NFB President Marc Maurer to Receive Honorary Doctorate From University of South Carolina Upstate

BALTIMORE, May 3 /PRNewswire-USNewswire/ -- The National Federation of the Blind (NFB), the largest organization of blind people in the United States, today announced that its president, Dr. Marc Maurer, will receive an honorary doctor of laws degree from the University of South Carolina Upstate at the 2010 commencement ceremony on May 4, 2010.  

Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said: "I am pleased and privileged to receive an honorary degree from the University of South Carolina Upstate.  As president of the largest organization of blind people in the United States, I have been fortunate to play a role in many exciting and life-changing developments for blind people in America.  While we have made much progress, there is still more to be done.  Only 10 percent of blind children are learning Braille in this country, and this directly contributes to a 70 percent unemployment rate among blind people in the United States.  I humbly accept this honor on behalf of blind Americans and pledge to work harder than ever to ensure that the blind are not left behind in today's society."

Maurer earned his law degree from Indiana University in 1977 and began focusing on representing blind individuals in the courts.  A member of the bar in Indiana, Ohio, Iowa, Maryland, and the Bar of the Supreme Court, Maurer is one of the most experienced lawyers in the field of civil rights and discrimination against the blind.

Maurer has been president of the National Federation of the Blind since 1986.  In that capacity, he joined President George W. Bush in the Oval Office in 2001 to celebrate the organization's Everest Expedition, and was present for Bush's signing into law the Help America Vote Act of 2002.  He has promoted new technology for the blind, including the knfbReader Mobile (a revolutionary cell phone application that scans and reads aloud most printed material) and the prototype vehicle for the Blind Driver Challenge.  He has overseen the visionary expansion of the NFB Jernigan Institute, the first training and research institute for the blind, led by the blind.  He has also previously served as president of the North America/Caribbean Region of the World Blind Union.  In November 2009, Dr. Maurer was awarded the Rev. John J. Cavanaugh, C.S.C., Award for outstanding contributions in the field of public service from the University of Notre Dame Alumni Association.

For more information about the National Federation of the Blind, please visit www.nfb.org.

About the National Federation of the Blind

With more than 50,000 members, the National Federation of the Blind is the largest and most influential membership organization of blind people in the United States.  The NFB improves blind people's lives through advocacy, education, research, technology, and programs encouraging independence and self-confidence.  It is the leading force in the blindness field today and the voice of the nation's blind.  In January 2004 the NFB opened the National Federation of the Blind Jernigan Institute, the first research and training center in the United States for the blind led by the blind. 

SOURCE National Federation of the Blind