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August 21, 2005
Agencies want to ensure they reach all deafblind
Agencies that work with deafblind children and youth in Ohio and Michigan worry that their federally required annual counts are coming up short.
"There are a large number of counties without any registered, and a significant number with only one or two," said John Saylor, coordinator of the Ohio Center for Deafblind Education, in a telephone interview from Columbus.
The 2004 Ohio census, the most recent, found four deafblind children in Lucas County. It also found 4 in Seneca County, 7 in Erie County, 6 in Wood, 3 in Huron, 2 each in Sandusky and Hancock, and 1 each in Fulton, Hardin, Ottawa, Putnam, Williams, and Wyandot counties. Among the counties reporting no deafblind children in 2004 were Allen, Defiance, Henry, Paulding, and Van Wert counties.
In Michigan, DB Central/Michigan Services for Children & Young Adults Who Are Deafblind, counted 271 for its census last year, including 3 in Monroe County and 1 each in Hillsdale and Lenawee counties.
The most recent national figure - from December, 2003 - was 9,853 deafblind children and young adults, birth to 22 years old.
"We are constantly looking for ways to get the word out, in any way that we can because we do feel like our census numbers are probably on the low side and anytime we can reach out and help one more family, then the effort was worth it," Beth Kennedy, director of DB Central, said by telephone from her office at Central Michigan University in Mount Pleasant, Mich.
The Ohio Center for Deafblind Education is located at the Columbus office of the University of Dayton. It provides free technical assistance services to children, birth through 21 years, with combined vision and hearing loss.
Services to families, teachers, school administrators, doctors, therapists, and other service providers and support agencies include consultations, training, and resource materials.
Information: 614-785-1163 or 800-229-0844; online at www.ssco.org/ocdbe/
DB Central/Michigan Services for Children & Young Adults Who Are Deafblind, serves the deafblind from birth through 25 years. Services include family support and education, and consultations with local school districts and agencies.
Information: 888-758-0508 or www.dbcentral.org
By Ann Weber
Posted by 4HL on August 21, 2005 2:11 AM
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