National Association for Visually Handicapped (NAVH) Founder Awarded
Honorary Doctorate
Lorraine
H. Marchi, Founder and CEO of the National Association for Visually
Handicapped (NAVH), was recently awarded an honorary degree of
Doctor of Humane Letters (L.H.D.) by the State University of New
York. Dr. Alden N. Haffner, President of the State College of
Optometry, nominated Marchi for her outstanding achievement in
founding the only national health agency solely devoted to the
śhard of seeing,” one of AmericaĂs most prevalent disabilities,
second only to hearing impairment.
Although the honor came as a total surprise, Lorraine Marchi had
often been taken for a doctor because of her extensive knowledge
of vision and eye disease. She founded NAVH in San Francisco in
1954, largely as a result of what she learned from investigating
resources for low vision elementary school children, who, like
her visually impaired young son, had special reading needs.
In addition to supporting a free-by-mail 7,000 volume large print
lending library throughout the United States, NAVH provides a
host of large print educational materials“in English, Spanish
and Russian“on vision related issues including eye disease, nutrition,
and proper lighting, and delivers direct services to visually
impaired people from its national offices at 22 West 21st Street.
For more information, phone 212-889-3141, or visit the NAVH website
at www.navh.org.#
Education
Update, Inc., P.O. Box 20005, New York, NY 10001.
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consent of the publisher. © 2002.
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