Together, they orchestrated an art show last July for passersby to stop, admire and purchase his works, each mounted and signed by the artist. He raised enough money to purchase the Clicker Paint program for his home computer.
And who knows where this love for art will take the little boy with sandy hair and a crooked smile, standing before his self designed wall of color and inspiration. But Mike has little time for contemplation. He breaks his transfixed gaze to yank one of the pages off the wall and races back to his computer.
“Whoa – I think we’re inspired!” Merwin exclaims.
Stitching a story
Every fall, the project starts out as a jumble of materials – crinkled cloth, velvety fabric, woolly yarn and spools of ribbon. Through the course of the school year, these raw materials become so much more, selected and transformed into a quilt of memories, favorite places and fairy tales by the hands of Lower School students.
Teacher Rocky Tomascoff leads the annual art project every year, giving students a theme from which to build.
“It’s something they’re creating and putting out there for others to enjoy,” she said.
Creation of the quilt only begins with exploration of color and texture. It helps develop motor skills and the ability to follow directions, Tomascoff said. Working safely with tools like scissors, a hot glue gun and a sewing machine, while supervised, also gives students a sense of empowerment.
“They have to be thinking spatially about where things on the quilt square are, and how it will make sense to someone else who will feel it,” she said. “It’s a lot of problem solving and basic skills.”
A lesson for life
When Perkins' 16 graduates proudly marched through Dwight Hall last spring, they celebrated the milestone of commencement and all the accomplishments that go with it.
But keynote speaker William Henderson, recently retired principal of the Patrick O’Hearn Elementary School in Boston which was renamed in June to the William W. Henderson Inclusion Elementary School, had another lesson to share with them that day.
"You may think you've finished learning, but learning is lifelong," he said.
Henderson, who is a member of the Perkins School for the Blind Corporation, lost his vision when he was in his 40s. He turned to Perkins for help, where educators taught him how to adapt his active lifestyle.
Even with commencement behind them, he added, the graduates should take advantage of every opportunity to learn that comes along.
"You've got to get out there," Henderson said. "You've got to work hard."
Experimenting outside the classroom
Ten-year-old Anthony Bynum, a blond boy from Mattapan, likes science “sometimes.”
The coolness factor of science, however, shot way up the night he dragged his sleeping bag into the Museum of Science in Boston and parked it alongside the Mathematica exhibit.
“I like a lot of things in the Museum of Science,” Anthony recalled fondly, looking forward to a return visit. “I like science experiments.”
Anthony was one of several public school students who spent the night at the museum during the “Camp In” organized by Perkins Outreach Services. It’s a chance for students like Anthony, who has low vision, and others who are blind or visually impaired to socialize, stay up late – and maybe even learn.
The annual outing is just one more way Perkins connects students with science in context of the real world, outside any classroom. It’s an important example that learning can happen anywhere and everywhere – and it can be fun.
Aside from giggling late into the night, one of Anthony’s favorite events was the live animal workshop, which showcased a variety of critters the kids could touch and hold. “It was great!” he said, remembering the feeling of his fingertips sliding over the cool shell of a turtle. “I was really touching an animal!”
Perkins Outreach Space Exploration Program carries a similar theme but with a different backdrop: young people fly down to Huntsville, Alabama to participate in Space Camp for Interested Visually Impaired Students, a program that immerses students in space training and mock missions.
Carolyn Harrington, 13, of Easton, Conn., traveled to Perkins earlier this year for a “training weekend” to meet her trip mates. She enjoyed the group’s visit to the John F. Kennedy Library and Museum and a presentation by astronaut Jeffrey Hoffman. The weekend heightened her excitement and anticipation for the plane ride to Huntsville this fall – her very first big trip without her parents where she just may launch her future as an astronaut.
“Who knows?” laughed Carolyn, who is legally blind. “That would be pretty cool.”
There’s only one major problem: an aversion to speed.
“I don’t like fast rides,” she confessed.
Investing in an ecosystem
Perkins students may someday soon have the opportunity to learn about a pond’s ecosystem in their very own backyard, thanks to a $60,000 Partners in Preservation grant to restore Perkins Pond. The pond, which Perkins students used for rowing and skating as early as 1912, closed in 1982. The pond came in fifth place among 25 Greater Boston sites in an online voting contest last spring sponsored by American Express and the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Thanks to all who voted!
Braille and beyond: Library honored at national level
Perkins Braille & Talking Book Library Director Kim Charlson (center) and Perkins President Steven Rothstein accept the 2008 Network Library of the Year Award from Frank Kurt Cylke, director of the National Library Service for the Physically Handicapped (far right).
Perkins Braille & Talking Book Library circulated nearly 443,000 books and magazines to approximately 24,000 patrons across Massachusetts last year.
And that’s just the beginning of the story.
The Library was named 2008 Network Library of the Year at a June ceremony in Washington, D.C. by the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped (NLS) – acknowledging not only the Library’s exceptional, widespread service, but also its innovative programming and patron satisfaction. "Perkins Braille and Talking Book Library, for over 174 years, has distinguished itself as a leader in providing innovative literary accessibility to those amongst us with visual and other disabilities," said Massachusetts Congressman Edward J. Markey, who attended the ceremony.
Finding new ways to engage users and the community is an ongoing effort at the Library, said Director Kim Charlson.
Charlson attended the event along with Perkins President Steven Rothstein and Mass. Board of Library Commissioner Irving Zangwill.
“It was the culmination of a lot of hard work and the recognition from our colleagues in the field that what we do is really outstanding,” said Charlson, whose acceptance speech at the ceremony acknowledged the dedication of her staff, eight members of whom are blind or visually impaired.
Perkins Training Center reaches a new audience
In Dawn Carbone’s perfect world, an itinerant teacher of the visually impaired would always have plenty of time to meet with a classroom instructor to discuss a student’s lesson ahead of schedule.
But since reality often dictates otherwise, she was thrilled when a presentation on classroom collaboration last spring by Perkins Training Center Manager Betsy Bixler addressed the problem headon.
“Betsy suggested alternatives to meet with the teacher, whether it’s through email or asking to look at the teacher’s lesson plans ahead of time,” said Carbone, teacher of the visually impaired and curriculum coordinator for the Nassau County Board of Cooperative Educational Services in New York. “The best part was that the whole focus was on being a teacher of the visually impaired.”
The spring training was part of an ongoing three-year program to offer professional development to New York state educators of students who are blind and visually impaired, made possible by a generous grant from The Starr Foundation. The program is the first time the Training Center has taken its program outside New England. “What I’m finding with each one is that people are just so interested in this opportunity for professional development,” said Bixler. “They have the chance to say, ‘This is what we need right now.’”
On the road
What started with the Celtics last February turned into the 2009 Unofficial Tour of the Perkins Secondary Chorus.
The students filed into the TD Garden last winter and sang their hearts out before the team and 18,000 of its most loyal fans, as well as national viewers via television network TNT. That performance was followed up by singing at a New England Revolution soccer game at Gillette Stadium in June. And they wrapped up the summer by singing their version of “The Star Spangled Banner” at a Boston Breakers soccer game at Harvard Stadium in July.
“It was really fun,” said Kerryne Ohlson, 19, a member of the chorus. “It was a fantastic experience.”
Laying the foundation for the next 100 years
"Our goal is to educate the whole child, and this project will give us the facilities we need to do just that." - Perkins President Steven Rothstein.
The Lower School has been a place for elementary- and middle-school-aged students to learn academics, practice life skills and grow as individuals for the past century. But this fall, Perkins will break ground on a project that will give students a new opportunity to learn one of the most important lessons of all: independence.
The Lower School project, set to break ground in November, will see the construction of a new 55,000 square foot facility, with modern design features including wide hallways, accessible classrooms and elevators to accommodate students with wheelchairs, walkers and other equipment. In addition, the building will include state-of-the-art technology, communication and life-safety devices and more. Perkins will also renovate the existing building, preserving its historical significance and architectural beauty while updating its features to be accessible for all.
“Right now, our Lower School art room is upstairs. So students in wheelchairs can’t get to the art room alone,” said Superintendent of Education Programs DorindaRife. “Making that transition independently – trying, learning and succeeding to find a classroom under one’s own power – is one of the most important life lessons we can offer our kids."
The $30 million project will be financed through the Massachusetts Development Finance Agency.
“The Lower School has been a wonderful building for us for 100 years,” said Lower School Principal Robert Hair, noting the ways Perkins has adapted and retrofitted the historic building over the years to accommodate the changing needs of its students. “But there’s a limit on how much you can do without running into brick walls. Now, with the new building, the hallways will be wide enough to accommodate wheelchairs and students who need to walk a little bit slower. All of the bathrooms will be accessible and large enough so that we can teach daily living skills, such as hand-washing.”
Perkins Board of Trustees decided students need these updates now, said Perkins President Steven Rothstein.
“Our teachers and staff spend so much time guiding, educating and coaching our students through every day,” he said. “But it is just as important for us to step back now and then, and give a student the chance to find his or her own way. Our goal is to educate the whole child, and this project will give us the facilities we need to do just that.”
The existing building will be renovated to include residential units, dining halls, guest houses and office space. The new school building, scheduled for completion in early 2011, will be constructed with state-of-the-art technology and wireless capability and will house classrooms, a new gym and a new auditorium.
That auditorium will be large enough to accommodate all Lower School students, staff, parents and friends – an upgrade from the current auditorium, which is so small that students often walk across campus to the Hilton Building for shows and concerts.
That alone is a reason to get the project underway, said Shae Kelley, a Lower School student who played the xylophone at last year’s Spring Concert.
“We’ll be able to have the Spring Concert here!” he exclaimed.
Tapping into the tranformative power of technology
For 180 years, Perkins has served as an example to the education world, seeking out top quality instructors, inventing teaching methods and sharing its expertise.
Now, at a time when technology is shaping the future faster than ever, Perkins is poised to take the next step to ensure every student emerges ready to compete in our technological world.
The Grousbeck Family Foundation has made a $10 million commitment to a major initiative at Perkins: The Grousbeck Center for Students and Technology. This new facility will house state-of-the-art accessible technology and be an opportunity for students to immerse themselves in the rapidly changing world of today. It will also be Perkins’ first campuswide space for student recreation and socialization, giving our students a place to gather and grow as individuals and friends.
“Our goal at Perkins has always been to prepare our students to participate fully in the adult world,” said Superintendent of Education Programs Dorinda Rife. “This is just one more way we can equip our students with the tools and experience they need to be successful – whether it be in life, in career or both.”
Perkins recently began the architectural design phase for the project.
“This next generation will live, work and learn in a world driven by technology,” said Corinne Grousbeck. “Every student deserves the chance to succeed in that world, and having the power of technology in their hands will bring success that much closer.”
“We are amazed and grateful beyond words for the generosity and the foresight of the Grousbeck family,” added Frederic M. Clifford, chairman of the Board of Trustees. “Perkins is already a special school that helps students create their own place in the world. This center will help light the future for students for decades to come.”
Creative collaboration
Local Guatemalan watercolor artist Salvador Orellana put a sheet of white paper and a pencil into the hands of children who are deafblind, and stood back.
He then took their swirls, hatch marks and scribbles and reinterpreted them through his practiced painter’s eye, filling the black and white spaces with flourishes of color and accent.
The resulting creations are breathtaking examples of what imagination and collaboration can produce.
“It’s a very exciting project,” said Diana Isabel Bonilla Sinibaldi, coordinator of institutional development at FUNDAL, a school for children who are deafblind or visually impaired with additional disabilities. “It’s a good way for the children to express themselves. We want to create a consciousness in the community about (these individuals’) dignity and ability to communicate, even without words.”
Bonilla Sinibaldi’s family founded FUNDAL in 1997 after they adopted a child named Alex, who is deafblind. At the time, there was no existing establishment that could offer an education for Alex. Perkins International has provided onsite training to professional staff at FUNDAL since the program’s inception, and three professionals – including Bonilla Sinibaldi – have studied at Perkins in the Educational Leadership Program.
FUNDAL now educates more than 100 students annually in three diverse regions from infancy through age 22. Art is a growing part of the curriculum. In addition to working with Orellana and other local watercolor artists, FUNDAL’s teachers have introduced a variety of artistic media designed to connect with every individual.
Students with at least some vision love to paint, said Bonilla Sinibaldi. For those who cannot see but want to use the paint brush, teachers mix sand and other materials into the pigment to produce a tactile canvas students can touch.
For others, like Alex, other forms of art are preferable.
“Alex hates to have his hands dirty, so it wouldn’t be a good idea for him to paint with his hands,” she said. “But he loves nature. So teachers take the leaves of the trees, stones and flowers, and they (help him) glue it onto a piece of paper. Alex really enjoys that.”
Homemade clay is another favorite of students, Bonilla Sinibaldi added. Teachers create a mixture similar to Play-Doh and add powdered drink mix to give the clay a fruity smell. The clay is especially useful for children with limited or no vision.
“They can smell it,” she said. “Some of them cannot see colors, but they know pineapple is yellow.”
More than music
Safak Tunalioglu has played the violin professionally for the last 15 years.
But Tunalioglu, a lover of music who has a doctorate in the subject, knows melodious sound can be much more than a source of pleasure.
He arrived at Perkins this summer to explore ways to turn his violin and his love of music into teaching tools.
“We have students with multiple impairments now, and I need to learn,” he said. “The kids need music therapy.”
Tunalioglu works at Turkan Sabanci School for the Blind in Istanbul, which has approximately 300 students, 30 of whom have multiple disabilities.
Turkish parents just discovering the school are still shocked to learn that there is an educational future for their children, said Emine Ayyildiz, assistant principal at the school, who also visited Perkins recently to attend a two-week international Summer Institute.
“They say, ‘How can you do it? They can’t see, they can’t hear,’” said Ayyildiz, referring to parents’ frequent reaction. “They are just so surprised to hear that there is an opportunity to teach these kids.”
When Tunalioglu heard about the concept of using music to reach children who struggle to communicate verbally or emotionally, he was intrigued. To explore music therapy further, he decided to travel to Perkins where he shared ideas with other educators from around the world. Not only can music help students learn to communicate emotions, thoughts and feelings with or without words or lyrics, he concluded, it can also help educators teach concepts such as direction, taking turns and orientation and mobility.
“The students are making music and very important progress,” he said after participating in several music therapy sessions with Perkins students of all abilities. “They are learning. I learned that music is a teaching tool for other skills.”
A craft for life
The soft sweater, knitted in a peach-colored hue, was a gift from Sween Lyaka to Perkins President Steven Rothstein last summer when he visited the Brian Resource Center in Kenya, a Perkins International partner.
But the gift is much more than a souvenir. It represents the life journey of its maker who is deafblind. She transformed herself from a woman struggling to help her family survive to an educated and independent role model for other individuals who have disabilities.
The Brian Resource Center, founded in 2006, trains young adults in valuable life skills like knitting, baking, tending to livestock and more. The Center has been helping individuals and families combat the social stigma, poverty and struggle often faced by those who are deafblind and living in Kenya.
Lyaka, 25, joined the Center in 2007 and has since become a knitting instructor, producing items for sale, training others and earning a salary. The Center also trained Lyaka’s family in modern agricultural and horticultural practices, helping the family improve its financial situation.
“The family remains the bedrock upon which lifelong services for the deafblind are founded,” said founder Joseph Shiroko. “The Brian Resource Center’s training goes beyond the person who is deafblind to the family in which this person grows and lives.”
Advocating for education
No matter where in the world our work takes place, Perkins is always looking to further its larger goal of advancing education for all. Perkins was pleased to cosponsor with the Harvard Law School Project on Disability (HPOD) a July meeting in Manila between the Commission on Human Rights of the Philippines and the families and educators involved with local Perkins partners. Deborah Gleason, Regional Coordinator of Asia/Pacific Programs for Perkins International, and Harvard Law School Professor Michael Stein, Executive Director of HPOD, facilitated the meeting “Working Together to Achieve Human Rights of People with Disabilities.”
These discussions, which brought together local organizations for people who are disabled and government officials, were an important step in advancing the legal rights of persons with disabilities – a critical stepping stone that we hope will lead to improved education for those who are blind or visually impaired with additional disabilities.
Perkins reaches out to its roots
She’s 88 years old and still climbs aboard her riding lawn mower to cut the grass on her two acres of land in Maryland.
So it was no trouble at all for Peg McRory, great-granddaughter of Samuel Gridley Howe, to travel 400 miles north to make her first visit to the campus this past spring. Howe, Perkins’ first director, and his son-in-law Michael Anagnos, Perkins’ second director, contributed 75 years combined to the school’s history.
“I’ve known about the place all my life,” she said in a recent phone interview recounting her trip. “My father was a great talker and he told family stories endlessly.”
Yet she had never seen the school in person. So when her daughter Camilla McRory met Perkins President Steven Rothstein last year in Washington, D.C., he urged the family to visit the place Howe’s vision had inspired so many decades ago. Peg McRory, along with her two daughters, her sister and another extended family member, took him up on it.
The day-long visit to campus revealed many eye-opening wonders to McRory – among them, the speed with which some can read braille, and the overwhelming beauty of Perkins’ grounds.
But it was the people, the programs and the mission that Perkins continues to pursue – especially the carrying of that mission around the world – of which McRory was the most proud. “It’s so completely what this country ought to be doing,” she said. “Not imposing ourselves on other people, but offering other people opportunities.”
Peg McRory (far right), great-granddaughter of Samuel Gridley Howe, and other members of her family met with students Andy Park (left) and John Castillo (right) last spring during a visit to Perkins.
A grand time
“Just in case.”
That’s what Secondary Program Music Teacher Arnie Harris told his student, John Castillo, when he asked John to practice singing “Motherland,” a well-loved song by music legend Natalie Merchant who was to be the guest singer at the 2009 Perkins Possibilities Gala.
The night of the event, Castillo – who had planned on playing his set of drums on stage with Merchant – suddenly found a microphone placed in his hands.
“I wasn’t nervous,” recalls Castillo, 19, who sat next to Merchant and sang solo to rounds of applause. “I felt really touched and honored.”
The duet, along with a performance by the Perkins Secondary Chorus and soloists, poignant speakers, a live auction, good food and great cheer, added up to an evening to remember. The Gala surpassed its fundraising goals for the fifth consecutive year in a row, raising $1.25 million through the generosity of more than 600 donors who stepped up to meet a Technology Challenge, in addition to ticket sales and auction proceeds. Thanks to all who attended this magical night and continue to make all things at Perkins possible.
Gala Co-chairs Corinne Grousbeck and Jon Luther posing with their spouses, Wyc Grousbeck and Sharon Luther.
Spreading possibility
It was January, 1945, and brothers William and Danti Peduto of Brighton, Massachusetts had heard their country’s call to duty. World War II separated the siblings and sent Danti to England while his brother traveled to Germany, where he found himself in the thick of battle.
When Danti saw his brother again, William was on a hospital bed in Pennsylvania where he would stay for six months.
The war was over for William, whom doctors said had been permanently blinded. But the challenge to regain his life and start anew as a man who was blind – had just begun.
Because he believes that learning braille made a vital difference in William’s future, Danti chose to make three charitable gift annuities to Perkins in memory of his brother, who died in 2007. Through the annuities, Danti was able to provide himself with a dependable, guaranteed income for the rest of his life.
“I felt that learning braille at a specialty school helped William a lot,” Danti said. “I feel that Perkins does the same thing for its students today.”
To learn more about giving, contact Alleather Toure at 617-972-7680, or email Alleather.Toure@Perkins.org.
Reflecting on five decades of involvement
Perkins is a community made up of all kinds of individuals – students, parents, educators, professionals, volunteers and more. Each of these brings a unique perspective and valuable contribution to the table. Our school is fortunate to have a Board of Trustees that represents the full spectrum of our community.
Together, our three vice chairpeople - Linda DiBenedetto, William A. Lowell and Andrea L. Peabody – represent 49 years of service on our Board of Trustees. DiBenedetto approaches her role at Perkins with the same ideas and energy she relies upon to raise her five children. Lowell, a corporate attorney in Boston at Choate Hall & Stewart LLP, is the fifth generation of his family to play a role on our board. And Peabody, a former banker, lists Perkins among the many community and volunteer activities in which she continues to dedicate herself.
We thank these individuals who have given so generously of their time, their insight and so much more to ensure Perkins will flourish.
CALENDAR
NOVEMBER
Lower School Groundbreaking Ceremony
Monday, November 2 @ 2 pm
Annual Meeting & Reception
Monday, November 2 @ 5 pm
Educational Leadership Program International Day
Tuesday, November 10 @ 9 am - 5 pm
DECEMBER
Holiday Concerts
Thursday, December 10 @ 7:30 pm &
Sunday, December 13 @ 3 pm
JANUARY
MLK, Jr. Day Event
Monday, January 18 @ 11:30 am
FEBRUARY
Blaisdell Day
Monday, Febuary 1
The Perkins Annual Fund
A braille textbook for the classroom. A modified ball for physical education. Fuel to heat students’ on-campus cottages. All of these things and more make up a student’s experience at Perkins. Your unrestricted gifts help us bridge the gap between our limited resources and the real cost of an education. Please consider giving – it can make a world of difference in a student’s school day.
Give by mail:
Perkins School for the Blind
175 North Beacon Street
Watertown, MA 02472
Contact Jennifer Volpe at 617-972-7667 or email Jennifer.Volpe@Perkins.org.
Support Perkins Gifts: Holiday Cards & Calendar
Let our students share with you their interpretation of the season – a snowflake’s artistic details, the joy and warmth of a crackling fire and the peace of a starfilled night. Perkins note cards are a new way to share holiday joy.
Our 2010 Perkins Calendar features breathtaking and inspiring images of students, teachers and families served by Perkins here on campus, in the community and around the world. Share a year of Perkins with a friend!
Ten cards are $10. Cards may be personalized with a company name or logo for an additional fee. Calendars are $12.95 each. Order online or call Katrina Toth at 617-972-7833.
Back Cover
Founded in 1829 as the nation’s first school for the blind, Perkins today serves over 94,000 infants and seniors in their homes; school-age students on campus and in the community; and children who are blind or deafblind in 63 developing countries. The school is an accredited member of the New England Association of Schools and Colleges and the National Association of Independent Schools. It is licensed by the Massachusetts Department of Elementary and Secondary Education and Mental Retardation. Perkins School for the Blind does not discriminate on the basis of race, gender, color, creed, nationality, ethnic origin, or sexual orientation.
Tel: 617-924-3434
Fax: 617-972-7334
All we see is Possibility.
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