Ameenah A. Lippold

Technology

In 2002, Ameenah Lippold earned her Bachelor's of Arts in history with a minor in computer science from the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. From 2000 to 2002, she worked at the National Center for Super Computing Applications Education Outreach and Technology group and focused on educational tools for K-12 math and science using Linux-based clustering technology. As an intern for the US Department of Education, she evaluated software for Section 508 compliance.

Continuing her interest in adaptive technology and education, Ameenah Lippold worked in the International Braille and Technology Center at the National Center for the Blind, the national headquarters of the National Federation of the Blind (NFB), from 2004 to 2005. During her tenure at the National Center for the Blind, she organized the Goals for Achieving Math Accessibility (GAMA) Summit, a conference that focused on the current and future state of math accessibility for blind and visually impaired students. She organized and developed curriculums for the Technology Outreach Seminars that brought nonvisual access technology training seminars to conventions of NFB affiliates. Additionally, she authored--You Want Me to Learn What,--published in the October issue of the Braille Monitor, a publication of the National Federation of the Blind.

Ameenah Lippold currently works for the Defense Information Systems Agency (DISA), where she continues to promote accessibility through enterprise architecture.

Born in 1977, Ameenah was raised in Chicago, Illinois, with her five younger siblings. She became blind at the age of six and considers herself fortunate that her parents connected with members of the NFB of Illinois. Through Federationists and instructors, she gained a solid foundation in blindness skills and techniques. Nevertheless, upon completion of her college education, Ameenah attended the Louisiana Center for the Blind where she honed her blindness skills. When she entered into the training, she genuinely believed that she knew all that there was to know concerning blindness. Upon her successful completion of the program, she felt differently. She strongly recommends that no matter how long one has been blind, one should take the time to get good solid blindness training from those training centers based in NFB philosophy--a philosophy of high expectations and a positive outlook on blindness.  

On October 8th, 2005, she married her college sweetheart, Aaron, and they currently reside in Falls Church, Virginia. Their hobbies include eating fine cuisine, hosting dinner parties, and just simply enjoying life.

Articles by Ameenah Lippold

"You Want Me to Learn What?" Braille Monitor, November 2005.