To share the history of DBAT in hopes to spread awareness and motivate DeafBlind communities around the world to come together and create their own associations. In 1961 a DeafBlind woman name Mae Brown started the Hand Highway Club with the support of the Women's Auxiliary Club and volunteers. This ran for 20 years, with dances, social events and parties. In 1981 the Hand Highway Club held a conference at Lake Joseph to promote the DeafBlind taking control of the group. In 1982 The Deaf-Blind Association of Toronto was formed with an executive board consisting of 3 DeafBlind members and 3 hearing-sighted. DBAT has since become a registered charity, taking the responsibility of fundraising, and hosting their own meetings.DBAT exists to advance the social and educational opportunities of DeafBlind people. Working together to research various activities as well as training experiences. Programs, trips and presentations are offered that are stimulating for DeafBlind persons and encourages them to be curious and interactive. Meetings provide a unique opportunity for DeafBlind persons to exchange experiences with each other and gain new knowledge of current events, available aids, and services. We have collected testimony from our members, wanting to share the positive impact DBAT has had on their lives.DBAT recognizes that the opportunities available to their members may not be available to those in other communities. By presenting the importance of a charity organization for DeafBlind by Deafblind, we hope to other DeafBlind people from around the world to come together and create their own group. The members of DBAT hope to connect with other DeafBlind communities from around the world and share their successes.

The purpose of this qualitative study was to investigate the lived experiences of ten college students with Usher syndrome, to better understand the transition services and supports that prepared them for postsecondary education in the United States. A purposeful sample of ten college students with Usher syndrome engaged in interviews and focus groups in their preferred language modality. Participants had the choice of communicating directly with the researcher in English, American Sign Language (ASL), or Pidgin Signed English (PSE). Sign language interpreters were also available for Tactual American Sign Language (TASL) users. Additional descriptive data was collected through participant reflections and researcher notes. Credibility and trustworthiness were addressed throughout the study by qualitative means of triangulation, bridling, member checking, and peer review. Data analysis included thematic analysis using hand-coding and specialized software (i.e., NVivo 12 Pro) to showcase participant commonalities through emergent themes and salient quotes. Preliminary findings will be shared and implications for application discussed. These exploratory results aim to inform future evidence-based research, provide insights for parents, educators, and professionals, and work towards improving transition services and postsecondary preparation for students with Usher syndrome in the United States. 

To present relevant research for the deafblind field data presented by the World Federation of Deafblind shows that children with deafblindness are less likely to have been enrolled in schools than children with other disabilities. It also points to a lack of systems for analysis of the quality of educational plans and teaching practices. Without these systems, improving the quality of education is challenging. The purpose of this study carried out by Universidad Católica de Córdoba was to identify the practices that facilitate access to learning for children who are deafblind and with multiple disabilities in LAC and to identify a process of documentation that captures the quality of these practices. The study uses a qualitative approach. 16 videos that show educational practices with children with DB and with MD between 6 and 12 years old, in formal and non-formal settings, were invited from programs across LAC that had at least 20 years of service.  Qualitative analysis of videos was conducted based on the Buchanan protocol (2015) that focuses on activities and strategies used to achieve learning. Three researchers graded the videos using this protocol. Another team independently graded the videos. There was good agreement between the teams. Interviews and focus groups were conducted to gather deeper information. The application of Buchanan's indicators is a valuable approach in LAC. New topics, not covered in the indicators, emerged in the research.

The Advocacy in a DeafBlind World will introduce the benefits and importance of the Peer Learning Group (PLG) utilizing a peer-to-peer learning and support system setting to foster knowledge and education to the DeafBlind individual. These individuals will learn how to develop and enhance one's ability and confidence to advocate for equal access to communication, community resources, transportation, print/media and technology application. The curriculum seeks to provide a means by which DeafBlind people can share ideas and solutions to assist peers and colleagues in achieving access to their worlds, which will ultimately lead to Self-Efficacy, Self-Advocacy, and Self-Preservation. Strategies emphasized throughout this curriculum include: Knowing what your needs are.  Knowing what support and accommodations are available.  Knowing the laws that protect you and their limitations.  Knowing how to get what you need when supported by law. Knowing how to get what you need when the law does not protect you.  Knowing how to educate other people about your needs and how to provide them when necessary.  Knowing when to persist and when to compromise.  Knowing how to manage your accommodations.  All instructors teaching this course are to be DeafBlind individuals, creating creditability and rapport for sharing information and strategies also based on personal experiences.  In conclusion, Advocacy in a DeafBlind World, provides mentorship directly to DeafBlind individuals who will acquire skills to advocate for equal access to communication, community resources, transportation, print/media and technology application. These skills will transfer to all aspects of life including Emergency Preparedness. Thus, enabling them to be as self-reliant as possible, prepared with tools, and attaining Self-Efficacy, Self-Advocacy, & Self-Preservation. To instill and educate the audience of self-efficacy, self-advocacy, and self-preservation of a person's ability to meet the challenges of emergency and disaster situations, to save themselves and family members.

The purpose of this presentation is to describe recent efforts by the Helen Keller National Center (HKNC) and partner organizations to improve how data about DeafBlind people is collected and shared.In 2021 HKNC launched a research project in collaboration with the National Center on Deaf-Blindness and Perkins School for the Blind to compile and analyze literature that illustrates and describes the problem and defining and collecting data about people. We also examined current surveys and registries that collect data about people in the United States. In 2022 we will publish a White Paper outlining the results from our research and identifying actionable next steps for improvement.The presentation will outline the findings from our White Paper including recommendations and next steps that have been implemented in the last year and that are planned for the future. Our findings indicated broad discrepancies in how, if at all, the term is defined and how, if at all, data is collected about. We found that the terminology and parameters that define the population of people who are DeafBlind varies considerably in the literature and across survey and registry sources. Additionally, demographic and functional impact data on DeafBlind people is inconsistent and inaccessible. These factors compound each other resulting in a lack of empirical evidence about the size, characteristics and service needs of people who are DeafBlind.We recommended a number of next steps to address these problems, including specific recommendations to (a) raise awareness and improve collaboration (b) address gaps and Inconsistencies in existing national surveys and registries, and (c) advocate for allocation of resources for data collection, research and access to demographic Information.