The LightHouse for the Blind and Visually Impaired in San Francisco is providing an opportunity for legally blind adventurous individuals from anywhere in the world to receive up to a $25,000 award for them to explore the world and push their limits.
The ideal candidate is someone willing to probe their environment and eager to savor the richness of a world that is often thought of as inaccessible to the blind. This exploration may involve travel, community organizing, athletics, creating art and more.
To apply for the Holman Prize record a video, no longer than 90 seconds, that talks about who you are and what you are proposing to do with the prize. Upload the video to your YouTube account and start the title with Holman Prize: and add a catchy name. Tag the video #HolmanPrize Paste the link to your video into the official application form.
The deadline to apply for the Holman Prize is this Sunday, March 15 at 8 p.m. ET / 5 p.m. PT. You must be a minimum age of 18 years as of October 1, 2020, and have to be a proficient English speaker. There are more answers about the application process at Applying for the Holman Prize. http://holman.lighthouse-sf.org/faq/
Lighthouse selects 3 winners every year. Let's take a look at a few of the past winners.
Last year's winner, Mona Minkara, teaches bioengineering at Northeastern University. With the Holman Prize, she is filming a documentary series called Planes, Trains, and Canes where she is navigating and accessing the public transportation systems of six cities around the world. She has already been in Johannesburg and London.
A 2018 winner was our friend Conchita Hernandez. She used the Holman Prize to host the first-ever blindness led conference in Mexico in July of 2019. She is an educator and is the founder and Chair of METAS (Mentoring Engaging and Teaching All Students) a non-profit organization that trains educators in Latin America that work with blind/low vision students and other disabilities.
The Cambiando Vidas conference included breakout sessions on a variety of topics, including daily living skills, low-cost technology, employment expectations, an introduction to braille and more. 120 people from all over Mexico attended the conference, including blind people of all ages, parents of blind children and educational and rehabilitation professionals.
If you are looking for more inspiration visit the Holman Prize YouTube channel to see the videos from last year's applicants.
Sources:
- "About." Holman Prize, http://holman.lighthouse-sf.org/about/
- "Mona Minkara. 2019 Holman Prizewinner." Holman Prize, https://holman.lighthouse-sf.org/2019-mona-minkara/
- "Conchita Hernandez. 2018 Holman Prizewinner." Holman Prize, https://holman.lighthouse-sf.org/2018-conchita-hernandez/
- Daniels, Christina. "A Blindness Conference in Mexico Becomes a Catalyst for Change." Lighthouse for the Blind and the Visually Impaired, August 2, 2019. https://lighthouse-sf.org/2019/08/02/a-blindness-conference-in-mexico-becomes-a-catalyst-for-change/
- "Maria (Conchita) Hernandez Legorreta. Disability Rights Advocate, Teacher of Blind Students & Doctorate Student." National Coalition for Latinxs with Disabilities, http://www.latinxdisabilitycoalition.com/maria-conchita-hernandez-legorreta.html
