OIB-TAC Advisory Board

Through quarterly meetings, the advisory council provides feedback and guidance on grant activities. Members represent agencies, organizations, and groups who represent or serve individuals age 55 and older who are blind or have low vision. Council members are invited to serve based on their representative affiliations.  

Advisory Council Members: 

Malinda Carlson, Director of Independent Living at the Oregon Commission for the Blind, represents direct service providers in the OIB Program 

Peggy Chong, also known as the “Blind History Lady,” represents the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) 

Virginia Dize, Co-Director of the National Aging and Disability Transportation Center, represents aging services 

Ed Haines, Chief Program Officer at Hadley, represents Hadley  

Larry Johnson, Author and Motivational Speaker, represents older individuals who have both vision and hearing loss and the Alliance on Aging and Vision Loss (AAVL) 

Melodye May, Social Service Administrator for the Delaware Independent Living Services Program, represents the Older Individuals who are Blind (OIB) program managers 

Nancy D. Miller, Executive Director and CEO of VISIONS, represents the Association for Education and Rehabilitation of the Blind and Visually Impaired (AER) 

Lee Nasehi, Executive Director of VisionServe Alliance, represents VisionServe Alliance 

Cynthia Speight, Director of the North Carolina Division of Services for the Blind, represents the National Council of State Agencies for the Blind (NCSAB) 

Jeff Thom, retired, represents the American Council of the Blind (ACB) 

Douglas Usiak, CEO of Western New York Independent Living, Inc., represents Centers for Independent Living (CIL)