The American Council of the Blind (ACB) is proud to announce the winners of the 2021 BADIE Awards (Benefits of Audio Description In Education), a “Listening Is Learning” initiative of the Council’s Audio Description Project (ADP) and the Described and Captioned Media Program (DCMP).
BADIE Award Winners
The winners of this year’s honors (all young people who are blind) are:
Grand Prize Winner
Bennett Lehman – Home schooled, Jefferson, Wisconsin – Review of Science Nation: Virtual Reality Fires
Senior Category (ages 16 to 21)
First Place – Nicky Lentz – Overbrook School for the Blind, Philadelphia, PA – Review of Algebra: A Piece of Cake, Part 1
Second Place – Kiley McClain – Overbrook School for the Blind, Philadelphia, PA – Review of Cotton
Third Place – Angie Rodriguez – Washington State School for the Blind, Vancouver, WA – Review of Mandela: A Long Walk to Freedom
Junior Category (ages 11 to 15)
First Place – Bennett Lehman – Home schooled, Jefferson, WI, – Review of Science Nation: Virtual Reality Fires
Second Place – Nawal Mohamud – Washington Technology Magnet School, St. Paul, MN – Review of Bee Movie
Third Place – Mari Maxon – The New School, Syracuse, NY – Review of Mayans: Deception by Temple Rituals
Sophomore Category (ages 7 to 10)
First Place – Keaton Hamilton, Stonehaven Elementary School, Newmarket, Ontario, Canada – Review of The Mandalorian: Chapter 2, “The Child”
The premise of the BADIE program is simple: kids love movies. If a young person can’t see or can’t see well, audio description provides access to all the visual images of the movies that their sighted peers enjoy. Description benefits children who are blind and others who have learning disabilities and it has been shown to boost literacy for all children.
The BADIE program asked young people who are blind or have low vision to submit short reviews of any described movie.
“Audio Description uses words that are succinct, vivid, and imaginative to convey the visual image from television, film, DVDs, theater, museums and many other settings,” stated Dan Spoone, president of the American Council of the Blind. "The young people honored with these awards not only appreciate the ability to enjoy films and television right along with their peers—description helps them, and their sighted friends, develop language skills through exposure to varied word choice, synonyms, metaphors and similes. I love audio description, and wish I’d had access to it when I was growing up!”
Additional information about ACB’s Audio Description Project is available at: www.acb.org/adp; more information about the Described and Captioned Media Program is at: www.dcmp.org.
About the American Council of the Blind
The American Council of the Blind is a national membership organization. Its members are blind, visually impaired, and fully sighted individuals who are concerned about the dignity and well-being of blind people throughout the nation.
Formed in 1961, the ACB is one of the largest organizations of blind people in the world, with more than 70 state and special-interest affiliates and a nationwide network of chapters and members spanning the globe.
For more information about the American Council of the Blind, contact: Eric Bridges, Executive Director, American Council of the Blind, 1703 N. Beauregard St., Suite 420 Alexandria, VA 22311; phone (202) 467-5081 or toll-free, 1-800-424-8666; or visit the web site, www.acb.org.
About the Described and Captioned Media Program
The Described and Captioned Media Program (DCMP) provides premium media designed for students with disabilities and leads as a resource for families and teachers, supported by the Department of Education.
Originally known as Captioned Films for the Deaf, Inc. and later known as Captioned Films and Videos and the Captioned Media Program, DCMP is a national nonprofit founded in 1950 and is managed by the National Association of the Deaf. The DCMP provides services designed to support and improve the academic achievement of students who are blind, visually impaired, deaf, hard of hearing, or deaf-blind.
For more information about the Described and Captioned Media Program, contact: Jason Stark, Director, 1447 E. Main Street, Spartanburg, SC 29307 Voice: 864-585-1778 visit the web site, www.dcmp.org.