As an instructor of dental hygiene at the University of Arkansas for Medical Sciences, I have had the privilege of bringing my senior students to World Services for the Blind for guided sight training for several years. This opportunity has been invaluable in preparing future healthcare providers to deliver care with greater awareness, empathy, and accessibility.

Many of my students enter the training with little or no prior experience interacting with individuals who are blind or visually impaired. Through this experience, I have witnessed a remarkable transformation in their confidence and understanding. Each year, the feedback from my students is overwhelmingly positive, often noting that the training has expanded their perspective on patient care beyond the dental chair.

This type of training is beneficial for everyone, but it is especially critical for healthcare professionals. Exposure to real-world situations such as those provided at World Services for the Blind equips students with the skills and sensitivity needed to ensure that clinics and workplaces are more inclusive, accessible, and accommodating for all. The impact is not only on the students who carry these lessons into their professional practice, but also on the patients and communities they will serve throughout their careers.

Brittany Rose, M.Ed., RDH Instructor & Director of Admissions and Recruiting

College of Health Professions: Dept. of Dental Hygiene

The collaboration and support of World Services for the Blind has been invaluable to the success of the Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts’ Art Together program. Through training and insight, WSB has helped fine-tune the program to create a welcoming and supportive experience for guests with low vision. Their expertise has strengthened our work to ensure that all members of our community feel included and valued. In addition to sharing their knowledge, WSB has helped organize guest visits and amplified our efforts within the community. We are deeply grateful for their partnership and the positive impact it has made.

-Chris Revelle

Director of Community Engagement

 Arkansas Museum of Fine Arts

To the team at World Services for the Blind,

On behalf of the University of Arkansas at Little Rock Center for Arkansas History and Culture, thank you for the excellent program you delivered. Special thanks to Eric, Rick, and Josh—your expertise and warmth made the session approachable, energizing, and immediately useful for our staff and student employees.

Your web accessibility services helped us take a fresh, inclusion-first look at our digital presence and gave us a clear, prioritized plan. What could have felt complex quickly became straightforward, practical—and even a little fun. We've already implemented many of your recommendations across our websites and applications to serve our community better.

Your programming also introduced our team to user experience testing with people who are blind. Watching real users navigate our interfaces led to clear fixes that are now shaping our design standards. Because the training was tailored to our tools, workflows, and content, our team left with steps they could apply that same day.

We've scheduled additional sessions, and we especially value how this work supports our graduate assistants’ learning and professional development. We also hope to add blindness immersion training soon; the time we spent with WSB professionals who are blind or visually impaired created powerful moments of insight.

In short, your program built shared understanding across teams, accelerated our remediation efforts, and deepened our commitment to inclusive design. We encourage other community partners to participate—your team will leave with practical knowledge that makes a tangible difference. Please share our thanks with Eric, Rick, and Josh.

With appreciation,

Jess Porter, PhD
Executive Director, Center for Arkansas History and Culture
University of Arkansas at Little Rock