Blindness no barrier to degree for Alvernia University student
Grad school ahead for Luis Fontanez Jr. after graduation from Alvernia University with psychology degree
By Greta Cuyler
Luis M. Fontanez Jr. of Muhlenberg Township will graduate from Alvernia University on Saturday.
Seven years after Luis M. Fontanez Jr. went completely blind, he's set to graduate magna cum laude from Alvernia University on Saturday.
It's been a tough but triumphant road for Luis, 26.
The son of Anna E. and Luis M. Fontanez Sr. of Muhlenberg Township, Luis was 4 years old when he lost vision in his left eye to congenital glaucoma.
And as a junior at Reading High School in the fall of 2000, he was hit in the right eye during an impromptu game of dodgeball.
A few months later he was diagnosed with a detached retina, likely caused by a miniscule tear when the ball hit his eye.
Despite six surgeries over nearly two years, doctors could not save Luis' sight.
"The vision loss was very rapid," Luis said. "Every day I woke up I was able to see less and less. It was as if the lights were being turned out one light bulb at a time."
Luis said he summoned inner strength when he lost his sight completely at age 19.
"I decided there was only one way for a blind, Hispanic man to make his way in life," he said. "And it wasn't sitting in my room feeling sorry for myself. It was going to be going to college and studying and doing something with my life."
Luis earned an associate degree in liberal arts from Reading Area Community College in 2006 and enrolled at Alvernia in 2008.
He earned a nearly straight-A average and will graduate with a bachelor's degree in psychology and a minor in history. Luis plans to attend graduate school and become a school counselor.
Before he lost his sight, Luis earned his high school diploma from Reading High in June 2002.
He got a mobility cane in January 2003, a month after his 19th birthday. Two months after that, he started classes at RACC.
A mobility specialist from the state Bureau of Blindness and Visual Services helped him get a feel for the layout of both the RACC and Alvernia campuses through guided tours, but Luis learned to expertly navigate on his own through trial and error, he said.
With accommodations provided under the Americans with Disabilities Act, Luis says he's been like any other college student.
He learns course material by attending class and tape-recording lectures. He listens to textbooks on compact disc. He uses a laptop computer that reads aloud each letter as he types. Test questions are read to him and he either responds orally or by typing on his laptop.
"Any blind student can be successful here as long as you're willing to work hard enough and have the drive and determination to be a successful college student," Luis said.
Friday, May 14, 2010
Tuesday, May 11, 2010
Final procedures for the end of class.
This will happen Thursday or Friday (depending on when your class meets).
You must show up for your ACTUAL class.
The paper is due at the beginning of your ACTUAL class. You can come to an earlier class, but not a later class. If you want to begin early, you can come at 8am IF YOU CONTACT ME TO ENSURE THAT I WILL BE THERE. If nobody contacts me, I will get there when I get there.
IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A FINAL ESSAY WHEN YOU COME TO CLASS FOR THE LAST TIME THIS WEEK, YOU WILL NOT TAKE THE FINAL BECAUSE YOU WILL HAVE FAILED THE CLASS.
Final exam rules:
1) you can have A notecard for David Sedaris and A notecard for 1 (and only 1) of the following persuasive essays:
A) Phoebe Prince's bullying case - persuade me what we should do in punishment to her abusers.
B) The Gulf Coast oil spill - persuade me what we should do to fix the spill and the effects of it.
C) The immigration law in Arizona - is it right or wrong - and if so, how should we enforce it or change it.
D) The Times Square attempted bomber - how should we punish him (civil courts or military tribunals) and is he a terrorist / criminal.
E) Elena Kagan is Obama's pick for Supreme Court Justice. Acceptable or not?
The last 4 can be found extensively at www.cnn.com and www.foxnews.com since they're all ultra current events.
2) the persuasive essay must be done as a 7 paragraph absolute argument.
3) the David Sedaris essay is a standard 5 paragraph essay.
4) you must pass the final to pass the class.
5) if you bring in an essay from home, I will tear it up and you will start fresh.
6) you have Friday + 1 final period to finish 2 essays.
Tu,Th - B001 Tuesday at 8am until 10
MWF9am - 8-10 on Wednesday.
MFW10am - 1030-1230 on Monday.
7) If you're late, you lose the time.
8) If you're sick, you lose the time.
9) You can show up to your final time or a time that is earlier than that, but not 1 that is later than that. For example, if your final is Wednesday, you can come Monday (if you e-mail in advance). You can't come Wednesday for a Monday final.
10) If you're going to do that, you must contact me in advance.
11) Due to the length of time involved with the test, 50 minutes is not enough. If you finish 2 essays in 50 minutes, you are pretty much choosing to hand in whatever, which means that I'm going to be grade uncorrected essays. For this reason, you need to come to the 2 hour final IF ONLY to edit your essays for clarity and grammar (most likely to write 1 entire essay and make corrections). I will give you your final paper back at this session as well. If you are beneath passing, I will let you know so that you do not have to waste time taking the rest of the final (since the final is pass or fail, it can only hurt your % grade - not raise it). When you leave, you will know your grade.
You will need the following.
What your chosen group of people knows and needs to know about your topic (also, who is your chosen group of people).
a sufficient amount of notes - as long as it doesn't look skimpy and as long as your paper is long enough, it's ok.
a typed rough draft that is different than the final paper.
all of your URLs printed out.
the paper has
a title page
an abstract
an outline (typed)
4 pages+ of essay.
a references page.
It is set up in APA
You will have 5 sources bare minimum.
2 Internet or database
1 print
2 whatever.
standard checks to see if everything is there for grammar and APA just like you did with MLA.
Good luck.
There is a sample essay that is almost done (I'm finishing that now).
You must show up for your ACTUAL class.
The paper is due at the beginning of your ACTUAL class. You can come to an earlier class, but not a later class. If you want to begin early, you can come at 8am IF YOU CONTACT ME TO ENSURE THAT I WILL BE THERE. If nobody contacts me, I will get there when I get there.
IF YOU DO NOT HAVE A FINAL ESSAY WHEN YOU COME TO CLASS FOR THE LAST TIME THIS WEEK, YOU WILL NOT TAKE THE FINAL BECAUSE YOU WILL HAVE FAILED THE CLASS.
Final exam rules:
1) you can have A notecard for David Sedaris and A notecard for 1 (and only 1) of the following persuasive essays:
A) Phoebe Prince's bullying case - persuade me what we should do in punishment to her abusers.
B) The Gulf Coast oil spill - persuade me what we should do to fix the spill and the effects of it.
C) The immigration law in Arizona - is it right or wrong - and if so, how should we enforce it or change it.
D) The Times Square attempted bomber - how should we punish him (civil courts or military tribunals) and is he a terrorist / criminal.
E) Elena Kagan is Obama's pick for Supreme Court Justice. Acceptable or not?
The last 4 can be found extensively at www.cnn.com and www.foxnews.com since they're all ultra current events.
2) the persuasive essay must be done as a 7 paragraph absolute argument.
3) the David Sedaris essay is a standard 5 paragraph essay.
4) you must pass the final to pass the class.
5) if you bring in an essay from home, I will tear it up and you will start fresh.
6) you have Friday + 1 final period to finish 2 essays.
Tu,Th - B001 Tuesday at 8am until 10
MWF9am - 8-10 on Wednesday.
MFW10am - 1030-1230 on Monday.
7) If you're late, you lose the time.
8) If you're sick, you lose the time.
9) You can show up to your final time or a time that is earlier than that, but not 1 that is later than that. For example, if your final is Wednesday, you can come Monday (if you e-mail in advance). You can't come Wednesday for a Monday final.
10) If you're going to do that, you must contact me in advance.
11) Due to the length of time involved with the test, 50 minutes is not enough. If you finish 2 essays in 50 minutes, you are pretty much choosing to hand in whatever, which means that I'm going to be grade uncorrected essays. For this reason, you need to come to the 2 hour final IF ONLY to edit your essays for clarity and grammar (most likely to write 1 entire essay and make corrections). I will give you your final paper back at this session as well. If you are beneath passing, I will let you know so that you do not have to waste time taking the rest of the final (since the final is pass or fail, it can only hurt your % grade - not raise it). When you leave, you will know your grade.
You will need the following.
What your chosen group of people knows and needs to know about your topic (also, who is your chosen group of people).
a sufficient amount of notes - as long as it doesn't look skimpy and as long as your paper is long enough, it's ok.
a typed rough draft that is different than the final paper.
all of your URLs printed out.
the paper has
a title page
an abstract
an outline (typed)
4 pages+ of essay.
a references page.
It is set up in APA
You will have 5 sources bare minimum.
2 Internet or database
1 print
2 whatever.
standard checks to see if everything is there for grammar and APA just like you did with MLA.
Good luck.
There is a sample essay that is almost done (I'm finishing that now).
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