When the Arizona School for the Deaf and Blind closed its Tucson campus in June, music teacher Kate Scally Howell was worried – and not just because the closure put her out of a job.
She worried particularly about the school’s blind students. While the ASDB’s deaf population transferred to the school’s Oro Valley campus, its visually impaired students faced limited options.
Some were placed in Tucson Unified School Districts ‘cooperative sites’ – separated school locations offering teaching to blind and visually impaired students. But many parents wanted another option unaffiliated with ASDB.
That’s when Scally Howell decided to step up and fill the void. Her new nonprofit private school, Tucson School for Blind, just wrapped up its first week of classes.
“I think we're really hoping that Tucson School for the Blind will be that resource for parents, students, and then post-school,” Scally Howell said.
Her husband, Luke Howell, found a building in downtown Tucson with room for four classrooms. The City of Tucson leases the space at a reduced rate for nonprofits.
Fifteen students enrolled, ranging in grade level from kindergarten to high school. Twelve of them previously attended ASDB's Tucson campus.
After getting the keys in June, Scally Howell had only two months to get the school ready. So she asked the community for help.
“We are so grateful. We have a lot of love for our community, and we feel that love,” said Laura Prelsnik Aragon, one of three Certified Teachers of the Visually Impaired at the TSB. “Just seeing that people are willing to come and actually put in some blood, sweat and tears, too, into the place is really special.”
Support for the school came from across Tucson.
Muralist Ignacio Garcia donated a portion of proceeds from his Urban Sonoran Art Auction to TSB. Garcia said that art materials for schools are usually expensive, and hopes tactile materials like paint and clay can be in their classrooms.
“I felt like that's really an amazing outlet for someone that's blind to express themselves artistically. So, I thought that was an amazing opportunity for me to do that,” Garcia said.
The auction raised $55,000, with a quarter share going toward adaptive technology, Braille software and classroom resources.
Former ASDB employee Marcy Albert also organized a fundraiser at JoJo's Restaurant in Old Town.
“It's a small population that sadly gets left behind a lot. And good for Kate for stepping up and going, ‘No, what happened at the school was not right for these students and these families,’ and taking a stand,” Albert said.
The event raised more than $600 for the school.
On August 3, students walked into their new classrooms for the first day of school. Scally Howell led them in a clapping chant, singing the school’s initials: “T - S - B!”
All the students are enrolled through Arizona's Empowerment Scholarship Account program, which allows families to use state education funds at approved schools.
By the fourth day of classes, students had already settled into their routines. Teacher Kimberly Dotseth read a book called First Day Jitters to her class, and the students used Braillers to write an essay about their first day of school.
For Scally Howell, the success of the first week of school is proof that the months of planning, fundraising and community support created more than a new campus — she created a new home for Tucson's blind students.
But as she’s quick to point out, she did not do it alone.
“It wasn’t just me,” she said. “I had a lot of help along the way.”
