The First Deafblind Student at Harvard Law School

Flashcards covering key vocabulary, concepts, and individuals from the lecture notes about the first Deafblind student at Harvard Law School, her experiences, challenges, and achievements.

American Sign Language (ASL) interpreters

Professionals with voice transliteration skills hired by Harvard Law School to provide access to audio and visual information for the deafblind student.

FM receiver

Part of an assistive listening device that picks up sounds from an FM microphone, used by the deafblind student in class.

Stenographer's mask

A small mask covering a microphone used by ASL interpreters to whisper translations without distracting the class.

Hearing loss

A significant personal challenge for the protagonist, characterized by vanishing low-frequency hearing and a tiny sliver of high-frequency hearing.

Vision loss

The protagonist's other significant challenge, which she has learned to adjust to using existing blindness skills.

Audiogram

A graph showing a person's hearing ability, used to illustrate the protagonist's diminished high-frequency hearing.

Disability office

The university department responsible for forwarding class notes and converting written materials into accessible formats for students with disabilities.

Braille computer (BrailleNote)

A device used by the protagonist for reading case notes, having a tactile screen instead of a visual one, and later a QWERTY keyboard for real-time communication.

Tactile sign language

A method of communication where signs are felt by touching the signer's hands, used as a backup communication plan by the protagonist.

Wireless keyboard

An additional device proposed by the protagonist to connect to her braille computer for real-time communication with classmates.

Legal advocacy skills

The type of skills the protagonist desired to develop at Harvard Law School, motivated by personal experiences with discrimination.

Employment discrimination

A barrier faced by lawyers with disabilities, which influenced the protagonist's decision to attend a top-ranked law school.

BrailleNote Apex

The first BrailleNote device with Bluetooth capabilities, purchased for the protagonist by the California Department of Vocational Rehabilitation.

Ableist and constraining ideas

Preconceived notions about disability that the protagonist's friend, Gordon, helps her to discard.

Networking workshop

An event at law school where the protagonist tested her braille communication system for interacting with legal professionals and students.

Maxine

The protagonist's seeing eye dog, who provides companionship and assistance.

Inspiring

A word often used to describe people with disabilities, which the protagonist feels can be a euphemism for pity or discomfort.

Summer associates

A type of internship program at law firms, offered as an opportunity to the protagonist by a lawyer she met at a networking event.

Disability rights lawyer

The protagonist's ultimate career goal, focusing on advocating for civil rights for people with disabilities.

Curb cuts on sidewalks

An analogy used by the protagonist to explain how disability solutions, like her keyboard, can benefit the entire community, including nondisabled people.

Digital files

The accessible format in which the school sends all academic materials to the protagonist, enabling her to conduct research and write papers.

Disability rights advocates

Individuals whose work removed barriers and paved the way for students with disabilities, empowering the protagonist's educational journey.

Skadden Fellowship

A prestigious fellowship awarded to the protagonist, providing financial support for her work to increase access to digital reading services for blind students.

Helen Keller

A renowned deafblind historical figure whose experiences with educational exclusion served as a historical parallel to the challenges faced by the protagonist and other marginalized groups at Harvard.

Interactive process

The collaborative approach between Harvard Law School and the protagonist to discover and implement effective accommodations for her unique needs.

Disability Rights Advocates

A nonprofit law firm in Berkeley, California, where the protagonist will work after graduation to increase access to digital reading services for blind students.