Four Weeks Under Blindfold with PSU Orientation and Mobility Students

For people with visual impairments - including deafblindness - the path to independence often begins with learning to navigate a room or cross a street. But the specialists who guide them on this journey are in critically short supply.

This is what makes Portland State University's robust Orientation and Mobility (O&M) Program so vital. As the only program in the Pacific Northwest, it's a critical hub for training the professionals needed across the country.

Earlier this summer, a dozen PSU graduate students fanned out across the grounds at Historic Fort Vancouver, in Vancouver, Washington. Working in pairs, they took turns as instructor and student.

"Feel the sun on your face and align with it." "Listen for clues." "Use all of your senses."

These are the words of encouragement Virginia Thompson offered to help guide her partner and fellow student Liz Barany, as she navigated down a narrow garden path - with a cane while blindfolded - on the final day of cane class.

Essential Service with Life-Changing Impact

O&M specialists teach people how to travel safely and efficiently in a variety of environments. Providing this essential service can lead to life-changing independence for the underserved population they work with.

PSU's O&M program has a national reputation for innovation, advocacy and hands-on training. Thompson and Barany are just two of the 29 students in their cohort who completed the four-week intensive cane class this summer. While training simultaneously in Portland, Seattle, Minneapolis, St. Cloud, Minnesota and Baton Rouge, Louisiana, students worked with clinical instructors in their own communities and connected online for shared lessons, quizzes and workshops.

This hybrid model allows future specialists to train close to home, ensuring that communities across the country gain the expertise needed to support people who are blind, deafblind or have low vision.

Through a partnership with the Pacific Northwest Consortium for Vision Education, PSU students are able to connect with regional partners for long-term mentorship, research and professional development. The program is further enriched by its location in Portland, a city known for leadership in accessibility, immersing students in a community actively working toward greater inclusion.

Virginia Thompson and Liz Barany work as a pair, taking turns as instructor and student during the final day of cane class at Fort Vancouver in Vancouver, Wash.

The Heart of the O&M Program: Cane Class

The four-week cane class represents the most challenging and essential component of PSU's O&M program. Students spend extensive time blindfolded, but as Associate Professor Amy Parker explains, "The role is not to teach them to be blind. It's to explore different ways of teaching so that they can be better teachers." This approach recognizes that effective O&M instruction requires understanding learning through all senses, not just sight.

Over the course of four weeks, students progress through environments that mirror the different settings their future clients will face. They begin indoors, building confidence in controlled spaces, before advancing through residential neighborhoods, busy business districts and rural settings. In some locations, like the fort, students also used tactile maps to explore the terrain and layout.

PSU student Hannah Greenlee, who works with children from birth to age 5 at Washington State School for the Blind, discovered how much she depends on eyesight. "I realized I don't use my other senses that much. You rely so much on your vision," she reflects. "Having to try to really use my hearing, especially when we're working on street crossings - you can't really tell if the cars are coming or not unless you're hearing them."

Thompson, who has significant hearing loss herself, brought a unique perspective to the experience. "I'm learning collaboration and problem solving, and incorporating aspects of deafblind culture," she says. The program's adaptability shines through accommodations like tactile communication and modified visual simulations for students with diverse needs.

Perhaps most importantly, students must learn to place complete trust in each other - especially when partners guide each other through busy intersections and unfamiliar terrain. This peer teaching component means that students must not only master techniques but learn to communicate them clearly under pressure.

While most of PSU's O&M program is delivered online, some learning simply cannot be simulated - like feeling different textures underfoot and responding to unexpected obstacles. "It was nice to be able to come in person for this class, because if we were just doing virtual, you know, reading about it or watching videos, it is not the same," Barany emphasizes.

PSU O&M graduate students learn to navigate while blindfolded, and how to instruct others, in residential neighborhoods, busy business districts and rural settings.

Filling a Critical Need

The demand for qualified O&M professionals is so high that students often secure positions before graduation. Thompson received a job offer from the Arizona State School for the Deaf and Blind after simply mentioning her certification progress.

"I called up the head of the Arizona deafblind project and said, 'Hey, I'm getting my certification at PSU,' and she said, 'You made my day! Do you want a job?'"

Greenlee's supervisor at Washington State School for the Blind recognized the need and encouraged her to apply to PSU's program, using grant funding he secured to cover the cost.

"We don't really have anybody in this area who does O&M for the babies," Greenlee explains. "If we need that, we have to have someone come from four hours away." Now, she'll be able to provide essential early intervention services locally.

Barany, a former kindergarten teacher, will begin serving students with visual impairments in Central Oregon. Another student, Nick King, plans to transition from administrative work at Oregon Commission for the Blind into an instruction role when he completes the program. Through these diverse pathways, PSU graduates are able to fill critical gaps in underserved communities across the country.

For Barany, the experience was humbling but will help her connect and build trust with her future students.

"I can honestly tell them that I was the person veering into the street. I was the person that couldn't walk straight," she says. "'I'm still working on it, and we'll work on it together.'"

This blend of skill and humility is exactly what's needed in the field. As PSU graduates like Thompson, Barany, Greenlee and King begin their careers, they do more than just fill a job opening - they are guides, ready to help others navigate the path to independence.

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Interested in becoming a Certified Orientation and Mobility Specialist? Visit our website for more information about our Orientation & Mobility for Children, Youth & Adults program and upcoming course offerings.