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Announcements & News
Roseann McLaughlin
Overbrook School for the Blind Mourns the Loss of Roseann McLaughlin
Overbrook School for the Blind was shocked and saddened to learn of the tragic loss of Roseann McLaughlin on the evening of Friday, November 2, 2018.
a Registered Nurse and a Certified Nurse Practitioner by trade, was much more than that to not only our students, but also our entire school community. From the moment an Overbrook School for the Blind student arrived on campus until the second they returned home to their parents or caregivers, Roseann was an integral force in ensuring their health, welfare and safety.
Roseann’s skill and judgment as a healthcare professional were only exceeded by her compassion, care and love for the students, staff and mission of Overbrook School for the Blind. Our focus as a school community is to now support her family -- as well as our students and staff -- during this difficult time.
We are welcoming the upcoming school year with open arms. We have a lot of wonderful things planned for 2018-2018, but we are going to enjoy the last few days of summer before the staff return and the buses begin arriving.
On Saturday the TVI students went on a very exciting tour of historical Philadelphia. The tour was organized by Trish Maunder and her crew at Philly Touch Tours (who did such a wonderful job with the Italian market tour the previous weekend). The tour started at the Philly Tour Hub, where the students were met by Chris Kuncio, who through his role as the young Ben Franklin, brings Philadelphia history to life through his knowledge of history and his witty insights into Benjamin Franklin and the rest of the founding fathers, much of which was delivered as a rap! The tour included stops at the Betsy Ross house, Franklin Print Shop, Carpenter’s Hall and then a thrilling visit to the Liberty Bell, where just for the TVI students (and the the envy of the other tourists present) the barriers were removed so that the students could approach and touch the Liberty Bell!
ESY Running Monday to Thursday
Overbrook School for the Blind's Extended School Year (ESY) program is now running from 8:30 a.m. - 2 p.m., Monday - Thursday.
At Overbrook we can provide related services, like orientation and mobility, and continue IEP goals on day one of the ESY program. Having ESY on campus creates a smooth transition for our students, and it also helps us to make the most of our "campers" educational time, so that we can ensure they maintain the skills they worked so hard on in the school year. A continuum of services is incredibly important to our hard-working, goal-smashing students and prepares them for the upcoming year. Our students and our staff waste no time -- right back to cane skills and traveling safely on day one! Our travelers have places to go and routes to master!
PENN MUSEUM TACTILE TOURS / THIS WEEKEND
Looking for a way to stay cool and have a great time with your Family? Consider the Penn Museum
TACTILE TRIP AROUND THE WORLD, Saturday, July 07, 2018
10:00AM - 1:00PM
Visitors with vision loss and their companions are invited to explore the Museum through touch and verbal description. The program will feature touch experiences in eight galleries, including a chance to touch the largest Sphinx in North America. Museum staff will be stationed around the building to guide visitors who are blind or visually impaired through the tactile experiences, give verbal descriptions, and offer wayfinding assistance. This event is open to the public. All visitors will be able to touch replica artifacts. Only visitors with visual impairment will be able to touch ancient artifacts.
Visitors with vision loss who require or prefer sighted guides are encouraged to bring an assistant or companion.
The Towers Newsletter, Graduation Issue is now available on the Towers Newsletter page.
A reminder that Extended School Year for students who have already been enrolled, begins on July 9th and will run through August 9th, Monday - Thursday. We are looking forward to seeing our students soon, but until then enjoy your break!
A Wonderful Visit from The Nippon Foundation
While attending the 11th session of the Conference of States Parties to the CRPD (The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities) at the United Nations, Mr. Yasunobu Ishii, Senior Program Director of Social Innovation Program Division, and Ms. Eriko Uchiyama (Disability and Child Welfare Team) from The Nippon Foundation (????) paid a quick visit to Overbrook. Through their generous support over many, many years, The Nippon Foundation helped us to fund both our on-campus International Program and Overbrook-Nippon Network on Educational Technology (ON-NET) in SE Asia. We are incredibly grateful to Mr. Ishii and Ms. Uchiyama for their visit, their wisdom, their generosity, and their incredible passion and concern for global equality and the advancement of persons with disabilities.
Congratulations to the Class of 2018
We are so incredibly proud of all of your accomplishments. Cheers to each of you and we can't wait to see what you accomplish!
Direct Support Professional Award
Congratulations to EIO Teacher Laura Fox Davies who received a Direct Support Professional Award from the Montgomery County Office of Developmental Disabilities. This award is given to a Direct Support Professional who extends themselves beyond the typical expectations of the position and who provides caring and exemplary service and support to the individuals they serve.
Laura has been an EIO Teacher for over 20 years. Thank you, Laura, for your dedication and service.
"Music is Our Vision" Festival
To say the staff and students had a great time at the “Music Is Our Vision” Festival would be an understatement. Look at the joy on the faces of the students and the staff in these photos. We are grateful to have added our voices to the 100+ students in attendance. We would like to thank all of the participating schools and a very special thanks to Perkins School for the Blind for hosting another fabulous event and keeping the arts alive!
See you in two years!
Gift Card Sales Help Overbrook
Did you know Overbrook sells gift cards as a student-run fund-raiser. Check out the video some of our High School students made along with the help of Ms. Bannan and Ms. Worsley to advertise Overbrook's Gift Card Program.
Many thanks to Roberto Torres from Technically Philly for visiting one of our classrooms at OSB!
Elmwood Zoo Visit
Early Childhood students in Ms. Maria, Ms. Alisha, Ms. Anita, and Ms. Natalie's classes headed out to the Elmwood Zoo for a visit! It sure does look like they had a great time!
The staff from Elmwood Zoo have been visiting our campus often this year, as part of their Educational Programming called Laugh & Learn. Our students have enjoyed every single moment of this fun, interactive, multi-sensory educational experience with the wonderful educators from the zoo. They love interacting with the animals!
Elementary Students Visit the Barnes Foundation
Our friends at Art Reach and the Barnes Foundation hosted our Elementary students for a day of discovery and hands-on learning. The students visited the museum and learned all about Paul Cézanne. They learned that Cezanne was a very famous French artist and Post-Impressionist painter. The students were able to paint their very own Cezanne-style, still life paintings using real apples for stamping with the help of the amazing volunteers at the museum.
This is a great and easy activity to try at home as well! Just cut an apple in half, dip in washable paint and stamp away on paper or brown paper bags. Try different fruit and see how each makes a unique shape and create your own fruit bowl still life.
Inspired by Movement and Art History
Ms. DiFabio's art room is always brewing with excitement, education, and fu n. Ms. DiFabio has a way of seamlessly integrating art with history, math, science, art, social justice, social skill development, and community involvement. She has created a learning space where the students can express themselves, get messy, actively participate in the creative process, explore new recreational activities, work in teams, and have a great time too. Recently, students in Mrs. Whartnaby's High School class learned about Jackson Pollock. The students watched and listened to a video about Jackson Pollock's life, his creative process, and how expressed himself through his paintings. The students then created their own movement paintings in the art room.
We are very proud of the creative arts that thrive on our campus. As Director Todd Reeves stated, "Since 1832, arts education has been an important pillar of the curriculum at Overbrook, which has continued to the present day and will continue in the future, in part because people in the arts community are predominantly supportive and aligned with our mission."
We are proud of our on-going partnership with Art-Reach that keeps our students engaged in Philadelphia culture. We are proud of our amazing art teacher and our instructional staff who inspire our student's "creative" every single day. When many educational facilities are cutting the arts, Overbrook believes the Visual and Performing Arts are an investment in our student's future. Take a walk through our colorful, art-filled hallways and you will see our staff's dedication to creativity in everything that they do. If you are lucky enough, you may even hear sweet music filling the cloisters and students enjoying the freedom, joy, and wonder that comes with knowing you are creating beauty.
Please enjoy the latest edition of the Towers News, Overbrook's newsletter.
Volume, 71, No. 2, Spring 2018
Funky Friday Game Night Success!
Fun was had by all at Overbrook's first ever Funky Friday Family Game Night! 113 guests from 32 families danced, bowled, ate tacos and played all kinds of games. It was so great to see our students having fun with their siblings and parents!
n. Ms. DiFabio has a way of seamlessly integrating art with history, math, science, art, social justice, social skill development, and community involvement. She has created a learning space where the students can express themselves, get messy, actively participate in the creative process, explore new recreational activities, work in teams, and have a great time too. Recently, students in Mrs. Whartnaby's High School class learned about Jackson Pollock. The students watched and listened to a video about Jackson Pollock's life, his creative process, and how expressed himself through his paintings. The students then created their own movement paintings in the art room.
