Schools

Perkins School Launches Online Academy for Continuing Education & Professional Development

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The following announcement was provided by Perkins School for the Blind:

Perkins recently launched Perkins Academy, an online continuing education and professional development platform for educators, dedicated to unlocking learning for children with disabilities. The natural extension of Perkins’ mission to help students with disabilities find their place in the world, Perkins Academy will offer remote, on-demand learning opportunities for educators. 

With 95 percent of students with disabilities in public schools, there’s an increased demand to share Perkins know-how across the country with public and private school teachers. Perkins Academy will deliver highly specialized training to educators that goes beyond the resources of many public schools. This past year, Perkins’ Watertown campus educated over 200 students locally, and over 1,000 across the state. The online learning modules will help disseminate the knowledge gained from their work in Massachusetts to teachers and families.

Around Town

New England Patriots Honor Longtime Perkins School Volunteer as a Difference Maker

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Chairman and CEO of the Kraft Group and the New England Patriots Robert Kraft takes a group photo with the 2024 Patriots Difference Makers of the Week. (Photo courtesy of David Silverman/New England Patriots). The New England Patriots honored volunteers on Jan. 5 during a ceremony honoring the 2024 Patriots Difference Makers, including a woman who had volunteered at Perkins School for the Blind for two decades. See details in the announcement from the New England Patriots Foundation below.

Entertainment

Perkins Announces Live Audio Description at Theatrical Performances the Boston Area

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Perkins School for the Blind announced that live audio descriptions for blind and visually impaired audiences at theater and dance performances around the Boston area at venues including the American Repertory Theater, Broadway in Boston, the Colonial Theater, The Huntington Theatre Company, and the Hanover Theatre. Perkins provided the following announcement:

We’re excited to share the 2024-25 season’s live theater productions with audio description (AD), running from October 2024 through August 2025. To read the full season schedule, which is growing every year with more and more productions and venues in Massachusetts. click the link at the bottom. Performances are listed by venue and then by the name of the show and date.

Around Town

Perkins School Hosting Fourth Annual Everbody Move! Walk/Move

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Perkins School for the Blind provided the following announcement:

Next month Perkins School for the Blind will host its fourth annual Everybody Move! Walk/Move for Perkins on October 5th. This family-friendly event begins and ends on the Perkins campus and includes a short walk or move through Watertown, as well as a baby animal petting zoo, snacks and food trucks, and accessible yard games. 

Register online to help create a world of opportunities for children with disabilities and their families.

Around Town

Watertown Advocate for People with Disabilities to Receive Highest Honor in Field of Blindness

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Kim Charlson, executive director of the Perkins School for the Blind’s Library. She will receive the highest honor from the American Foundation for the Blind. (Courtesy of Perkins School)

Longtime director of the Perkins Library and chair of the Watertown Commission on Disability Kim Charlson, has garnered honors and accolades, and later this year she will receive one more when she receives the highest honor in the field of blindness. In September, the Watertown resident will receive the 2024 Migel Medal at the American Foundation for the Blind’s (AFB) annual leadership conference, along with Susan Mazrui. “It is an honor to recognize these two outstanding leaders, who have spent their lives making the world more inclusive and accessible for those who are blind or have low vision,” AFB President and CEO Eric Bridges said in announcement about the award.

Schools

Perkins School for the Blind Teams with MIT to Host Hackathon: The Super Bowl of Accessibility

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A team working on ideas to adapt technology for those with disabilities at #HackDisability: AI for Accessibility Hackathon hosted by MIT and Perkins School for the Blind. (Courtesy of Perkins School for the Blind)

CAMBRIDGE — On any given Friday night at MIT there’s bound to be a few stragglers hanging around the Strata Center, the architecturally world-famous building in Cambridge that houses the MIT Computer and Artificial Intelligence Lab. On Friday Feb. 23, there were more than a few folks about, and not just from MIT: people from Perkins School for the Blind, Amazon, the Museum of Science, Cisco, and even a representative from the White House gathered for Perkins’ “#HackDisability: AI for Accessibility Hackathon,” the Watertown-based school’s second-ever hackathon and the first focused specially on harnessing artificial intelligence for a group that is often left behind by technology. The task was seemingly simple.

Around Town

Watertown Man Gives Perkins School a Gift Through Cummings Community Giving

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Cummings Properties associate purchasing manager Mike Kashgegian of Watertown gave a gift to Perkins School for the Blind. The following announcement was provided by Cummings Properties:

Holiday cheer is alive at Cummings Properties, where employees just directed nearly half a million dollars to local nonprofits. Through Cummings Community Giving, the regional commercial real estate firm annually invites staff members to each select a local nonprofit to receive up to $2,000 from the Company in their name. The program, now in its 12th year, aims to support the communities where Cummings team members live and work. This cycle’s $495,000 will help fund more than 200 causes in approximately 100 local cities and towns.

Police/Fire

Perkins School Sheltered in Place After Getting Threatening Phone Call

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Perkins School for the Blind went into lockdown after the school received a threatening phone call on Tuesday morning. The School shifted to shelter in place while the school was searched by Watertown Police, who cleared the school to go back to normal activities at about 2:45 p.m.

The Watertown Police announced on social media that the phone call came in at around 10:45 a.m. and school officials contacted the police. At about 1 p.m. Watertown Police released a statement saying, in part: “We responded and are currently working with school officials to ensure the safety of the students and staff. As a precautionary measure Perkins initiated a lockdown. This is an ongoing investigation, and we will provide additional information as it becomes available.”