Opportunities for Youth

From REFERENCE POINTS, an activity of TATRA, a project of the PACER Center.

CALL FOR SUBMISSIONS DIALOGUE, an international news magazine edited for individuals who are experiencing vision loss or are blind and their friends and families, has released a Call for Submissions for 2008. DIALOGUE publishes articles, personal essays, interviews, news and resources on all aspects of coping with a vision impairment. To review the complete table of contents of past issues as well as sample articles, visit www.blindskills.com/current_past.html. Queries, article submissions and items for the resource column and calendar may be sent to magazine@blindskills.com.

PHOTO CONTEST Are you a person with a disability? Have you been abroad to study, volunteer, teach, intern or research? Do you have photos? Share them with the world! Mobility International USA and the National Clearinghouse on Disability and Exchange want photos for a full-color, 12-month 2009 calendar and screensaver. The deadline is March 31, 2008. More information can be found online at:http://www.miusa.org/ncde/spotlight/photocontest08.

2008 FILMMAKERS WANTED Filmmakers are invited to submit their work for the 2008 G. Franklin Fish ASL film festival, which will take place April 13 at Northeastern University in Boston, MA. The event is hosted by NIEVA (National Institute for Education through Visual Arts), a nonprofit dedicated to preserving and showcasing American Sign Language. Eligible films must contain at least half of the dialogue in sign language and include ASL performers, with priority given to native-ASL filmmakers. The deadline for submission is March 31,2008. Interested filmmakers should send an email to info@aslculture.org to request a submission form to include with their DVDs .

MICROSOFT DigiGirlz SUMMER CAMP FOR YOUNG WOMEN, GRADES 9 - 12 Microsoft is once again requesting assistance in getting young women to apply for their DigiGirlz Summer Camps, which were developed to provide girls with a better understanding of what a career in technology is all about. The camp is free of charge to participants..Camps will be held this year in the following eight locations: Charlotte, NC; Chicago, IL; Fargo, ND; Irvine, CA; Las Colinas, TX; Redmond, WA (corporate)' Stony Brook, NY; and Washington, DC. Application due dates vary by site. For more information go to https://www.microsoft.com/about/diversity/programs/camps.mspx .

EILEEN SWEENEY GRADUATE INTERNSHIP IN DISABILITY POLICY The National Academy of Social Insurance (NASI), in partnership with the Children's Defense Fund (CDF) and the Center on Budget and Policy Priorities (CBPP) is establishing the Eileen Sweeney Graduate Internship in honor and memory of Eileen. Graduate students aspiring to a career in social policy with a focus on disability are urged to apply for this 12-week summer semester internship which provides a $3,000 honorarium. Deadline for application is March 1, 2008. For more information go to http://www.nasi.org/info-url_nocat3815/info-url_nocat_show.htm?doc_id=437729

MARY P OENSLAGER SCHOLASTIC ACHIEVEMENT AWARDS Mary P. Oenslager Scholastic Achievement Awards are presented annually to college seniors who are blind or visually impaired. RFB&D awards three Top Winners $6,000 each; three Special Honors Winners $3,000 each; and three Honors Winners $1,000 each. Applicants must: be legally blind, have been registered as an RFB&D member for at least one year. Other qualifications are listed on RFB&D's website. Application deadline is March 3, 2008. For more information go to http://www.rfbd.org/applications_awards.htm

MARION HUBER LEARNING THROUGH LISTENING AWARDS Marion Huber Learning Through Listening Awards were the first national awards exclusively for high school seniors with learning disabilities. RFB&D annually awards three Top Winners $6,000 each; and three Special Honors Winners $2,000 each. Applicants must have a specific learning disability (please note that visual impairment alone does not indicate eligibility for this award); have been registered as an RFB&D member for at least one year; other qualifications for the award are listed on RFB &D's website. The application deadline is March 3, 2008. For more information go to http://www.rfbd.org/applications_awards.htm

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REFERENCE POINTS is administered by PACER Center http://www.PACER.org as a technical assistance activity of the TATRA Project. The TATRA Project is funded by the Rehabilitation Services Administration.To SUBSCRIBE to REFERENCE POINTS go to http://www.pacer.org/tatra/list/index.asp