Kentucky School for the Blind - Visions Yearbook (Louisville, KY)

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The Year in Review... Accomplishment was the theme as the 1979-80 school year opened a promising decade for Kentucky School for the Blind students and Sipe In its 138th year of service to the Commonwealth of Kentucky, the school mececthesneeds of 151 students. ‘This represented more than a 10 percent increase over the preceding year. Increasing numbers of students, families and agencies serving the visually handicapped have received services through our out-reach programs. Accomplishments in personal care and daily living skills, in academics, music and athletics and in vocational preparation have been milestones of personal growth for our students. Each area of study recorded progress. The Deaf -Blind Multihandicapped Classes worked on self-help Skills, socialization, language skills and pre-vocational skills. Field trip experiences allowed the students to experience directly many new learning situations. Readiness classes studied pre-braille, self-help skills and language Skills toward their goal of integration into Primary classes. The Primary classes concentrated on basic skills in reading, writing, mathematics, mobility and daily living. Classroom learning experiences and field trips guided students toward greater understanding of our environment. A highlight of library activities was the Reading Olympics sponsored by the March of Dimes. Forty-four students read 535 books! All of the braille, talking book and tape material is now in one alphabetical file on large print braille cards. This makes books much ester to locate. Elementary classes learned to use the braille abacus and studied Kentucky history among their many Classroom studies. Field trips, special holiday projects, the Reading Olympics and 'Free to Be--You and Me filled the year with interesting learning experiences. Junior high students concentrated on improving skills in math and reading as well as Studying science and Kentucky history. In addition to the traditional academic studies of the high school curriculum, many juniors and seniors took advantage of off-campus programs at vocational schools and Jefferson Community College. Students enrolled iesuchecourses as horticulture, industrial electricity, upholstery, office services and building maintenance. The Campus Work Program involved 34 students in job placement in many areas of the school operations. Ceramics, light assembly projects and bagging on a piece- work basis were classroom pursuits in addition to Career Education studies. Now in its third year of operation, the Optacon program has trained 16 students, ten of whom are using their optacons this year. Training included daily instruction and two workshops. The Campus Life program has the responsibility of overseeing the after-school hours of the residential students. Dormitory supervisors Stress daily living skills while the Recreation staff guides students in developing leisure time skills. Scouting for boys and girls is an important campus activity. The music department presented Scrooge,'' a musical play, in December as 33 performers brought special meaning to Dickens' A Christmas Carol. Vocal and instrumental students participating in the State Music Festivals were awarded a total of 21 Superior awards and 24 Excellent awards. 15

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Janice Jones Supervisor Food Service FOOD SERVICE STAFF First Row: Irene Price, Nettie Smith, Denise Irwin, Laura Posey. Second Row: Pauline Woolridge, Hilda Webster Third Row: Cora Hill, Leon Brown, Chiquita Baker, Janice Jones, Dorothy Brown, Marion Smith.

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Athletic accomplishments were many as K.S.B.'s athletes recorded outstanding performances in track, cheerleading, wrestling and swimming. The boys' track team won the overall N.C.A.S.V.H. Track Team Championship and the girls' track team placed third in that competition. The 24th Annual N.C.A.S.V.H. Wrestling Tournament and Cheerleading Competition was filled with triumph as the wrestling team won the overall championship, the cheerleaders were named the top cheer squad and K.S.B. eighth grader Maria Davis was named outstanding cheerleader. Junior wrestling and cheerleading exposed younger students to the fun and skills of these activities. K.S.B. again hosted the Seventh Annual Kentucky Swim Invitational in which K.S.B. tied for second overall and K.S.B. boys won first place. Three K.S.B. athletes--Clinton Applegate, Bill Gill and Jeff Wheatley--were chosen to compete in the 1980 Olympics in Arnheni, Holland. As we record the accomplishments of 1979-80 in this book, we look to the future and remain committed to providing the best educational programs possible for each student at Kentucky School for the Blind.