Blind Student Excels At MCHS
Adrian Marcos, a junior at McDonald County High School, doesn’t let being blind hold him back. Marcos said, “Being a student here in McDonald County is really great. I don’t feel like a blind student. I mix in with everybody.”
Adrian Marcos, a junior at McDonald County High School, doesn’t let being blind hold him back.
He has served as a student representative on the Missouri Blind Task Force. He attends meetings of the task force every three months in Jefferson City. He said a lot of teachers come from all over Missouri, along with organizations and parent representatives, to learn from the task force. He helps by giving his point of view on how schools can fix problems for people who are visually impaired, he said. An example is sharing suggestions on how schools can improve their Braille books, he said.
“I was part of a Children’s Vision Committee for Advocacy. I did a PowerPoint about standing up for yourself and getting what you need,” Marcos said.
Marcos lost his sight in his right eye at 6 months old. Doctors performed surgery at that time and saved his left eye. Then he lost his sight in his left eye at age 11 or 12. He has had multiple surgeries, but he is now completely blind.
Marcos said, “Being a student here in McDonald County is really great. I don’t feel like a blind student. I mix in with everybody. Sometimes they’re surprised to find out I’m blind. They think I just wear sunglasses for the fun of it.”
“What I like about McDonald County,” he continued, “is they’ll do whatever they can to get technology or math books that are really helpful. They’ve never said no to me in the past.”
Marcos works with a paraprofessional, Michelle Nicoletti, who goes to some of his classes with him. She takes notes for him and emails them to him, and he is able to listen to them on an iPad equipped with a screen reader.
In the past, Nicoletti went to all his classes except band. She has been working with him since 2010.
“This year we’re doing our transition,” she said. She now goes with him to geometry, chemistry and ACT prep.
Nicoletti holds a study skills class for Marcos in a small classroom where he can work on his homework. In that room, he has several tools to help him cope with his disability.
He has a collection of Braille books, of course, and his iPad with the screen reader. He has a Bluetooth -enabled device that will show him in Braille if words on the screen are spelled correctly. This comes in handy for words that sound alike such as “to” and “too.” Another handy device is an embosser, which prints in Braille. This is helpful if Marcos needs to read something rather than hear it, Nicoletti said.
He also has a talking graphing calculator for his math classes.
In band, Marcos plays percussion by ear. He listens to a recording of the music and learns his part. He also marches, but he has to hold onto a fellow member of the band, he said.
He has a band outside of school called Grupo Imperio. “Imperio means something big, like a big group of people, like a big organization,” Marcos said. Grupo means group in Spanish.
Marcos said he has an older brother who is also completely blind and who plays keyboard for the band.
Marcos also works with a TVI (teacher of students with visual impairments), Linda Patterson.
Patterson said, “Adrian is a typical high school student. He strives to be as independent as possible and sets goals for himself. Adrian has good social skills, a great sense of humor and enjoys learning new things. He quickly picks up on new technology and can often problem solve any AT (assistive technology) problems before the paraprofessional or I figure it out.”
Marcos already has plans for the future.
Nicoletti said, “We were talking the other day. It’s hard to believe he’s going to graduate next year.”
Marcos has a scholarship to Missouri State University, where he plans to major in business. He wants to work for his father’s concrete business and expand it, he said.
Asked if being blind holds him back at all, he said, “Absolutely not. It pushes me more. There are obstacles that everyone has in different parts of life and you’ve got to be more powerful than your obstacles and get moving. You’ve got to depend on your own self for your future. If you want a good life, you’ve got to work for it.”
“There are obstacles that everyone has in different parts of life and you’ve got to be more powerful than your obstacles and get moving. You’ve got to depend on your own self for your future. If you want a good life, you’ve got to work for it.”
Adrian Marcos MCHS Student