OUR TEAM: THEY STARTED AS CLIENTS AND GREW INTO INSTRUCTORS
One of the proudest legacies of the 15+ years of effort by Daniel Kish to educate and liberate blind persons from the traditional cycles of marginalized dependency, has been the Team of Perceptual Navigation Instructors he’s assembled from his students who have grown-up with FlashSonar™ Echolocation and his No Limits philosophy.
OUR TEAM (Preview)
The Real-Life ‘Batman’
Daniel Holds two Masters degrees, Life-Span Developmental Psychology from California State University, San Bernardino, and Special Education from Cal. State Los Angeles. Daniel is the first totally blind person to obtain certification in orientation and mobility – Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist (COMS), since 1996, and is the first totally blind person to hold both COMS and the National Orientation and Mobility Certificant (NOMC), since 2005. Learn more about Daniel.
“Hey, there’s that blind skateboarding Dude!”
Brian Bushway hears that often, thanks to global TV programs, and his appearance with Daniel Kish in X Ambassador’s Renegades music video which has over 26 million views on YouTube. Apart from being one cool California Dude, Brian is also one of the proudest legacies of the efforts by Daniel Kish to educate and liberate blind persons. One of our earliest students who lost his sight at 14, Brian uses his insights to help people find opportunities in their ‘blind spots’. Learn more about Brian.
Our Double Guinness World Record Holder
Blind from birth, Juan Ruiz was one of our earliest clients and was the first Perceptual Navigation Coach to be trained and hired by World Access For The Blind. Juan’s motto has always been ‘Si se puede!’ (Yes you can!). He’s lived up to it in many ways over the years, from being a CIF Wrestling Champion, to setting a Guinness World Record and then breaking it. Juan is our Multicultural Visioneer and has worked with students, families and organizations around the world. Learn more about Juan.
Our “Himalayan Mystic”
Born in the foothills of the Himalayas to an aboriginal/tribal family in north-east India, Thomas Tajo became blind between the ages of 8 and 9 due to Optic Nerve Atrophy. He left home early between the ages of 13 and 14 to go to a boarding school for the blind that was 500 miles away, and has since lived on his own. Thomas achieved a Master’s Degree in Sociology and likes to research and question everything, especially society’s presumption that blindness = incapability. Learn more about Thomas.
OUR EXPERT INSTRUCTORS WALK THE TALK
Our Perceptual Navigation Instructors and Coaches are living embodiments of our pioneering and innovative teaching systems because they were once our students, and have grown with us. Their own life experiences with blindness provide powerful insights and inspiration for all our students as they teach them to
LIGHT-UP THEIR WORLD!
BOARD OF DIRECTORS AND SITE ADMINISTRATION
Maurice Peret, NOMCT
Chairman, Board of Directors, World Access for the Blind
Lead O&M Instructor & Projects Coordinator, Blind Industries & Services of Maryland Rehabilitation Department
Bruno Dacquay, MS
Vice President Surgical Instrumentation
Research and Development
Alcon Irvine Technology Center
Hector Elias
Social Security Administration
Jim McCarthy
Retired Executive Developer, TWA
Chetan Bakhru
For matters concerning site availability and performance:
chetan@bakhru.net
+1.714.816.4105
