June 11, 2021 - Support Service Providers White Paper
NCDB is sharing an outstanding new publication on support service providers (SSPs). Deafblind People and Support Service Providers in the 21st Century, a white paper written by a number of experts in the deaf-blindness field, includes details on the role of SSPs, how SSP services were developed, how to establish and operate SSP programs and train SSPs, and the challenges of ensuring that high-quality services are available in our communities. This is the most comprehensive publication to date on SSPs.
This publication, hosted on on the NCDB website, Deafblind People and Support Service Providers in the 21st Century, was written by
- Paul Deeming, DeafBlind Services Minnesota
- Katherine Gabry, DeafBlind Community Access Network of New Jersey
- Mark Gasaway, Disability Advocate & DeafBlind Community Access Network of New Jersey
- Beth Jordan, Helen Keller National Center
- Randall Pope, DeafBlind Individual
- Elizabeth Spiers, Virginia Department for the Blind and Vision Impaired
As defined in the document, support service providers (SSPs) provide “a connection between someone who has a combined loss of vision and hearing and the surrounding environment.” Specific roles include:
- Providing access to visual, situational, and environmental information
- Serving as a human guide
- Facilitating brief casual exchanges of spoken and/or signed conversations
Document Versions
The white paper is available in both Word and PDF formats. For users utilizing a screen reader, we recommend downloading the Word version for the best user experience. Users accessing the PDF document with a screen reader should use Adobe Reader.
