Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind

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Each AIDB Regional Center, located across Alabama and covering all 67 counties, is as unique as the community it serves. Whether you are a parent with a child recently diagnosed with a hearing or vision loss, a deaf adult or business person needing an interpreter, a blind adult in need of assistive technology, or a senior learning to adapt to increasing blindness or deafness, we can help you find the resources you need.

What's New at Regional Centers

The Alabama Institute for Deaf and Blind (AIDB)’s Tuscaloosa Regional Center was recently awarded a $20,507.34 grant from the Alabama Cooperative Extension System (ACES). The grant is part of ACES's Rural Alabama Initiative and is administered by the Economic and Community Development Institute at Auburn University. Funds from the grant will be used to help finance AIDB’s Work Experience Program for Deaf Teens. AIDB was one of 120 organizations applying for grants from ACES with only 34 organizations being awarded funds.

The program gives deaf and hard of hearing teens in West Central Alabama, the opportunity to gain valuable job skills in real world settings. “The need for this program is very evident; 70 percent of deaf adults rely on government assistance and have an average income 50 to 70 percent lower than their hearing peers,” said Wayne Ford, Tuscaloosa County Extension Coordinator.

During the summer, the program will partner students with businesses from Bibb, Choctaw, Fayette, Greene, Hale, Lamar, Marengo, Perry, Pickens, Sumter and Tuscaloosa counties. Working with a job coach, students will gain on-site training and more importantly self-esteem.