DIANNA MARCELLUS

Dianna Marcellus

Dianna Marcellus faced some pretty big obstacles when she decided she wanted to be a veterinarian.

Because of learning disabilities, Dianna was overwhelmed by big projects, struggled with organizational skills and had trouble remembering what she read.  A brain tumor as a child also left her with muscle weakness that makes it a challenge to type and write.

But today, this determined 21-year-old woman from Hyde Park is a student at Curry College.  And with assistive technology and training from Easter Seals, she’s well on her way to achieving her goal.

Easter Seals Assistive Technology Specialist Jaimie Ballon provided Dianna with Dragon Naturally Speaking software, which enables her to dictate to her computer.  Other technology reads aloud printed material that Dianna scans.

Jaimie also directed Dianna to her college’s Disabilities Services office and to Bookshare for scanned, downloadable textbooks.

She tailored her training to suit Dianna’s learning style and before long, Dianna became so proficient that on her own, she was adding custom vocabulary from her science and math classes to the software dictionary

She uses her new technology to quickly complete her college assignments.

“Dianna is a pleasure to work with,” Jaimie said.  “She’s dedicated to her studies, motivated to maintain her skills and works very hard.”

Dianna appreciates Jaime’s help and is even thinking of joining the Easter Seals Youth Leadership Network for teens and young adults with disabilities.

“I’m very happy with the services I received from Easter Seals,” she said

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