Thursday, October 2, 2014

Announcing the Final Schedule for IDRAC Conference!!

FRIDAY OCTOBER 3
Time (SLT)Presenter (SL/RL)Title
5:30-6:30 ambabar365 / Babar Shahzad Chaudary
(SL Name TBA) / Rajeeka Ponrasa
Alternative Navigation Assistance Aids
for the Visually Impaired and Blind Persons
7:00-8:00 amEleonoraFalcon / Catherine EastonAccess to the Internet and Human Rights
8:30-9:30 ambentirran / David SloanFrom Checklist Accessibility to Accessible User Experiences
10:00-11:00 amEdmondo Barbosa / Dr. Edmund LoPrestiAssistive Technology for Computer Access
11:30-12:30 pm508David / David BaquisFrontier Technology Issues
1:00-2:00 pmMixer with Tunes by DJ Puterdoc DevinEnjoy a break to network and socialise
2:30-3:30 pmGreggV / Gregg VanderheidenAutoPersonalization in Real and Second Life
4:00-5:00 pmLauraMDRC / Laura HallFun for Everyone: Assistive Technology for Video Gaming
5:30-6:30 pmSunnywasser / Gunela AstbrinkDigital accessibility policy & practice:
Case studies from Australia & the Pacific
SATURDAY OCTOBER 4
Time (SLT)Presenter (SL/RL)Title
6:00-7:00 amBrianKelly Ah / Brian KellyWeb accessibility is not (primarily) about conformance with web accessibility standards
7:30-8:30 am508man / Timothy CreaganSection 508 and Accessibility
9:00-10:00 amanthony79 / Anthony GiannoumisA Revaluation of the Cultural Dimension of disability policy in the EU: the impact of digitization and web accessibility
10:30-11:30 amblondieCART / Gayl Hardeman
iSkye Silverweb
Gentle Heron / Alice Krueger
Hear With Your Eyes - How It's Done
12:00-1:00 pm3D DisplaysIn My Opinion...
Displays created by members of the Virtual Ability community
1:30-2:30 pmJoel Savard / Joel FonerWait, what was that? Using inclusion to create a huge win for everyone, not just those who 'need it'
3:00-4:00 pmTom Bukowski / Tom BoellstorffBytes and Pixels: The Social Impact of Digital Inclusion
4:30-5:30? pmAfter Party with DJ Puterdoc DevinJoin us for a tuneful conclusion to a great conference thanks to our presenters, participants and volunteers.

Saturday, September 27, 2014

Thursday, September 25, 2014

The Schedule For The 2014 International Disability Rights Affirmation Conference

Announcing The Schedule For The 2014 International Disability Rights Affirmation Conference!


FRIDAY OCTOBER 3
Time (SLT)
Presenter (SL/RL)
Title
5:30-6:30 am
babar365 / Babar Shahzad Chaudary
To Be Announced
7:00-8:00 am
Eleonora Falcon / Catherine Easton
Access to the Internet and Human Rights
8:30-9:30 am
bentirran / David Sloan
From Checklist Accessibility to Accessible User Experiences
10:00-11:00 am
Edmondo Barbosa / Dr. Edmund LoPresti
Assistive Technology for Computer Access
11:30-12:30 pm
Edmondo Barbosa / Dr. Edmund LoPresti
Assistive Technology for Computer Access
1:00-2:00 pm
Mixer with Tunes by DJ Puterdoc Devin
Enjoy a break to network and socialize
2:30-3:30 pm
GreggV / Gregg Vanderheiden
AutoPersonalization in Real and Second Life
4:00-5:00 pm
LauraMDRC / Laura Hall
Fun for Everyone: Assistive Technology for Video Gaming
5:30-6:30 pm
Sunnywassen / Gunela Astbrink
To Be Announced

SATURDAY OCTOBER 4
Time (SLT)
Presenter (SL/RL)
Title
6:00-7:00 am
BrianKelly Ah / Brian Kelly
Web accessibility is not (primarily) about conformance with web accessibility standards
7:30-8:30 am
TBA / Timothy Creagan
To Be Announced
9:00-10:00 am
anthony79 / Anthony Giannoumis
A Revaluation of the Cultural Dimension of disability policy in the EU: the impact of digitization and web accessibility
10:30-11:30 am
blondieCART / Gayl Hardeman
iSkye Silverweb
Gentle Heron / Alice Krueger
Hear With Your Eyes - How It's Done
12:00-1:00 pm
3D Displays
In My Opinion...
Displays created by members of the Virtual Ability community
1:30-2:30 pm
Joel Savard / Joel Foner
Wait, what was that? Using inclusion to create a huge win for everyone, not just those who 'need it'
3:00-4:00 pm
Tom Bukowski / Tom Boellstorff
Bytes and Pixels: The Social Impact of Digital Inclusion
4:30-5:30? pm
After Party with DJ Puterdoc Devin
Join us for a tuneful conclusion to a great conference thanks to our presenters, participants and volunteers.



We Hope To See You There!

Sunday, September 7, 2014


SAVE THE DATE!


You're invited to the Oct. 3-4, 2014 International Disability Rights Affirmation Conference (IDRAC), sponsored by Virtual Ability®,Inc. This international conference will be held in Second Life®.

The theme for 2014 is "Technically, we're accessible... right?" Exploring True Inclusion in the Digital World.

Join colleagues, friends, and community members for presentations on web accessibility, advances in assistive technology, creating an accessible user experience, accessible gaming, emerging standards for technology, and more! Presenters from Spain, U.K., U.S., and Australia will join us at The Sojourner Auditorium on Virtual Ability Island within Second Life.

Why don’t you join us, too? 

Questions? Contact sister@virtualability.org or Sister Abeyante
Keep your eyes on Virtual Ability's blog for more information!

Monday, June 16, 2014

A Deeper, Larger View


My virtual community has invaded our living room. Has yours?

Virtual Ability in Second Life® is a group. Virtual Ability, Inc. is also a nonprofit organization registered in Colorado, USA. Most vitally, though, the people that ARE Virtual Ability are a community, a virtual community that extends around the world, across time zones and cultures and languages.

There are many ways to define a community. Most definitions include things like social ties, shared common perspectives, and shared actions or interactions in a shared setting.  Sociologists include things like ethnicity and language, caste and social divisions. Historians include settlement history and conflict history. Economists throw in interconnected livelihood strategies, and anthropologists add cultural factors, values, and shared cultural beliefs.

Peter Block’s 2008 book “Community: The Structure of Belonging” takes a look at community, and at the creation of communities, from a slightly different angle. My supper table discussion focused on how members of the community at Virtual Ability in Second Life® discover/figure out/create/ learn ways to “belong” and feel connected to people physically residing all over the world. Block names shared experiences, shared contexts, and the back-and-forth of listening/ paying attention to each other as the critical aspects of a community that offers the power to transform us from isolated to together, from disconnected to connected.

When Virtual Ability started, the founders recognized how easily disability can get in the way of connecting. So, one part of Virtual Ability’s mission is to provide people with disabilities with a supportive environment so they can enter and thrive in virtual worlds. Accessibility, universal design, and assistive technology are part Virtual Ability, but the sense of belonging seems the most significant reality.

Connecting? Belonging? Listening? Sharing? Inclusivity? Freedom? Equality? Those are some of the things that I talk about when I describe my friendships and my experiences in-world. How would you describe the sense of community that certainly seems to make Virtual Ability unique?


Virtual Ability, Inc. is a non-profit corporation based in Colorado, USA. Our mission is to enable people with a wide range of disabilities by providing a supporting environment for them to enter and thrive in online virtual worlds like Second Life®. Visit www.virtualability.org

Monday, June 9, 2014

Books that are virtually free?

 Not only virtually free, but virtually books!

The Library at Cape Serenity in Second Life® (http://maps.secondlife.com/secondlife/Cape%20Serenity/86/123/23) is a specialty collection of books by people with disabilities. It includes many classics and it also features originals by authors who are members of various Second Life® groups or communities. You can read, or even take free copies of books by author such as Dostoyevsky (who had epilepsy), George Bernard Shaw (who had a learning disability), Isaac Asimov (who had autism spectrum disorder), or many others. You’ll also notice artwork by visual artists with disabilities, including pieces by members of Virtual Ability, as well as other famous artists like Claude Monet (vision disability), and Van Gogh (mental illness.)

The collection, put together with creativity and energy by Cape Serenity’s manager, avatar Ladyslipper Constantine, celebrates the diversity and capabilities of persons with disabilities from all over the world. Local authors from the Virtual Ability community share works such as “Headless Horseman” (Ronin1 Shippe), or “Poems” (Huber Grantly). As one of the properties of Virtual Ability, Inc. in Second Life®, Cape Serenity is a beautiful, quiet residential island featuring ponds, wildlife, gardens, and plenty of shoreline. On the patio of the Library, friends and members of Virtual Ability community in Second Life® can gather for poetry readings, book discussions, and other special events.

As a key part of Virtual Ability, Inc.'s mission to help make virtual worlds like Second Life® accessible to, and supportive of, individuals with disabilities, it has developed into a diverse community that includes people with disabilities, professionals, service providers, and others who care about issues of disability.

Since entering Second Life® in 2007, the Virtual Ability community has grown to include over 850 people. While Cape Serenity features an amazing specialty library, avatars can also visit an art museum over at Cape Able, a tavern and swimming pool at our apartments, or training areas, a playground, and an award winning Orientation Path designed for newcomers to virtual worlds, at Virtual Ability Island.

Virtually free virtual books are exciting. And, they’re just a small part of the excitement of Virtual Ability.

Virtual Ability, Inc. is a non-profit corporation based in Colorado, USA. Our mission is to enable people with a wide range of disabilities by providing a supporting environment for them to enter and thrive in online virtual worlds like Second Life®. Visit www.virtualability.org


Monday, June 2, 2014

Is 260 sit-ups too many?

 It’s not if you’re an avatar working out at the Fitness Center over on Virtual Ability’s Healthinfo Island. Of course, the issue of finding an accessible fitness center in your local town or city is a whole other challenge. Everyone benefits from regular exercise!

In a recent article on the Disability.gov website, an article entitled “Disability Connection: 10 ways to Stay Healthy and Well-thy” https://www.disability.gov/disability-connection-newsletter-february/ offered helpful tips. And, the Northwest Regional Spinal Cord Injury System at the University of Washington School of Rehabilitative Medicine http://sci.washington.edu/info/newsletters/articles/09_fall_fitness_centers.asp provides a downloadable article with additional tips, as well as a Fitness Center Accessibility Checklist and a quick review of your civil rights (USA) to equal access.

While most of us won’t manage 260 sit-ups anywhere other than in a virtual world, it’s not a bad idea to become aware of the options, challenges, and proven approaches to accessing fitness centers wherever we live.

At Healthinfo Island, however, there are some added benefits to a quick virtual workout. One benefit? Lack of sweat! Another? After you stretch and cool-down, you can browse an herb garden, learn about healthy eating, or explore interactive walk-through poster sessions on timely health and wellness topics. There’s even a Research Pavilion nearby, where people with disabilities in Second Life® are invited to participate in and become aware of various research projects being implemented by universities and other organizations around the world.

Using a fitness center at Healthinfo Island is easy. Finding one that works for you in your regular life might take a bit more patience, persistence, advocacy, and work. But then, improved accessibility benefits everyone.


Virtual Ability, Inc. is a non-profit corporation based in Colorado, USA. Our mission is to enable people with a wide range of disabilities by providing a supporting environment for them to enter and thrive in online virtual worlds like Second Life®. Visit www.virtualability.org

Sunday, May 25, 2014

Mentors Collaborate to Support Newcomers

 Virtual worlds can offer people from every background opportunities to work together to improve life for others. Over at Virtual Ability Island in Second Life®, the White Tiger Mentors, one of the oldest in-world mentoring groups in Second Life®, recently collaborated with the VAI Mentors from Virtual Ability, Inc. to learn more about supporting virtual world members with disabilities. Longtime VAI Mentor iSkye Silverweb led the first of a series of training sessions supporting mentors for increased success.

Mentors, like those in both White Tiger Mentors and VAI Mentors, are specially trained to work with newcomers to virtual worlds. They patiently teach basic skills and help newcomers navigate, communicate, and participate in the three-dimensional interactive social environment. For many mentors, encountering a newcomer who self-identifies as having a disability or mentions using assistive technology can feel challenging. The Virtual DisAbility: Awareness for Mentors collaborative training helps deepen mentors’ skills and knowledge.

Awareness is a critical first skill. So is a basic understanding of assistive technology and universal design relative to virtual world participation. After input and discussion, the group participated in a thorough walk-through of the award-winning Orientation Path designed by Virtual Ability, Inc. The Orientation Path, which is a model of universal design for learning, engages newcomers in “learning by doing,” and carefully builds abilities needed for in-world success. Mentors can assist, or supplement, the learning by providing one-on-one help.

What was the key learning for this group of experienced mentors? “It’s good to know we’re not alone in this,” noted White Tiger Mentor Ravena DeCuir. Claudius Quintus agreed. “Muito importante sua aula!” (Very important lessons!) Brock Levee added, “The three most important things in helping anyone are caring, understanding what they need, and taking action.” 

This series of trainings models all three of those, and participants agreed that continuing mutual support will benefit all. For more information, please contact iSkye Silverweb within Second Life®, or contact Virtual Ability, Inc. 


Virtual Ability, Inc. is a non-profit corporation based in Colorado, USA. Our mission is to enable people with a wide range of disabilities by providing a supporting environment for them to enter and thrive in online virtual worlds like Second Life®. Visit www.virtualability.org

Sunday, May 18, 2014

Movement without limitations: dance comes from your soul… from who you are.

 Don Setzer, the avatar of Alex Spitzer, stood before an audience recently at one of Virtual Ability, Inc.’s islands in the virtual world of Second Life®. As his avatar shifted from foot to foot, stretching muscles and nodding, he spoke to the audience gathered to learn about a gifted professional dancer who also happens to be a wheelchair user. Like all of the presentations offered at Virtual Ability, this one really made participants think.

Alex Spitzer is a professional dancer and choreographer who has been recognized nationally and internationally. He is the Artistic Director of the Spitzer Dance Company (http://spitzerarts.com/) and he has a long list of “firsts.” As the first male dancer to enter the undergraduate program in dance at Texas Women’s University, Alex is also the first dancer in a wheelchair to receive a four year degree in dance not only in the US, but in the world.

For Alex, as for many dancers, dance is an art and a means of expression that “should be available to all people.” Dance and choreography is an expression of self through movement. “Dance comes from the heart inside, expressing yourself through movement of the body,” he notes on his website. “Whatever movement you can do can be dance.”

Alex notes that his training and his dancing have been very similar to that of any other professional dancer. He and his instructors creatively adapted instruction and approach where necessary, focusing on body movement, not just the movements of his powerchair. His dance and choreography express every emotion. His works, some which are pictured in an exhibit showing starting in March in the art gallery on Virtual Ability’s Cape Able, include dancers with a wide variety of abilities.

Since his early interest in dance, Alex has aspired to “just be a dancer, like anyone else,” and for people to see him as a dancer, not as a disabled dancer or a wheelchair dancer. He reminds us, in his art form, as he did in his recent Second Life® presentation, that one can dance even when one’s body has limitations. Professional dance calls forth the gift and talent of the artist, and hones it with training, discipline, study, and determination.

Whether one dances professionally on stages around the world, as Alex Spitzer does, or on a “dance ball” in one’s own Second Life® apartment, dance expresses the meanings of the heart.







What does your heart say?

Virtual Ability, Inc. is a non-profit corporation based in Colorado, USA. Our mission is to enable people with a wide range of disabilities by providing a supporting environment for them to enter and thrive in online virtual worlds like Second Life®. Visit www.virtualability.org

Wednesday, May 14, 2014

Guest Writer: Counseling and Virtual Service Delivery: 2014 Mental Healthy Symposium

Virtual Ability, Inc. welcomes guest blogger Nicole Matyas, OTS, as she shares her thoughts about the session entitled “The Role of Counseling in Quality of Life and How Counselors are Exploring Virtual Service Delivery,” presented by Christine Karper, Ph.D. and Michelle Stone, B.S. Psychology, both from the College of Social Sciences, University of Phoenix, during the 2014 Mental Health Symposium sponsored by Virtual Ability, Inc. in Second Life®. Ms. Matyas (SL name nicki416) is a Thomas Jefferson University student in the Department of Occupational Therapy. The following represents Ms. Matyas’s opinions and insights and we appreciate her sharing them.


This lecture addressed how the emerging use of technology in providing human services is implemented, specifically in counseling through the use of virtual worlds. Karper and Stone opened their discussion by reviewing the traditional measures by which counselors typically treat their patients by utilizing the “disease approach” as a basis for treatment. Counselors tend to serve as “pathologizers” in treating their patients, by being trained to hone in on the negative symptoms that inhibit the daily functioning of individuals with mental illnesses. They are constantly looking to merely reduce distress and illuminate what is wrong. However, by shifting to the up and coming “well-being-focused” approach, counselors may execute a larger focus on patients’ strengths in addition to repairing deficits.
Dr. Christine Karper, Ph.D. presented using her avatar "Storm"

According to American psychologist and author Dr. Martin Seligman, this more optimistic, well-rounded approach is deemed as “positive psychology.” Positive psychology focuses on the whole person, where happiness is understood in relation to goodness and meaningfulness. Individuals may reach this goal by engaging in more activities that evoke positive emotions and practicing skills that will help to further develop their strengths. It is the role of counselors to educate their clients about strategies that can be used to incorporate their interests and preferences into their daily routines as a means of improving their symptomology and obtaining an overall sense of well being.

Karper and Stone specifically mention the significance of the flow experience, in which individuals are so immersed in an activity that they lose track of time due to the perfect fit between their abilities and the challenge of the activity at hand. This flow experience provides individuals with a sense of meaning and larger purpose. This sense of meaning has the strongest effect on individuals' level of satisfaction with their lives and encompasses so much more than what the traditional symptom-reduction approach would.  Rather, this approach emphasizes talent and improvement in overall quality of life.

Moving on to actual interventions, Karper and Stone introduced a subgroup of the American Counseling Association (ACA), the Cyber Task Force, and described how that task force is working to make positive changes in service delivery by encouraging the use of technology. Resources include providing support to those counselors and educators who wish to include technology in implementation of practice. This group also has a Code of Ethics to aid in legal and ethical issues faced by practitioners.

Ms. Stone presented using her avatar Bellastormi Constantine.
The benefits of technology include enhancing communication, learning, and increasing the ease with which we do things. The task force has also developed a standard of competencies and identified practical implications of technology in counseling. To further develop the field of counseling, virtual worlds can be used for hosting support groups in a non-threatening environments as well as in providing the immersive, flow-like experience without the negative repercussions of the real world. Virtual worlds also promote acquisition of various skill sets that may be generalized to real world situations.

A personal anecdote by a member of the audience was then shared that I found quite interesting, and that was that a simple adaptation of technology allowed an individual with psychosis to reduce his sense of stigmatization. This was by wearing a blue tooth device in the community as a means of compensating for verbally responding to the voices in his head. His behavior suddenly became normalized, demonstrating that simple implementations of technology such as this really can help!

Between 45 and 65 people attended each of seven presentations.
The part of this lecture that really stood out to me was the acknowledgement of the importance of the flow-like experience. As occupational therapy students, we are constantly challenged to strive for providing opportunities for our clients to experience flow. If clients become so immersed in meaningful activities that they lose track of time and obtain a sense of complete mastery over a skill, perceived sense of increased self-efficacy is reached, leading to overall increased levels of satisfaction and quality of life. As an occupational therapist in training, I found this lecture to be extremely interesting and also reflective of the direction in which all human services are moving, including advancing to the use of more advanced technologies, such as in virtual environments.

Nicole Matyas, OTS
Thomas Jefferson University

Philadelphia, PA

Saturday, May 10, 2014

Guest Writer: Helping Veterans through Virtual Worlds Support: 2014 Mental Health Symposium

Avatar picture closeup of Celene Highwater
Virtual Ability, Inc. welcomes guest blogger CeleneHighwater as she shares her thoughts about the session entitled “A Healing Space built with Veterans in Mind: Virtual Worlds and Psychological Health,” presented by Dr. Jacquelyn Ford Morie, Ph.D., during the 2014 Mental Health Symposium sponsored by Virtual Ability, Inc. in Second Life®.  The following represents CeleneHighwater's opinions and insights and we appreciate her sharing them.




The “Coming Home” project as Dr. Morie called it, is a great idea for helping veterans affected by the trauma of war. It gives them a chance to deal with their mental health challenges in the privacy and comfort of their home in a convenient and low-stress environment.

And since obtaining first a proper diagnosis, then effective treatment, can be difficult in the health care system of today, to me Second Life serves as the perfect alternative.

Chicoma Island, where the veteran treatment center is based, offers a great example of technological advancement and an example of the calming and mental benefits that Second Life can have on those suffering from illnesses such as PTSD.

One thing that was created to help reduce stress levels of participants was a HUD that monitored regular deep-breathing. The jogging track that was created utilized this HUD and the users’ normal breathing to make the avatar jog. The jog took roughly ten minutes to complete and Dr. Morie said that studies showed that the ten minutes of normal breathing had health benefits.

Another thing she discussed that really captured my interest was the idea to have an on-going treatment center in Second Life for soldiers wishing to stay on active duty. Personally, I love the idea that when stressed or in need of counseling, a soldier could log on to Second Life and find the help that he/she needs. I think this approach could work for those in the civilian sector who also suffer from the effects of severe trauma and I hope that funding returns so this project can be continued.

CeleneHighwater
Member of Virtual Ability group in Second Life®

Tuesday, May 6, 2014

Guest Writer: Employment Equality: 2014 Mental Health Symposium

Virtual Ability, Inc. welcomes guest blogger Nicole Matyas, OTS, as she shares her thoughts about the session entitled “Employment Equality Through Accommodation and Self-Advocacy,” presented by Teresa Goddard, Senior Consultant with the Job Accommodation Network at West Virginia University, during the 2014 Mental Health Symposium sponsored by Virtual Ability, Inc. in Second Life®. Ms. Matyas (SL name nicki416) is a Thomas Jefferson University student in the Department of Occupational Therapy. The following represents Ms. Matyas’s opinions and insights and we appreciate her sharing them.


This lecture addressed how individuals with disabilities may successfully request workplace changes and how, in response to said requests, employers may provide effective accommodations for their employees.

The Job Accommodation Network (JAN)( www.askjan.org ) is a cost-free resource that provides individuals with the aid they may need in addressing their rights as employees as well as any questions they have pertaining to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) standards. The recurring theme evident throughout this presentation was encouraging individuals with disabilities to advocate for themselves in seeking out accommodations that would facilitate optimal functioning in the workplace as well as obtaining equal access to the benefits and privileges of employment.

Some examples that were given as ways that employers may provide reasonable accommodations to those employees that qualify include changing the physical environment and modifying the way that things are typically done, resulting in equal employment opportunities for all. Specifically, this may present as modifying schedules, restricting standards of performance, or promoting accessibility to various resources.

Though a large portion of this process is dependent on the employer and his/her compliance with ADA standards, it is equally the individual’s responsibility to self-advocate and refrain from expecting their employer to merely “read their mind.” Rather, individuals must be knowledgeable about their rights as a potential employee and be sure to sufficiently provide their employers with what their specific limitations and needs are, and how certain adaptations are necessary and will help them to be more productive in the workplace. Something to consider is to include the individual’s medical provider in the employee-employer interaction in seeking accommodations, as a means of giving the employer a better understanding of the underlying medical condition and what the rationale is for certain limitations and problems.

Throughout the lecture, Teresa Goddard provided real-life examples of past JAN cases, addressing steps for requesting accommodations and even providing the audience with additional links and articles, such as for helping patients with medical conditions write effective accommodation request letters. Interestingly enough, Teresa Goddard specifically mentioned the role of occupational therapists and other health care professionals in helping to make work environments more conducive to individuals’ performance by utilizing their familiarity with assistive technology and thus making interactions with employers run more smoothly. This portion of the lecture especially stood out to me in that I could relate to understanding the skill set that occupational therapists bring to the table in consulting with individuals with disabilities in seeking employment.

What many employers may fail to recognize or tend to misconstrue is the cost of accommodations. In fact, more often than not, it is more cost-efficient to provide employees with disabilities with the accommodations they need, such as a communication device, because it will result in a more productive work day, and ultimately benefit the company as a whole. As Teresa Goddard claimed in her lecture, “The right equipment can make all the difference!”

Another example that Teresa Goddard provided was the role of ergonomics; that is, adapting the physical environment in order to make it conducive to the individual’s optimal functioning. It is important to note that ergonomic adaptations are not associated with changing the individual’s behavior, but rather, addressing barriers in the environment that may impede performance. These could include addressing the needs of an employee with progressing arthritis, depression, and fatigability, and modifying his/her workspace to allow for energy conservation and increased productivity.

Lastly, Teresa Goddard emphasized the importance of monitoring the implementation of any and all adaptations. It is not sufficient to merely implement a change and move on. Rather, it is important to continue to monitor the progress, development, and success of the individual as a means of determining whether the adaptation was effective in helping the individual to achieve their goals and improve their performance in the workplace. This concept is similar to the notion of “client-centeredness,” a primary goal and value for the profession of occupational therapy, in which the individual needs, preferences, and concerns of each client as an individual being should be recognized and considered before, during, and after implementation of any interventions.

Conclusively, the ongoing theme throughout this lecture was to ensure that the individual’s voice is being heard, which is both the responsibility of the individual themselves as well as their employer, and the need to be clear on limitations and needs, performance standards and goals, and how reasonable accommodations will ultimately result in success in the workplace. This session ended with an extensive “Q&A” between Teresa Goddard and members of the audience pertaining to their own personal experiences with employment. I found my attendance at this lecture to be very valuable in that it allowed me to compare and apply my knowledge from what I’ve learned thus far in my occupational therapy program to what professionals and researchers as well as “real-life individuals” are dealing with regarding this topic of interest. I hope that individuals continue to advocate for themselves in this realm. The more widely recognized issues in the workplace become, the more progress can be made, and the more equal opportunity may be sought out for individuals with disabilities, who are just as deserving of rights to employment as are individuals who do not have a disability.

Nicole Matyas, OTS
Thomas Jefferson University
Philadelphia, PA

Thursday, April 24, 2014

Creating a Vibrant Life: Lessons from Adversity

How can we learn to uncover hidden opportunities in life’s darkest moments and then journey toward a better quality of life?

2014 Mental Health Symposium, April 26, 2014, 4:00 pm SLT/PDT
The Sojourner Auditorium in Second Life®

Virtual Ability is pleased to welcome Colleen Crary (Anya Ibor in Second Life®), founder and executive director of the nonprofit Fearless Nation, to the 2014 Mental Health Symposium, held at The Sojourner Auditorium in Second Life®.

Fearless Nation educates, supports, and advocates for the rights of people with psychological trauma and has worked closely with the military population and law enforcement across the United States. Ms. Crary is currently a doctoral candidate in psychology at Walden University. She has earned a Master’s in Forensic Psychology from the prestigious Chicago School, and holds a bachelor’s degree in graphic design.

In her presentation, entitled “Creating a Vibrant Life: Lessons from Adversity,” Ms. Crary will explore the reality that virtual life is an extension of real life, with challenges existing in both. She will discuss new research on trauma that shows how we can enhance our current existence by learning from those who have triumphed over adversity.  Ms. Crary will show how one can uncover hidden opportunities in life’s darkest moments.

Visit The Sojourner Auditorium in Second Life®.

Wednesday, April 23, 2014

Virtual Worlds, Psychological Health and Veterans

How can a healing space created in a virtual world strengthen the psychological health of returning veterans?

2014 Mental Health Symposium, April 26, 2014, 2:30 pm SLT/PDT
The Sojourner Auditorium in Second Life®

Virtual Ability welcomes Dr. Jacquelyn Ford Morie, Ph.D., founder and chief scientist at All These Worlds, LLC, to the 2014 Mental Health Symposium, held at The Sojourner Auditorium in Second Life®.

With degrees in both art and computer science, Dr. Morie has twenty-five years of experience in developing innovative techniques for rich virtual reality (VR) environments. During her tenure as a Senior Research Scientist at the University of Southern California’s Institute for Creative Technologies where she created novel VR tele-healthcare activities using her deep understanding of art, computer animation and human behavior to enhance patient engagement. Dr. Morie also has worked in the animation and special effects industries and prior to that, worked at the University of Southern Florida’s Institute for Simulation and Training, where she developed techniques to make VR environments more immersive and emotionally evocative.

Dr. Morie also researches the effects avatars have on the people who use them. Her recently formed company, All These Worlds, LLC serves clients such as NASA and the Army Medical Command at Fort Sam Houston.

In her presentation entitled “A Healing Space built with Veterans in Mind: Virtual Worlds and Psychological Health,” Dr. Morie will discuss how virtual worlds can benefit healing, support and physical and psychological health. 

Between 2009 and 2013, All These Worlds, LLC built four regions in Second Life® to support a healing environment for veterans returning from the recent US conflicts in the mid-East.  As part of the research, the region design included activities to help with stress relief, including a running path that one runs with their avatar via a deep even-breathing technique, and a fully developed series of mindfulness classes. The researchers are halfway through a longitudinal study on the effectiveness of the in-world mindfulness, and a short study confirmed the effectiveness of the running activity for relaxation. These Second Life® regions are known as Chicoma Island and can be visited as part of Dr. Morie’s presentation. 

Tuesday, April 22, 2014

Counseling, Quality of Life, and Virtual Worlds

What’s the role of counseling in quality of life and how are counselors exploring virtual service delivery?

2014 Mental Health Symposium, April 26, 2014, 1:00 pm SLT/PDT

The Sojourner Auditorium in Second Life®


Avatar of Dr. Christine Karper: "Storm"

Virtual Ability welcomes Dr. Christine Karper and Michelle Stone, members of the American Counseling Association’s Cyber Task Force to the 2014 Mental Health Symposium held in The Sojourner Auditorium in Second Life®. Their two-part presentation will discuss how counseling impacts quality of life for people with and without diagnosed mental illness in an interactive presentation that explores utilization of virtual world service delivery for counseling supports. With long-time experience in virtual worlds, the presenters will carefully consider both potentials and cautions of professional service delivery within a virtual environment.

Dr. Christine Karper, Ph.D., known as Storm in Second Life®, will discuss a paradigm shift in the role of the counselor that focuses on quality of life over alleviation of symptoms. She will discuss treatment strategies for overall well-being, as well as interventions aimed at assisting individuals to have a better quality of life.

Dr. Karper obtained her master’s in mental health counseling and her doctorate in counselor education and supervision from the University of Central Florida. She has been serving the Central Florida Community as a clinician and a counselor educator for over ten years.

As a clinician, Dr. Karper has developed a specialty area in depression and anxiety disorders and utilizes cognitive-behavioral therapy, creative arts therapy and adventure-based counseling. She also enjoys assisting individuals in stress management and in developing means of coping with diverse life challenges by incorporating alternative healing modalities and mind-body-spirit approaches.  She has presented both nationally and internationally and has published articles in several journals in counseling, psychology and technology.

Currently, Dr. Karper serves as the Area Chair for Psychology Programs at the University of Phoenix, Central Florida Campus. She teaches graduate and undergraduate courses in counseling, psychology and the health sciences and integrates blended formats, fully online and face to face. She also works in program development and faculty development and is a subject matter expert in curriculum development. Her research interests involve the use of technology in the classroom, the use of social media as a diagnostic tool in counseling, and the impact of virtual worlds in counseling.

Ms. Michelle D. Stone’s portion of the session will focus on the ethical use of virtual worlds in service delivery.

Ms. Stone has extensive experience working with a variety of populations within the context of a community-based non-profit setting. She is currently the Family Services Director of Lake Wales Care Center in Florida. Her educational background merges the two fields of social work and psychology and it is in this shared space that her interest in computer-mediated human interaction has emerged.

As a resident of over five years in the virtual world of Second Life®, Ms. Stone has viewed firsthand the benefits and challenges of professional service delivery in a virtual environment. Her practical experience fueled her research and subsequent professional presentations regarding the use of virtual worlds and social media for the purposes of assisting those in need.

Visit The Sojourner Auditorium in Second Life®.