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graduate in cell andmolecular biology,artist, volunteer,businesswoman,daughter, sister, aunt,and friend—lost herbattle with the cancerthat took her sight asa child. Vibrant anddetermined, she wasstill attending to herMary Kay customersand helping plan an art exhibit until herdeath on June 29, 2004. Her art was exhibitedat the University of Washington duringSummer Study, where she was honored witha DO-IT Trailblazer Award (see relatedarticle).

Those of us who had the privilege of know-ing Anna will cherish memories of heracademic accomplishments, business sense,artistic ability, sense of color, determination,curiosity, creativity, strong opinions aboutalmost everything, and unique sense ofhumor. Our lives are richer because of her.

Anna’s thoughts and suggestions aboutbuilding a more accessible world will live onin DO-IT’s many training videotapes inwhich she was featured (see http://www.washington.edu/doit/Video/.) At theconclusion of Working Together: Science Teach-ers and Students with Disabilities, she emphati-

DO-IT NEWS Volume 12, Number 3

Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology • November2004

Director’s Digressionsby Sheryl Burgstahler

To reduce printing costs and yet still shareexciting news from DO-IT, we provide a shortprint version and an expanded version online athttp://www.washington.edu/doit/Newsletters/Nov04/. Contact DO-IT if you would like aprinted copy of the expanded newsletter.

Highlights of this issue:

Director’s DigressionsBoeing Expands DO-IT Scholars

ProgramDO-IT and Camp Courage Celebrate

Ten-Year PartnershipPhase I Summer Study ArticlesDO-IT Scholars Speak for ThemselvesPhase II Summer Study ArticlesAnother Great Summer for DO-IT

InternsDO-IT Mentor ProfileDO-IT Staff ProfileDO-IT Ambassabor Profile2004 DO-IT Trailblazer AwardsTech Tips: Spyware Surpasses

Viruses, Worms, and UnintendedDeletions

The Thread—How Do People TreatYou?

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I’m sad to report that Anna Schneider—’93Scholar, Ambassador, speaker at DO-ITevents, NASA Scholarship recipient, UW

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cally states, “I think it’s very important thatscience teachers understand that peoplewith disabilities can do science. We have theintelligence and capabilities to do it, and it’simportant that we are exposed to sciencejust like people without disabilities are sowe can better make choices about our lives,like what career we want to go into andwhat we want to study.”

Boeing Expands DO-IT Scholars Programby Sheryl Burgstahler

With a generous grant from Boeing, DO-ITwas able to fund several Scholars in 2004 inaddition to those funded by the state.Thanks, Boeing! DO-IT invested yourmoney wisely—in preparing skilled collegestudents, workers, and community leadersfor the next generation.

DO-IT and Camp Courage Celebrate Ten-Year Partnershipby Sheryl Burgstahler

For the tenth year, DO-IT cosponsored anInternet, College, and Career Preview pro-gram as part of the yearly Teen Camp ses-sion at Camp Courage, MN. A dozen col-lege-bound teens with disabilities partici-pated. They explored resources on theInternet, developed a website (see http://depts.washington.edu/doitsum/Courage04/) toshare their experiences, and discovered theirlearning styles, internal and external assets,

career interests, and college options. Theycommunicated with DO-IT Scholars, Pals,Ambassadors, and Mentors. They took afield trip to a local university and practicedrequesting accommodations from a profes-sor. I was the lead instructor. Rick Light,Chris Rosenberg, Mamoru Iwabuchi, andBill Taylor provided technical and instruc-tional support. Tracy Benson and AaronCorcoran, two previous campers who arenow in college, stopped by to speak to thegroup about their steps to success.

Service Dogs: Friends and Workersby Phase I Scholars Vishal and Lukas

From an observer’s perspectiveMy name is Vishal. In DO-IT Summer Studythis year, we got to know three service dogsand their companions quite well. Throughobserving these dogs and their companions,I learned a lot.

2004 Courage Campers outside computer lab

Summer Study ’04: What Do thePhase I Scholars Do?

DO-IT Phase I Scholars participate in atwo-week, live-in Summer Study ses-sion on the University of Washingtoncampus in Seattle, Washington. Theylearn about college life; surf theInternet; interact with peers, staff, andmentors; and have fun. Below, ’04Phase I Scholars share some of theirexperiences. Note that, reluctantly,articles were edited by DO-IT staff tomake them short enough to include inthis publication, and most are foundin the online version of this issue athttp://www.washington.edu/doit/Newslet-ters/Nov04/. Additional articles byScholars can be found in earlier news-letters at http://www.washington.edu/doit/Newsletters/.

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These three dogs, Mystere, Fisher, and Silly,are perfect matches for their companionsLukas, Maryann, and Meg, respectively.They were always by their companionsunless it was nighttime and they were “offduty.” The love from these dogs is obvious.At one time, during photo day, Fisher andMystere got up on their companions’ laps tobe in the pictures with them. It is amazingthat they are so obedient and respond totheir companions so well. Which brings meto training for service dogs. From what Iobserved, the dogs and their companionsmust have gone through rigorous training toget to the point where the dogs obey com-mands so well and for their companions tohave the type of composure necessary toteach their dogs. Although service dogshave training at an organization, they stillhave to learn with their companions!

Last but not least, the dogs have fun also!During the evening when we were donewith the day’s classes and had dorm activi-ties, the companions took off the dogs’ workharnesses, which they wear all day when“on duty.” Taking these harnesses off sig-naled to the dogs that they were “off duty.”Then they would roam around looking forpeople to play with or be petted by. Oneday, Fisher and Mystere were wrestling eachother, with Robert kind of playing as well,while a lot of us watched. It was fun to seethem play and have fun. These three dogsare truly amazing and so are their compan-ions. We love ya pups!

From a companion’s perspectiveMy name is Lukas and my service dog isMystere. I love having Mystere as my ser-vice dog but, more importantly, as mycompanion. She is always there for me. Ilove knowing that my parents and mybrother can leave me at the house alone, butI don’t ever feel alone, because Mystere isthere. I’m thankful everyday that Mystere isa part of my life. Yes, the paperwork, train-ing, and everyday work is long and hard,

but it all pays off. I look at this as investing alittle chunk of time to receive an enormousreturn. I thank the organization I gotMystere from for everything they have doneto make owning Mystere possible. You guysare outstanding!

Microsoft Field Tripby Phase I Scholars Andrew and Bud

On our Microsoft trip we had a good time.When we got there, we were taken into asoundstage where we heard an interestinglecture about WindowsTM accessibility. Afterthe lecture they brought in pizza and we ateand socialized for a while before the nextactivity began. After lunch, a panel ofMicrosoft employees with disabilities talkedto us. They talked about the assistive de-vices they use to do their work and theoverall environment of Microsoft. Next, wetoured the Microsoft production studios andlearned about broadcasting.

We then went to the Microsoft Museumwhere there was a lot to see. There were allkinds of fancy devices and TVs to play withand watch including X-Box and motiondetector games. The trip was fun and full ofinformation.

Planetarium Intergalactic Wondersby Phase I Scholars Maryann and Makenna

The DO-IT Scholars got a great opportunityto visit the astronomy building and plan-etarium at the University of Washingtonduring the 2004 Summer Study. One of thethings that is impressive about theastronomy building is the great accessibilityfor many types of disability needs. Thepowered entrance door is very wide with alarge hand press plate outside. The pressplate could have been more visible for first-time users with its location identified with asign or light. The elevator to the plan-etarium is large enough to accommodatethree wheelchairs.

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Mark Claire, an astronomy graduate stu-dent, was the speaker for the AstronomyExploration presentation. The informationMark provided about the solar system wasdetailed, and he took the time to explaineverything so that it was easy to under-stand. The planetarium had very comfort-able seating for observing the night sky andviewing the stars and planets. The seatingwas at a good height for transfers fromwheelchairs. Mark was also able to programand reposition the solar system projector togive examples of what it would be like toobserve stars and planets from differentplaces on Earth, including Seattle. It waseasy for everyone to see the large domedscreen because of the circular seating and itgave the feeling of the planets and starsmoving toward you.

We also had a chance to see pictures of thesurface of Mars taken by the Mars Roversand sent through downloads back to Earth.The pictures showed craters, landscapes,and possible traces of previous water exist-ence. Other pictures Mark showed in theplanetarium were from the Cassini space-craft that orbited Saturn. The pictures ofSaturn’s rings had a lot more detail thanthose astronomers had previously seen orexpected. Astronomers and scientists gainedinformation about Saturn that was neveravailable to them before. Mark also de-scribed the Cassini spacecraft’s entrythrough the Mars atmosphere and its land-ing on the surface of Mars. The Cassini usedrockets, a parachute, and air bags for thelanding and bounced like a superball onimpact with Mars’s surface!

Mark gave everyone an opportunity to learnmore with open discussion and easily un-derstood answers to all our questions. TheDO-IT Scholars seemed to enjoy “Exploringour Solar System.” It was a great learningexperience and fun at the same time. ThanksMark for your time and a cool fantasticjourney to the stars and planets!

The Aquariumby Phase I Scholars Meg and Katie

As you walk into the second building of theaquarium, the otter and seal exhibits are notthe first things you see; you see somepeople, a few exhibits, and the start of along (yet accessible) path to follow alongyour exploration. As you continue downthe hallway, you can see the various sizesand shapes, from side exhibits to wholerooms, and glass walls with animals thatswim with ease.

There can be anything from a room ofcrowded people to a few scattered peopletrailing along like sailboats following thewind and flowing with the tide. Taking timeto admire each display, you leisurely tugyour way along, admiring the fast-pacedsharks and salmon until you finally reachthe climax of your trip, the otters and seals.On approaching these magnificent animals,you admire their grace and willingness to bethe center of attention. You take your time tolook upon these highly esteemed mortalbeings and then make your way to the endof your insightful journey.

Dorm Activitiesby Phase I Scholars Tracy and Laura

Through the DO-IT Scholars Program, wehave had the opportunity to learn manythings about college. We learned that collegestudents are very busy people. They havequite a bit of homework, projects, andstudying for tests to do. College studentsalso engage in extracurricular activities.There are also many activities that they caninvolve themselves in at the dorms.

At McCarty Hall, where we stayed, there aremany activities in which residents caninvolve themselves. For those who likeusing their thinking skills and strategy, thereare card and board games that they can play.Others who like to use their active skills can

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play pool, foosball, and Ping-Pong in thelobby. There are also outdoor activities thatcan be played on the fields and tenniscourts. People can watch movies in thelounges. Finally, one activity that many ofus Phase 1 Scholars enjoyed was going backto our dorm rooms and reflecting on whatwe had done that day.

Reflecting on our experiences on the UWcampus, we have noticed that college is avery busy time in people’s lives. There is somuch to do and so little time to do it in. It isnice, however, to live in a dorm where thereare activities that you can participate induring your precious free time. McCartyHall has those activities.

Pacific Science Centerby Phase I Scholars Russell and Alex

Although there were many things to see atthe Pacific Science Center, we agreed thatthe IMAX movie, Bugs in 3-D, was the bestpart. The most impressive thing was thedepth created by the 3-D glasses. Imagesseemed to pop out of the screen and gave usa sense of realism. With the huge screen andthe great surround-sound, it was definitelybetter than your average movie experience.

Some of the other exhibits that were particu-larly fascinating were the butterfly houseand the glow-in-the-dark exhibit. The but-terfly house was a good way to get ready forthe IMAX movie. It was a fun experience tosee all the different kinds of butterflies andto try to identify them from the chart youreceive on your way into the house. Beforeleaving, you have to be checked for anybutterflies that may be catching a ride onyour clothes. The glow-in-the-dark exhibitwas also interesting. It was about differentanimals that glow. For example, firefliesglow to communicate, and some deep-seafish glow to lure their prey.

Overall, the Pacific Science Center wasdefinitely a worthwhile field trip.

The University of Washington HIT Labby Phase I Scholars Kathleen, Michael, Julie,and Blanca

On Monday, August 9th, Phase I Scholarsvisited the Human Interface Technology(HIT) Lab. Our group started by doingvirtual surgery on a virtual human hand bygiving the hand sutures. To do this we hadto wear 3-D glasses and manipulate thesuturing tool while viewing the process onthe computer screen. Judging by participantreactions, suturing is a complicated processnot recommended for the weak of stomach.Several of us decided that performing thatkind of procedure, though interesting, isdefinitely not one of our choices for a futurecareer! Next, we read The Magic Book—abook that, when viewed through special VR(Virtual Reality) lenses, produced a 3-Dimage on the picture side of the book.

Later we interacted with Virtual Air Hockey.We also interacted with a Virtual DJ devicethat played various types of music whendisks with particular symbols were placedunderneath a camera.

DO-IT participants explore activities at PacificScience Center

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Finally, we wrapped up with a visit to theVR simulator for a game called “SnowWorld.” Perhaps a better description for thissimulator would be “Snow Wars,” becausewhat you do is shoot anything and every-thing with snowballs. “Snow World” is oneof the virtual reality programs designed bythe HIT Lab for the treatment of burn pa-tients. Since the process for changing thedressing on a burn is often painful, thepatients are immersed in a virtual world,which distracts them from the pain theywould feel in the real world by makingthem think they are somewhere else. Inorder to put patients in the virtual world,they wear a special piece of equipment thatresembles a bulky pair of sunglasses on theexterior with wires running out the back. Onthe inside of these “glasses” is a screen thatshows what you are looking at in the virtualworld while the small speakers give off thecorresponding sounds of your surround-ings. The patient controls his field of viewby turning his head. For instance, a patientturns his head to the right and the directionhe is looking in the virtual world will alsoturn to the right. The patient is in this vir-tual world has access to a keyboard. Bytapping the space bar, the patient can throwsnowballs at whatever he is looking at, andthe information for the things he sees, hears,and is able to interact with is transmitted bya computer. There are penguins, snowmen,polar bears, snow turrets, and Ice Soldiersthat you throw snowballs at in “SnowWorld.” The turrets and ice soldiers actuallyfire back at you and take a lot of snow ballsto destroy.

Some of us became so immersed in “SnowWorld” that we found it hard to separatefrom the game! Other uses for this technol-ogy include helping people overcome pho-bias. The potential of this technology in ourfuture remains to be seen, but it is an assetto the treatment of patients in the present.

All in all, going to the HIT lab was a VERYfun trip, and here’s hoping we DO-IT againnext year!

DO-IT Scholars Speak for Themselvesby Sheryl Burgstahler

At the end of Summer Study, I asked Phase IScholars what they learned. Here are someof their responses:

• Professors are a lot nicer than people say orthan I thought.

• You can go to a professor beforehand and askfor accommodations, and they prefer this.

• It is important to be on time.• Time management is really important.• I learned a lot and had fun riding a bike.• I learned to get along with a roommate.• Even though we have different disabilities, we

often share common experiences and canlearn from each other.

• I learned there are many different options inthe field of engineering.

• I learned to take advantage of every opportu-nity.

• It is really important to make a lot of con-tacts, because you never know what youcould learn from someone, and these aregreat opportunities.

• You have to be brave sometimes.• We are all different and unique, and it is

important not to define people by how theylook or what their disability is.

• I learned I am not the only person with thisdisability and that other people are strug-gling with the same thing.

• You have to have written documentationabout your disability to get accommodationsin college.

• I made new friends.• I learned to be more open and willing to

share about my disability; I don’t have to beshy about it.

• You should have your college application inearly.

• I learned that I have to take responsibility formyself.

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• Life at college is way different than highschool.

• I learned that it is important to lead some-times and follow sometimes.

Phase II Scholars Explore the “Art” ofComputingby Phase II Scholars Annemarie, Jessie,Tasha, and Jamie

As frequently as we all use computers,rarely do we realize the complex problem-solving skills necessary to create the pro-grams. In August 2004, we touched thesurface of such programming in the “Gameof Life” Summer Study workshop. In-structed by Professor Richard Ladner, sev-eral undergraduate and graduate assistants,and a DO-IT intern, Scott, we worked onseparate projects for a week that demon-strated a few of the different uses for com-puter programming.

Scott created several “hunter and prey” and“maze” games. He had to work through thedifficulties of “debugging,” or finding errorsin the program code, and use logic to createthe appropriate behavior for the charactersof his games.

Creating programs for an entirely different

use, Scholars Tasha and Jamie developedmaps of the University of Washingtoncampus for blind students and visitors.They had to first simplify the visual mapsthrough image processing and then addBraille text to the resulting images. Thesemaps were printed on a tactile printer thathas the ability to punch bumps into paper.

Annemarie used image processing for aslightly different application. She configuredgray-scale images into black-and-whiteimages using a process called dithering,which is like pointillist art. Additionally, sheapplied sharpening programs, edge detec-tions, and background filters to find crystal-lized proteins automatically from images.

Jessie worked with Stephen Wolfram’s ANew Kind of Science as a basis for using moreclassical programs. Several of these resultedin complex and beautiful patterns andshapes.

The workshop revealed the wonders ofcomputer programming as well as thefrustrations. All of us experienced manyinstances of satisfaction, but they were allpreceded by diligence and intense problemsolving.

Spaced Outby Phase II Scholars Shaun, Patrick, Tressa,and Josh

During Summer Study our group learnedabout the ever-changing solar system. In the“Spaced Out” workshop our instructor,Chris Laws, taught us about the planets andformation of craters by the collision withcomets and asteroids.

On the first day we all shared what wealready knew about the solar system. Someof these things included what’s in the solarsystem, the sizes of the planets, and thedistance from planet to planet. We even

Summer Study ’04: What Do thePhase II Scholars Do?

Phase II Scholars return to the Univer-sity of Washington campus for theirsecond Summer Study. They meet thePhase I Scholars as they participate intheir first Summer Study, learn aboutcollege life and career preparation, andparticipate in a one-week workshop withpostsecondary instructors. The followingarticles summarize some of the experi-ences of the 2004 Phase II Scholars.

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made a simple but accurate model of therelative distances between the planets of thesolar system.

On the second day our group learned aboutcraters and how to use them to help deter-mine the age of planetary surfaces. Wesimulated making craters by using sand andwater droplets. Once we had practice withcrater counting, we were able to test ourskill by applying it to images and graphs ofthe surface of Mars.

On the third day we were taught the differ-ence between comets and asteroids, as wellas how to distinguish between a meteor,meteoroid, and meteorite. We participatedin a simulation that demonstrated howasteroids and meteorites affect a planet’ssurface. We dropped balls of various massesfrom different levels and measured dimen-sions of the impact. We also froze hard-boiled eggs in liquid nitrogen to simulatethe collision of an asteroid with a planet.

The fourth day was the most interesting ofall. We simulated the creation of comets bymaking comet ice cream! We used the icecream contents to represent different com-ponents of a comet. We were even able towatch it freeze using liquid nitrogen. On ourlast day, we learned about planet rings andprepared for our group presentation atSummer Study’s closing ceremonies.

Overall we really enjoyed the experience ofthis workshop and found that the ever-changing solar system is very interesting.We would like to thank the DO-IT programfor offering this class and our instructor forbeing a fun and informative teacher.

Virtual Veggies Workshop

by Phase II Scholars Andrew, Conrad, Crys-tal, Skylor, and Jamie

Working as a team, we five Scholars, internsGimmie and Andrea, our personal assistantSam, and Suzanne Weghorst and other staffmembers created a virtual garden usingcutting-edge technology in the UW VirtualReality Lab. We searched online for picturesto use as models for objects to use in ourgarden. In order to create the garden, wefirst had to learn about the guidelines weneeded to follow to make our virtual gardenaccessible to people with disabilities and theelderly. We also learned that our virtualgarden should have a certain “flow,” mean-ing that the garden should be challengingyet enjoyable at the same time.

Then we learned about the technology usedto build a virtual garden. The software weused was 3D Studio Max, a program thatmakes computer graphics. We also usedmarkers, which are pieces of paper that areperfect squares with an asymmetrical shapewithin each. Once a marker was completed,we put the Webcam over it; the computerwas able to read it and create an image thatappeared on the computer. Once these stepswere repeated, we were able to create avirtual garden or anything else we coulddream up; there are no limits. This project

Phase II Scholars participate in Virtual Veggiesworkshop

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made us think outside the box and chal-lenged each of us in different ways. It wasmade possible with the additional help ofinterns. We owe a special thanks to every-one who made this experience possible.

Another Great Summer for DO-IT Interns!by DO-IT Staff Scott Bellman and TamiTidwell

Many students use the summer to relax andenjoy the sun, but it is also a great time forinternships! Working during the summeroffers students a chance to practice accom-modations, network with professionals, tryout jobs, and earn some extra money. Hereare some examples of the internships ofDO-IT participants in 2004:• assistive technology trainer for a public

library• research position at a university for

Global Information Systems• web design work at a speech pathology

clinic• administrative assistant in an FAA

engineering office• a position at the U.S. Defense Contract

Management Agency• four positions at Microsoft in software

design and testing• analyst for Citigroup in New York City• computer assistant in the nonprofit

sector• computer assistant for the City of Seattle• administrative assistant for the City of

Seattle• health science recreational therapy aide• researcher in Washington, DC, working

with the Food and Drug AdministrationCenter for Food Safety and Nutrition

• researcher in the Department of PublicHealth and Nutrition at the University ofWashington

• technical assistant for National ParkService

• engineer for Medtronic Physio Control• interpreter for Whitman Mission

National Historic Site• network administrator at the Portland

Department of Environmental Quality• observing classes at Crescent Valley and

Corvallis High School for engineeringproject at Oregon State University

• chemistry lab assistant at the Universityof Idaho

• associate at World Bank in Washington,DC

In addition to these paid internships, DO-ITparticipants completed several internshipswithout pay. These included• nine DO-IT Summer Study program staffinternships and• a trip to Japan to work on DO-IT interna-tional connections.

Most students found their internships work-ing with DO-IT staff members. Othersworked with DO-IT partners such asENTRYPOINT! (http://www.entrypoint.org/),the Workforce Recruitment Program (http://www.dol.gov/odep/pubs/brochures/wrp1.html),and the American Association of Peoplewith Disabilities (http://www.aapd-dc.org/).

Supervisors had many positive things to sayabout their summer interns, such as“In all honesty, [our DO-IT Intern] is themost intelligent and enthusiastic under-graduate student I have ever worked within my twenty-four years in academia. I lookforward to continuing collaboration withher” and “I see this one hiring situation as amajor breakthrough in hiring and it can beseen as a possible role model for other parksand programs.”

All of these student interns have somethingnew for their résumé and can count on theirsummer supervisors as future referencesand advocates. Congratulations to all of youon a job well done!

DO-IT Mentor Profile

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by Bill Taylor

Camp Courageprovides a campexperience for folkswith disabilities andis one of DO-IT’ssummer projectswhere I volunteermy time. A couple ofsummers ago, DO-

IT was ending a summer session at CampCourage in Minnesota. One of the camperswas in tears. I asked her what was wrong,and she haltingly replied that camp wasending and she had to go home. I said,“Yes?” not understanding the problem. Shesobbed, “You don’t understand, at home noone appreciates the problems I go through.Here, everyone understands and it doesn’tmatter.” Here was a young girl that had amemorable camp experience and did notwant it to end.

How does one get an opportunity to experi-ence that emotion? Well, I went to Sheryland Dave Burgstahler’s for dinner severalyears ago and they told me about the DO-ITprogram. I offered to help and, since Sherylnever turns a resource down, I think I wason the Mentor list before the night was over.I’m not sure what all the requirements are tobecome a DO-IT Mentor, but perhaps aninterest in helping young people grow anddevelop and a career in Software Engineer-ing qualify. I worked for Boeing when it wascalled Douglas, and McDonnell Douglas,and then again when it was called Boeing. Iworked on the Saturn/Apollo program atthe Cape when we were launching men tothe moon. I worked for Boeing making anautomated transportation system to movestudents around the University of WestVirginia campus in Morgantown. Softwareengineers get to do lots of weird stuff. Butthe weirdest of all is being Dorm Dad for theDO-IT Summer Study program. Like therequirements for becoming a DO-IT Mentor,

I don’t think the requirements for DormDad are things you can fully put down onpaper. Being the DO-IT Dorm Dad for thelast few years has given me the opportunityto get to know some neat Scholars who areabout to meet new challenges of college andlife as young adults.

A few years ago at Summer Study one of theScholars was in an electric wheelchair, butshe played a powerful Ping-Pong game withone hand on the paddle and the other on thewheelchair’s joystick. She was a tiny younglady and listened carefully when it wasannounced that if the summer schedule wastoo tiring, the Scholars could inquire abouttaking a nap. So this young lady asked if shecould skip class in favor of a nap. Whenasked if she was tired, she said, “No, but if Itake a nap now I can stay up later and playPing-Pong!” Nap denied.

Perhaps all will not have as emotional anexperience as that Courage Camper or ascute an experience as that Ping-Pong champ,but I also doubt that any DO-IT Scholar everforgets their DO-IT Summer Study experi-ence. I’ve sure had fun being part of it.

DO-IT Staff Profileby Tami Tidwell

Hi there. My name isTami Tidwell. No-vember will markmy one-year anni-versary with DO-IT!Most of my worktime is spent onvarious activitieshelping studentswith disabilities

develop the skills they need to secure theirdream jobs. These include résumé andinterview workshops, arranging work-basedlearning experiences, and communicatingwith students through newsletters and one-

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on-one contact. Participating in SummerStudy 2004 was a high point of my first yearat DO-IT.

I am originally from Fort Worth, Texas, andearned a Bachelor of Science degree inpsychology from Texas Christian University.I changed my major five times before meet-ing a professor of behavioral psychologywho allowed me to combine classes fromthe Communication Sciences and Disorders,English, dance, special education, andpsychology departments into a degree thatfocused on my passions. I enjoy beingcreative and finding alternative solutions toeveryday problems.

My career has taken me in many directions.My first job was as a case manager, thenprogram manager for a group home forchildren with Autism. What I enjoyed themost about this experience was bringingchildren together with their families, whichis not a typical focus of the group homesystem. When the group home closed, Ibecame a staffing coordinator at a tempo-rary employment agency working withsome of the largest human resources depart-ments in Seattle. A year later, an acquain-tance offered me the opportunity to trademunicipal bonds for a national broker. Itwas an excellent learning experience, but Imissed working with people. A contactoffered me the opportunity to recruit forcompanies like Children’s Hospital, SeattleTimes, and Starbucks. Over the next threeyears, I fine-tuned my recruiting skills andbecame the most successful recruiter in thecompany. The downturn in the economywas very hard on the business, forcing us toclose our Seattle office; I was the last re-cruiter to leave. I took the next year and ahalf off to contemplate and enjoy two beau-tiful Seattle summers, abundant gardens,and family travel. Then I met Doug Haymanfrom DO-IT, I learned about the programand an open position that seemed like agreat fit for me, and the rest is history!

I enjoy using my varied experiences tobenefit students on their road to college andcareers. The relationships I’ve built over thepast year are invaluable. I look forward toexpanding this network and working to-gether to create more opportunities forDO-IT participants.

DO-IT AmbassadorProfileby Brad Barringer

Who am I? I definemyself as a com-puter nerd, a movielover, and a smallgiant. I am a fun-loving, yet occasion-ally moody, guywho enjoys books,

movies, music, computers, and talkingabout pretty much anything. I considermyself to be somewhat of a learning dis-abilities poster boy as I have ADHD (Atten-tion-Deficit Hyperactivity-Disorder), Dys-lexia, Bipolar Disorder, depression, andanxiety. I worked with medications for yearsto try to control all my disabilities but foundI didn’t like the dead feeling I got when Iwas taking them. For a couple of years nowI have been working on managing mydisabilities without the medications. Someaspects of life are harder, but I enjoy therush I get from the ADHD that makes mymind run at the speed of light and lettingmy imagination run with that.

I was first involved with DO-IT in 2001 as aScholar and moved through the program tobecome an Ambassador and Mentor. I loveall the net chats and discussions through theDO-IT online community, but I really loveDO-IT Summer Study and missed it toomuch to stay away this year, so I volun-teered my time at many of the SummerStudy activities. It will probably be thatway for years to come! My younger brother

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is in the program now. It’s great to watchhim laugh and learn with the other Scholars.DO-IT is a one-of-a-kind program, and Iwouldn’t trade it for the world. You justcan’t find better people anywhere else onthe planet.

2004 DO-IT Trailblazer Awardsby Scott Bellman, DO-IT Staff

DO-IT Trailblazer Award recipients areDO-IT community members who haveforged new pathways that will benefitothers. Through their ongoing work andaccomplishments, award recipients havechanged the way the world views peoplewith disabilities and their potential to suc-ceed in challenging careers and activities.

Cheri Blauwet TrekDO-IT Ambassador and ‘96 Scholar“For achievements in athletics and academ-ics.”

Cheri Blauwet began her academic andracing career in 1998 at the University ofArizona. She majored in molecular andcellular biology and was captain of the trackteam. Blauwet maintained a 4.0 GPA andwas selected to USA Today’s All-AmericanAcademic Team. In November 2002,Blauwet won first place in the wheelchairdivision of the New York City Marathon.Four months later she captured first place inthe Los Angeles Marathon. Later in themonth, she set a new women’s road courserecord at the Carlsbad 5000 WheelchairInvitational race. Blauwet shattered the 1996world record of 12 minutes and 8 seconds,by crossing the finish line in 12 minutes and4 seconds. In April 2003, Blauwet enteredthe Boston Marathon, placing second; shewon in 2004. She is a three-time Paralympicmedalist, capturing three medals in trackand field events. Blauwet is now in medicalschool at Stanford pursuing a career indevelopmental pediatrics.

Mike DedmanEducation Specialist, National Parks Service“For improving access in the National ParksService.”

As a Summer Study Phase II WorkshopInstructor for two years, Mike taught about“Accessibility of National Parks” and facili-tated a visit to Klondike National Park. Hetaught Scholars to use their expertise andmake recommendations for improved parkservice access. He initiated regional nation-wide training sessions about access inNational Parks education programs andwebsites and has been a strong advocate forNational Parks visitors with disabilities. Healso initiated a story-reading program forhospitalized youth. Mike Dedman has beenactive in helping students explore careerswith the Parks system. He regularly sendsinformation about job and internship open-ings to DO-IT staff, inviting applicants withdisabilities. In 2002, Mike taught a Phase Isession called “Science-Related Careers inNational Parks” to get Scholars excitedabout careers with the Parks. He has goneout of his way to support student careergoals and this past summer worked with aDO-IT intern funded by the National Parks.

Mike Dedman with Phase II Scholars

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Charity RangerDO-IT Student Staff“For improving access and support on apostsecondary campus.”

Charity was instrumental in the develop-ment of Disability Advocacy Student Alli-ance (DASA)—a student group facilitatedfor and by students. Their goal is to addressthe needs and concerns of the disabilitycommunity and its allies on the Universityof Washington campus. They representstudent interests while working with alliedstudent groups, the UW administration, andthe off-campus community. DASA regularlyhosts meetings, events, advocacy projects,and web dialogue. Charity also has workedfor DO-IT as a student staff member, aspeaker at special events, and conferencesupport staff.

Anna SchneiderDO-IT Ambassador and ‘93 Scholar“For accomplishments in academics, martialarts, and fine arts.”

Anna was one of DO-IT’s first Scholars,joining the program in 1993, and was anintern in 1995. Anna always had a mischie-vous sense of humor and once describedSummer Study to a new Scholar as “Disabil-ity Boot Camp.” She received a NASAscholarship to attend the University ofWashington and graduated with abachelor’s degree in microbiology.

Anna lost her sight as a child after a boutwith cancer, but she never let her blindnesshold her back from anything she wanted todo. She earned a black belt in Aikido martialarts, had her own business as a Mary Kayconsultant, and was an accomplished artistvisualizing designs and colors in her mind’seye that she translated into vibrant pieces ofart. Her work was displayed this August atthe University of Washington during the2004 Summer Study program.

As a DO-IT Ambassador and Mentor inperson and online, Anna encouragedyounger Scholars to set high goals and becreative in reaching them. Anna participatedin DO-IT Success Panels, and she was fea-tured in DO-IT videos (http://www.washington.edu/doit/Video/). She wasalways a good sport and always up for anew challenge. Anna was also a DO-ITemployee and “star” of DO-IT Show andTell, a program in which she visited first-grade classes to talk about how she didthings in alternative ways. She broughtstudents their names in Braille and askedthem to guess how she cooked, made sureher socks matched, and did artwork withoutsight.

Tech Tips: Spyware Surpasses Viruses,Worms and Unintended Deletionsby Doug Hayman

As the technology support person for DO-IT, I’ve been called upon to repair andrestore Scholar machines each year. Whereasit used to be accidentally deleted files orvirus infections that occupied much of myservice time, now I’m mostly removingspyware or wiping and restoring machinesbecause the intrusion of this malware is toogreat to allow for recovery of the system.

Spyware comes in many guises. Some arerelatively benign, merely providinginformation to outside users so that yourweb-browsing experience is customized tomeet your unique needs. Visitors of the NewYork Times website, for example, can readarticles by having a free account. Creatingthis account deposits a cookie in your webbrowser so that on return visits to that site,the site knows it is you, sparing you theneed to reenter your username/password.

The cookie that is deposited is a small textfile that has enough information for theirremote servers to know it is you visitingagain. If they keep an extensive record of

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your visit and surfing habits, then they’llhave a great deal of unique, private infor-mation about you all linked to that cookie.

You can agree to the deposit of cookies ornot via your web browser’s preferencessettings. You can also pick and choose whichcookies to accept or reject. Additionally, youcan manually delete individual cookiesstored on your computer.

The more pervasive spyware threat comesin the form of web plug-ins and hiddenapplications. Some of these are installedduring visits to particular websites, perhapsas something “required” to view content ona site. Others are installed as part of theinstallation of another application that theuser downloads. Sometimes the End UserLicense Agreement shows somewhere in thefine print that this other application will beinstalled and is being OK’d by the end userin exchange for use of this so-called freeapplication. Worse yet, some applicationspurporting to be spyware removal softwareactually install what they are expected toremove—spyware.

Each of the thousands of known spywarehas its own unique activity and threat level.Some may hijack the web browser’s homeand search pages, redirecting the user to-ward a target site. Others can go as far asinstalling backdoor entrances for intrusion,logging keystrokes to capture passwordsand private information such as credit cardnumbers, and then sending that informationto a remote computer without your knowl-edge or permission.

Once spyware “infects” a computer, it canbe difficult to impossible to remove. Imag-ine accidentally spilling some pepper inyour salt shaker and shaking it up beforeyou’ve discovered your mistake. Pickingthrough the salt grain by grain to removethe foreign substance is tedious and time-consuming. Likewise, once spyware has

entered your computer, the removal processcan be so difficult that it is easier to wipe thesystem. More than once in the past year, mytech coworker has seen me painstakinglysifting through the “salt” attempting toremove the “pepper” and said to me, “Wipeand restore it.” And often that has been theend solution met with an “I told you so.”

Users need to take a two-pronged responseto dealing with spyware. First is prevention:not allowing it into your computer in thefirst place. Second is using removal tools toclean up the machine.

The use of peer-to-peer network file sharingis highly risky. Many of the shared filesmoving between users are illegal copies ofanother’s audio/visual content. There is aninherent risk in opening these unknownfiles and in giving others access to drives onyour machine.

Free applications, which are popular, getinstalled without much scrutiny regardingthe implications of doing so. Many userswant the instant gratification of using whattheir peers are playing with and don’t takethe time to investigate spyware that may beassociated with these applications.

Before downloading and installing any newapplication, use your favorite search engineand see if the application has been impli-cated as an intrusion vector for spyware. Putthe name of the application and the wordspyware into the search text box and see ifyou get hits indicating a connection.

Once you’ve been infected with spyware,there are a couple of programs that arementioned again and again by those writingabout ridding your machine of the spywarethreat. They are Ad-Aware(http://www.lavasoftusa.com/software/adaware/)and Spybot Search & Destroy(http://www.safer-networking.org/en/index.html).

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With each of these spyware removal toolsthere is an update function to ensure thatthe tool can remove the latest threats. Eachmay also require repeated runs to remove allof the infection, often doing so as a processthat loads upon a restart of WindowsTM.

The Thread – How Do People Treat You?by Sheryl Burgstahler, DO-IT Director

A DO-IT Pal recently posed the followingquestion in our Internet discussion forum. Iwill share with you some of the responses sothat you can get a flavor of the rich conver-sations the DO-IT community has online.

I have been thinking lately about howsociety treats disabled people: It seems likethey tend to back away from anyone ab-normal. I have teenage high school bud-dies with disabilities and they don’t reallyhave a social life there. So I’m asking ifsociety has ignored any of you? Have youexperienced discrimination?

DO-IT Mentor: Yes, I have. Mostly in employ-ment situations but also in terms of how Isee us portrayed in the media and how we areregarded in society. The thing is that this is a verycomplex issue. People are employment-ignorantmore than mean, and they are simply uncomfort-able with anyone who is very different from them-selves. We have a responsibility, too, to insist we beincluded. Most of the time this just means showingup.

I would ask, why do your buddies not get involvedin school life? What specifically are they not partof? Do they hold back, or are they actively barredfrom participating? If the latter, by whom?

DO-IT Pal: My friends are just shy, I guess. Imean, one friend had friends but they deserted her,and another friend is too shy to approach anybody. Ican understand why she’s scared, too. She wants tobe accepted but at the same time not freak anybodyout. It’s weird.

DO-IT Mentor: High schoolers can be very odd

creatures. Very often, the goal is to blend in or havea group to fit in with. It sounds like you may bemore outgoing than some of your friends withdisabilities. It may be that they have been excludedbefore or do not like the same people as you. Theymight not be as outspoken as you. Whatever. Itseems to me, the best thing you could do is continueto be a friend to your other friends with disabilities,and maybe introduce them to some of your otherfriends. Maybe others will learn from your ex-ample. For the record, I DO NOT think yourfriend is at all weird. High school is one of the mostdifficult places to be different in any way. College isbetter for a lot of people in that regard.

As far as experiencing discrimination, I definitelyhave seen it—in school, college, and work experi-ences. I think it is a societal problem, but not onethat laws and social programs alone will fix. Ithink that depends on changing people’s perceptions,those of people with disabilities and able-bodied aswell. For me, it BEGINS with showing up but ismuch more complicated than that.

DO-IT Pal: Very nice response. We are oddcreatures indeed. Sometimes I wish society could bemore accessible to disabled people. I mean, it doesn’tjust happen to disabled people; I have a foreignexchange student friend of mine from Germanyand just two days ago I saw somebody trip herintentionally in the hall. I was ready to just get outof there and go straight to the United Nations andcomplain, but I didn’t. In response to the otherquestion, I haven’t experienced discriminationmyself. I am outgoing, and I am accepted at myschool. It’s my friends I worry about. Any sugges-tions?

DO-IT Pal: You accept your friends, right? Ithink that’s enough. At least they found someonewho does accept them.... As for the others who kindof avoid your friends, that’s their problem, not yourfriends’. They can’t help having a disability; if youaccept them and let your other friends know you do,then that would probably make them feel morecomfortable around them. Then again, maybeyour friends aren’t being discriminated against,maybe they don’t have many friends at school

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because they are shy.... I found that in elemen-tary school, I was made fun of because I was notcomfortable being myself.... I really thought ofmyself as a different person, but from middleschool to high school, I feel so much better aboutmyself and no one makes fun of me. I don’t lookat myself as different—I’m the same as anybody,I just walk differently.

DO-IT Mentor: One of your comments reallystood out to me, which was “I found that in el-ementary school, I was made fun of because I wasnot comfortable being myself.... I really thought ofmyself as a different person, but from middle schoolto high school, I feel so much better about myselfand no one makes fun of me.” I just wanted toshare with you and others on the list some of ourobservations from the DO-IT side.

Yes, being comfortable with ourselves is importantand it does make a difference in the way peopletreat us. There are other factors at work, too. Asour DO-IT friends transition through junior highto high school to college to careers, there seems to bemore acceptance as they go along.

If it felt great going from junior high to high schoolbecause people were more mature and accepting,just wait until you take a class at a communitycollege or a university! The same thing happensagain: you realize that in the new environment,people are more interested in different kinds ofpeople and more likely to see diversity as a strengthrather than something to make fun of.

DO-IT Mentor: It is nice that you are concernedfor your friends. My only suggestion would be totry to include your friends with disabilities inconversations and activities whenever you can.Maybe if all your friends get to know each other abit through you, they will be more open about beingfriendly to each other. You might also let themknow that poor behavior is not something you willtolerate in your friends. Of course, this means youhave to speak up at some point, leave the offensivesituation, or risk being labeled somehow yourself.Sometimes you have to decide which group to bepart of and when to keep your mouth shut. It is

also important to consider what your more shyfriends would want. Do they appreciate yoursticking up for them? Or are they embarrassedby it? The only way to know this is to ASKthem. If this seems weird to you, you might saysomething like “It really bugs me when I seeTHIS happen. I’ve noticed that you don’t saymuch about it. Can I help?” That way, you letthem know you see the situation and can shareyour reaction, but you can also get their reactionbefore just jumping in to fix things.

Of course, between the way I was raised and mytraining as an OT, I tend to think people have tolearn to fight their own battles some of the timetoo, which means sometimes letting people solvetheir own problems—even if it is difficult to watch.You can be a good friend at the same time.

DO-IT Pal: Wow, that’s definitely a big issue.Anyone who looks or acts different could get madefun of. I am in a wheelchair and have SpinaBifida. When I was in elementary school, I wasmade fun of A LOT; I would go home and cryevery day. Now I’m in high school and I don’t getmade fun of, but it seems that a lot of people treatme differently. I hate it. What bugs me the most iswhen there is something I want to do which in-volves being active and the teacher or adult wouldsay, “Are you sure you can do this?” An example iswhen I was in class, which is called Service Learn-ing, and we were helping out with a Halloweenhaunted house. I was able to do a lot of things, butwhen it came to the tough stuff like climbingladders, I wouldn’t have anything to do, and Iwould sit there and the teacher would see me doingnothing; I guess she got the impression that I can’tdo anything. And another day, she sent me to theoffice to do my homework while the other kidshelped out. I was so angry.

Discrimination happens all the time. To people inchairs, the deaf, the blind, the mentally ill, autis-tic... everything. People tend to look at the thingsyou aren’t able to do and discriminate against youfor that, but it takes A LOT to get them to noticewhat you really can do. You have to work hard atthat. It’s not easy, but in the end it’s worthwhile

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because you become a stronger person and peopledo realize that we have plenty to offer. We have adisability, but we are able in plenty of things.

DO-IT Mentor: For what it’s worth, I totallyagree. During my time at the U-Dub I saw myselfas someone different, and for the most part it onlyserved to keep me isolated. I made only a fewbriefly- engaged, transient friends during thatwhole time. I wish I had known better then, but Ididn’t... so there you are. Still, in one respect, I amdifferent in the sense that we are—each of us—aminority of one, and by “us” I mean ALL people.And it is that intrinsic minority status which bearsexploring in each other, which bears understandingand appreciation.

DO-IT Ambassador: Of course there are alwaysjerks, but I think a lot of the recoil I’ve got has beenout of fear or inexperience. It’s maddening, but onetime someone started the idea that disabled peopleare either breakable or really oversensitive, or jerkswho use their disability to take advantage. It’s ofcourse untrue, but a lot of people believe it. I wouldreally like to get my hands on whoever started it!

DO-IT Ambassador: I didn’t become disableduntil eighth grade. I had a ton of friends before,and people were calling me every day. I was apopular guy. After my injury, in high school, myfriends pretty much just dropped away because mosthigh school kids are not mature; they are veryshallow and superficial. I cannot even rememberthe last time I got a phone call from one of myfriends.

People in college are somewhat more mature; Ihave a few friends, but girls pretty much just blowme off without even trying to get to know me oranything. They just write me off because they seeme as disabled. I mean, listen to what one girl saidto me: I asked her if maybe we could get togethersometime and do something, and her reply was “Iam booked the rest of the school year.”

DO-IT Mentor: That is rough. I am sure it is

hard to deal with an acquired disability at anyage, but probably worse as a teen than othertimes. It might have been that your friends didnot know how to include you in old activities orperceived a change in your attitude as you wereadjusting to your new situation. You wereprobably going through a lot of emotions andmay not have been too pleasant to hang aroundwith. That is understandable. I know I was notpleasant to be with in high school, and it wasworse whenever I was dealing with a change inmy functional status. I did not share a lot of thiswith my peers because none of the kids I went tohigh school with was in a similar situation.What I did instead was seek out other people Icould talk to about disability-related issues so Ihad a place to vent and figure out what wasreally important to me.

I have several disabilities that have changed overtime, and I know I routinely have to educate people(sometimes even people I have known for a longtime or some I think ought to have figured it outby now) about what I can do and what I would likehelp with. I know whenever I show up in mywheelchair instead of using my crutches, people askme what happened. Then I just have to smile andsay, “I am using a wheelchair today so I could bethe shopping cart,” or something a bit less witty if Iam having an off day.

One suggestion is when you meet people, try to finda common interest or a strength you can sharebefore meeting a person. Say you meet a person in amath class and you are a math whiz. If there is atest coming up, it is easier to say, “Can we study?”than just to start a conversation like “Do you wantto go out sometime?” (It is harder for people to sayno once they like you as the smart guy, the funnyone, or whatever.) If you have something to share,then people will have something to talk aboutbesides all the stuff they think you cannot do beforethey even talk with you because you look differentor cannot move well—because people do makeassumptions. It might also help if people knew whatkinds of things you liked and needed help with,which you would have to let them know. Thenpeople might be more able to make plans withyou.

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The Browser: Calendar of Events

For a schedule of conferences of interestto our readers, go tohttp://www.washington.edu/doit/Newsletters/calendar.html

DO-IT Ambassador: Thanks for the advice,but those are things I am already doing or havealready tried. My social problems in high schoolwere not caused by me acting a certain way; Iwas nice to everyone. It’s just that they didn’tknow how to interact with me or what to say, sothey just ignored me instead.

DO-IT Mentor: I do understand. In general, Iwould say that nondisabled people are well meaningbut nervous around people with disabilities. Theone exception is teens. It’s a time in one’s life whereone is struggling to see one’s place among peers.Often this translates into making sharp distinctionsin one’s own favor. That is, if you can put someonedown, that elevates you in the eyes of those you seeas the elite. Or so one thinks. I was not aware ofmy disability as a teen but was an out kid for otherreasons... mostly economic. It could get really cruel.Graduation was one of the happiest days in my life.College was a completely different experience.Adulthood is even better. The older I get, the betterit gets in that regard.

I think it may be part of the enculturation of allpeoples to reject the unfamiliar, including people.That is a very sad state of affairs, and I believe itis every individual’s responsibility to refuse tocooperate with that enculturation.

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