VIDBE-Q Volume 69 Issue 3
hundred students throughout Maine have been identified as having a visual
impairment that impacts their access to education.
DBVI supports a system of comprehensive services for individuals who are
blind and visually impaired, including early services for youth, which lays the
groundwork for future success. Children with visual impairment often require
deliberate teaching of concepts that are learned incidentally by children without a
visual impairment by observing others.
Maine's team approach includes:
• Sixteen itinerant Teachers of Students with Visual Impairment
(TVI's) who are all employed by Catholic Charities Maine serving
children from birth to the age of twenty-two. They work with children
in their educational environment, such as public, private, and home
school locations.
• Eleven Orientation and Mobility Specialists employed directly by
DBVI work with people throughout the age span wherever their
services are needed, such as home, school, community, etc.
• Students and families also receive support from Blindness
Rehabilitation Specialists (BLRS) who focus on preparing students
to be active participants in the transition process. BLRS' provide
access to innovative and engaging pre-employment transition services
