One of the pillars of New Vision’s mission is Advocacy.
Priorities
Our Strategic Plan sets longer-term Advocacy goals, and the Advocacy Committee sets priorities each year. New Vision typically focuses its advocacy efforts on:
- Transportation
- Access to voting
- White Cane Day outreach
- Accessibility
- Local and state legislation affecting those we serve
Transportation
Access to reliable public transportation is important for those we serve;
To address this issue, New Vision’s President/CEO serves on the Transportation Disadvantaged Coordinating Boards of both Lake and Sumter counties where she advocates for fair policies, blind-friendly communications, and service with dignity. She distributes information about upcoming public comment meetings and provides training on self-advocacy to help clients speak up effectively.
Access to Voting
New Vision is committed to ensuring your access to vote through assisting with:
- Registering or updating voter registration (which we are authorized to do),
- Developing a plan to vote, and
- Providing information about deadlines, ways to vote, and understanding what’s on the ballot.
We strive to be neutral—our only goal is that you are able to exercise your right to vote.
If you’d like to register to vote, or update your registration (such as your signature, address, or party affiliation), call New Vision at 352-607-7607 and ask for Cyndi.
You can also contact your county’s supervisor of elections office for help with voter registration and requesting a Vote-By-Mail (regular or accessible) ballot:
- Lake County: 352-343-9734
- Marion County: 352-620-3290
- Sumter County: 352-569-1540
As elections near, we feature politically-neutral discussions on ballot amendments on our Tuesday by-phone support groups to help you make informed decisions.
We’ve also scheduled tours of the Lake County Supervisor of Elections office.
Learn more about the Express Vote Accessible Voting Machine:
White Cane Day
Every year we plan a series of events to spread the word about White Cane Awareness Day (October 15). These events, planned in conjunction with our Advocacy Committee, aim to inform our legislators, business community, and the public at large both of the challenges faced by those with vision loss but also of the abilities and contributions of our visually-impaired neighbors.
“The chief handicap of the blind is not blindness, but the attitude of seeing people towards them.” -Helen Keller
Our event schedule is available on our Events Page.
Accessibility
At New Vision, we believe accessibility is a human right. We offer consultations on several accessibility topics.
Learn more about our Axy Awards for the Most Blind-Friendly Businesses in our area.
Legislation
Our Advocacy Committee keeps a watch on legislation that may affect our clients and champions for budget requests that will expand services.
Other Advocacy Efforts:
- Presence at IEP meetings of our youngsters
- President/CEO participation on the Florida Agencies Serving the Blind’s Advocacy Committee
- Web accessibility testing
Advocacy Committee
We’re always looking for volunteers for our Advocacy Committee. Check out the Volunteer page for the Volunteer Position Description and info on getting started.