Andrew recently had the opportunity to meet with Steven Rothstein, the President of the Perkins School for the Blind. The Perkins School is located a short distance from Boston and was established 180 years ago, making it the oldest school for the blind in the United States. Its distinguished graduates include Helen Keller, her instructor Anne Sullivan, and the manufacturer of the first Perkins Brailler.

Polar Vision is headed to the South Pole. But our primary mission is raising awareness for visual impairment and overcoming the challenges accompanying visual impairment. To that end, we met with Steven about setting up a series of satellite phone calls with Perkins students while we’re in Antarctica.

This wasn’t a first for the Perkins School. Previously, a blind oceanographer named Amy Bower who traveled to the South Pole conducted calls with Perkins Students (read about her being named an “Unsung Hero of Massachusetts”)

Now, a few Perkins Students will get assigned some reading about the South Pole (sorry, kids), and then they’ll be able to speak with Alan several times during our trip.

The Polar Vision team is so grateful to the Perkins School for giving us a chance to engage with their students. We’ll continue to send updates on this!