RIT/NTID and C-Print Are Hits on the Hill
NTID News - July 8, 2008
Lisa Eliot, Senior Research Scientist at RIT/NTID, with National Science Foundation Director Arden L. Bement, and C-Print Development Coordinator Pamela Francis at the Coalition for National Science Funding Exhibition in Washington. See full-size photo
More than 300 scientists, researchers and government officials - including members of Congress and their staffs - visited an exhibit by RIT/NTID on Capitol Hill in Washington, D.C. June 25 at the 14th annual Coalition for National Science Funding Exhibition.
RIT/NTID showed current examples of its C-Print technology, a classroom note taking program developed and used at RIT for more than 15 years. New developments include a tablet PC that allows diagrams or artwork to be displayed and a remote handheld captioning device that may be used outside classroom settings to aid students with hearing loss. Field testing on that device is expected to take place this summer.
Each of the 32 exhibitors was funded by the National Science Foundation. RIT/NTID's exhibit was the only one to represent research relating to persons with disabilities. The college was selected to participate in the event by the American Educational Research Association, a coalition partner with 26,000 members.
Lisa Elliot, Senior Research Scientist at RIT/NTID, and C-Print Development Coordinator Pamela Francis represented RIT/NTID, as did Don Beil, Executive Assistant to NTID President Alan Hurwitz.
"It was an honor that through our selection we were able to expose C-Print, and in turn RIT/NTID, to such a wide Congressional and scientific audience," Hurwitz said.
Michael Stinson, Professor of Research and Teacher Education at RIT/NTID, is the principal investigator for these projects.
Francis said their exhibit was well received.
"People were enthusiastic about what we were doing," she said.
"I think the real-time remote was very surprising to people," Elliot said.
"It definitely was the wow factor of seeing captioning on the phone, seeing that kind of instant access," Francis said. Visitors also expressed an interest in other applications, such as the aging population, or people with other disabilities, such as learning disabilities.
"What makes us unique is that our research takes place in the classroom," Elliot said. "We have hands-on research and people were excited to see us."
The Coalition for National Science Funding, started 20 years ago, is an alliance of more than 100 organizations united by a concern for the future vitality of the national science, mathematics and engineering enterprise.
More information about C-Print can be found here.
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