EFE Receives $5,000 Challenge Grant for Assistive Technology

Private donations totaling $5,000 are being sought to match a $5,000 challenge grant from the Circle of Service Foundation, which will enable Equip for Equality to acquire much-needed devices and services to aid staff and clients who are deaf or hard of hearing or have speech impairments.

"Barriers to communication can be frustrating for anyone," says Zena Naiditch, EFE President and CEO. "For those with disabilities seeking recourse against discrimination, social and economic exclusion, and abuse or neglect, the barriers can be truly devastating.

"Many of EFE's clients and training participants are deaf or hard of hearing, including individuals served by our one-on-one legal advocacy services. Additionally, EFE Senior Attorney Howard Rosenblum, who devotes half of his time to EFE's Training Institute on Disability Rights, is profoundly deaf, and Hugh Smith, Director of Operations, is hard of hearing and requires assistive devices to perform his duties.

Commenting on the impact of the challenge grant, Rosenblum says, "The 21st century poses many possibilities and challenges, especially where technology is considered as a solution for all problems. More than ever, this is especially true for people with disabilities who, with state-of-the-art assistive technology, can become more independent and productive in all aspects of their lives - work, home, transportation, travel, and recreation." $5,000 Challenge Grant Graphic

The grant will enable EFE to obtain assistive technology devices and services that will greatly help the EFE staff in communicating with its clients, who will benefit directly. These devices and services include CART (Communication Access Realtime Translation) systems, TTY devices, special phones, and various devices needed to enhance relay services for clients with varying levels of hearing loss. It also includes fire-alert systems for staff and clients in EFE offices, and captioning television for presentations to clients and staff.

"Since I have a significant hearing loss, this grant will allow me to have the necessary assistive phone devices and CART captioning services so that I can do my job more efficiently and effectively," says Smith. "I also will be more able to keep current on key issues related to supporting EFE staff's efforts in serving people with disabilities in Illinois through participation in important seminars and conferences."

Technologies that EFE will be able to purchase with the grant and privately raised funds include:

CART (Communications Access Realtime Translation)

This technology enables a person who is hard of hearing or deaf to understand the spoken word as it is transcribed onto a computer screen by a specially trained stenographer. It is especially useful for those individuals who cannot hear and do not know American Sign Language (ASL) and will be most helpful in meetings and at training sessions for staff and participants. It can also be used during telephone conferences where the stenographer is not present in the room but is transcribing everything via telephone lines.

TTY, also known as TDD (Telecommunications Device for the Deaf)

This device allows a person who is hard of hearing or deaf or who has a speech impairment to type a message over regular telephone lines directly to a TTY user at the other end. Communication between TTY users and conventional telephone users is possible through a federally mandated Message Relay Service by calling 800-627-3529. Equip for Equality currently maintains dedicated 1-800-TTY general numbers in all three of its regional offices.

New technologies are available that allow a person who is hard of hearing to talk directly to another person via telephone but read the person's response through the relay service. For a deaf person who uses ASL, which has a grammatical system differing greatly from that of standard English, an Internet-connected computer with an attached camera is now available, enabling the deaf person to sign a message to a specially trained relay operator, who then functions as an interpreter to the hearing party on the other end and relays the response back in ASL.

Visual Signal Fire-Alert Alarms

The benefits of implementation for additional security are obvious and monumental for staff and clients. =

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