Judy Castle Scott

Last updated

Judy Castle Scott is an advocate and activist known for her work to improve the living conditions of the visually impaired. Blind herself, she worked for several public and private organizations dedicated to the cause, and served as the director of the American Foundation for the Blind, retiring in 2015. [1] Over the course of her career, Scott has been the recipient of various accolades, including being inducted into the Texas Women's Hall of Fame. [2]

Contents

Early life and education

Scott lived with her family on a farm near Pickton, Texas and has been blind since childhood. [3] She holds a bachelor's in psychology and sociology and master's in counseling and guidance/aging from Texas A&M University–Commerce (which was formerly East Texas State University). [2]

Career and advocacy

In the 1970s, Scott worked for the Texas Commission for the Blind, working to establish an Independent Living Program for elderly Texans with vision loss. This program is credited with helping to establish a national program through federal legislation. [1]

In 1981, Scott joined the American Foundation for the Blind (AFB), working to establish the National Agenda on Aging and Vision Loss, an initiative to raise awareness of the effects of vision loss in older Americans. Scott also focused on increasing federal funding for similar programs to assist the visually impaired geriatric population. [1] In 1996, Scott joined the Texas Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities. [3]

Scott has helped to make multiple public structures more accessible to disabled individuals, including the American Airlines Center, Cowboys Stadium, and Terminal D of the Dallas/Fort Worth International Airport. [4] Scott was previously president of the Texas Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired. [3]

Recognition

In 1996, George W. Bush appointed Scott to the Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities. She was later promoted to committee chair by Governor Rick Perry in 2007. [5]

In 2010, Scott was inducted into the Texas Women's Hall of Fame. [2]

In 2017, Scott was awarded the American Council of the Blind President's Impact Award. [6]

Related Research Articles

The American Foundation for the Blind (AFB) is an American non-profit organization for people with vision loss. AFB's objectives include conducting research to advance change, promoting knowledge and understanding, and shaping policies and practices.

Visual impairment, also known as vision impairment, is a medical definition primarily measured based on an individual's better eye visual acuity; in the absence of treatment such as corrective eyewear, assistive devices, and medical treatment– visual impairment may cause the individual difficulties with normal daily tasks including reading and walking. Low vision is a functional definition of visual impairment that is chronic, uncorrectable with treatment or conventional corrective lenses, and impacts daily living. As such low vision can be used as a disability metric and varies based on an individual's experience, environmental demands, accommodations, and access to services. The American Academy of Ophthalmology defines visual impairment as the best-corrected visual acuity of less than 20/40 in the better eye, and the World Health Organization defines it as a presenting acuity of less than 6/12 in the better eye. The term blindness is used for complete or nearly complete vision loss. In addition to the various permanent conditions, fleeting temporary vision impairment, amaurosis fugax, may occur, and may indicate serious medical problems. The abbreviation VIP is sometimes used for Visually Impaired Person, Persons or People.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired</span> Texas special public school

The Texas School for the Blind and Visually Impaired (TSBVI) is a Texas special public school, in the continuum of statewide placements for students who have a visual impairment. It is considered a statewide resource to parents of these children and professionals who serve them. Students, ages 6 through 21, who are blind, deafblind, or visually impaired, including those with additional disabilities, are eligible for consideration for services at TSBVI.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vivian Berkeley</span> Canadian competitive lawn bowler

Vivian Berkeley is a Canadian two-time World Blind Lawn Bowling Champion, 1996 Paralympic Games Silver Medalist and 2002 Commonwealth Games Bronze Medalist.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Summer Paralympic Games</span> International multi-sport event for disabled athletes

The Summer Paralympics, also known as the Games of the Paralympiad, are an international multi-sport event where athletes with physical disabilities compete. This includes athletes with mobility disabilities, amputations, blindness, and cerebral palsy. The Paralympic Games are held every four years, organized by the International Paralympic Committee. Medals are awarded in each event, with gold medals for first place, silver for second and bronze for third, a tradition that the Olympic Games started in 1904.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Winter Paralympic Games</span> International multi-sport event for disabled athletes

The Winter Paralympic Games is an international multi-sport event where athletes with physical disabilities compete in snow and ice sports. The event includes athletes with mobility impairments, amputations, blindness, and cerebral palsy. The Winter Paralympic Games are held every four years directly following the Winter Olympic Games and hosted in the same city. The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) oversees the Games. Medals are awarded in each event: with gold for first place, silver for second, and bronze for third, following the tradition that the Olympic Games began in 1904.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">The Lighthouse of Houston</span>

The Lighthouse of Houston is a private, non-profit education and service center dedicated to assisting blind and visually impaired people in the Houston, Texas metropolitan area to live independently. The Lighthouse serves approximately 9,000 people each year and is a member agency of the United Way of Greater Houston.

The Cleveland Sight Center (CSC) is a non-profit organization that provides services to individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Founded in 1906, it is accredited by the Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities (CARF) and serves around 10,000 clients annually in Northeast Ohio. The organization also has radio-reading and community outreach programs that benefit a larger number of individuals.

Narrative Television Network (NTN) makes movies, television shows and educational programming accessible to millions of blind and visually impaired people and their families. Founded in 1988 by Jim Stovall, the Narrative Television Network unobtrusively adds the voice of a narrator to the existing program between the dialogue so that blind or low vision people can hear what they can't see. The Narrative Television Network has received an Emmy Award, a Media Access Award and an International Film and Video Award for its pioneering work in making movies, television and educational programming accessible for the visually impaired. The Narrative Television Network website offers readers a “Text Only” version of its pages to increase accessibility for blind and visually impaired readers who use screen readers.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Christine Hà</span> American chef and writer

Christine Huyen Tran Ha is an American chef, writer and TV host. She is the first blind contestant of MasterChef and the winner of its third season in 2012.

Columbia Lighthouse for the Blind (CLB) is an organization founded to help the blind or visually impaired population of the greater Washington, D.C., region, including the deafblind community, deal with the challenges of vision loss. The goal of CLB is to try to help people who are blind or visually impaired to remain independent, active and productive in society.

The Council of Schools and Services for the Blind (COSB) is a consortium of specialized schools in Canada and the United States whose major goal is improving the quality of services to children who are blind and visually impaired.

Maria Mitchell is the founder of Little Light House, a faith-based mission to assist children with a wide range of developmental disabilities including autism, Down syndrome, cerebral palsy. The program is not only a facility for students, but also serves as a training ground for professionals and volunteers throughout the United States and other countries who are learning to reach out to special needs children in their communities. Mitchell continues to serve as CEO of the Little Light House and published a book on her journey, Milestones and Miracles. Mitchell was inducted into the Oklahoma Women's Hall of Fame in 2011.

Father Thomas J. Carroll was a Catholic priest and a pioneer in treatment for people who became blind later in their lives,. He was also a leader in implementing liturgical renewal in the Catholic church after Vatican II and took an active part in the civil rights movement.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Carla Qualtrough</span> Canadian politician and former Paralympic swimmer

Carla Dawn Qualtrough is a Canadian politician and former Paralympic swimmer who is the minister of employment, workforce development and disability inclusion since 2019. Qualtrough has sat as the member of Parliament (MP) for Delta since she was first elected in 2015, as a member of the Liberal Party. She served as minister of public services and procurement and accessibility from 2017 to 2019, and minister of sport and persons with disabilities from 2015 to 2017.

Natalie Carter Barraga was an American educator and researcher who studied visual impairment, recognized for contributions to the education of children with low vision.

Anne Lesley Corn is an American educator, author, researcher, and advocate for those with low vision or blindness. Corn herself has low vision—she is legally blind—and her personal experience has informed and inspired her research and advocacy.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roberta A. Griffith</span> American journalist and community leader

Roberta Anna Griffith was an American journalist and community leader, active in the American Foundation for the Blind and founder of the Grand Rapids Association of the Blind and Visually Impaired.

Ruth Kaarlela was an American university professor and social worker. Her work was in the fields of blindness, gerontology, and vision rehabilitation therapy.

References

  1. 1 2 3 "Advocate for blind earns spot in Texas Women's Hall of Fame". The Dallas Morning News. 8 September 2010. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
  2. 1 2 3 "Judy Scott, Long-Time Vision Loss Champion, to Retire from AFB". American Foundation for the Blind. 5 August 2015. Retrieved 2022-05-07.
  3. 1 2 3 "Judy Castle Scott". Texas Woman's University. 9 October 2019. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
  4. ↑ "Disability History and Awareness Month: Judy Scott, Texas Women's Hall of Fame" (Press release). Office of the Governor Texas. 26 October 2012. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
  5. ↑ "Distinguished Alumni". Texas A&M University-Commerce. 9 June 2011. Retrieved 2022-05-07.
  6. ↑ "Awards". American Council of the Blind of Texas. Retrieved 2022-05-08.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.