ENVISION - Key Persons
Andrea focused her research on the social and cognitive development of children with visual impairments.
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- VICE CHAIRMAN of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
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- Member of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
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- Bosma Enterprises Postdoctoral Research Fellow
Dr. Arun Kumar Krishnan was a Bosma Enterprises (opens in new window) Research Fellow with the Envision Research Institute, working under the mentorship of Dr. Susana Chung, a Vision Scientist at the University of California-Berkeley (opens in new window)(an Affiliated Scientist with the Envision Research Institute). Dr. Krishnan's research deepened our understanding of how remaining vision can best be utilized and retrained to regain reading function.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Envision Executive Team
- Executive Vice President, Government Channels and Chief Revenue Officer
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- Member of the Envision Executive Team
- Vice President, Human Resources
Job Titles:
- Member of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
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- Bosma Enterprises Postdoctoral Research Fellow
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- Research Associate at the Envision Research Institute
Jing brought her enthusiasm and expertise on driving safety research and advanced vehicle technology to our visually impaired community. Her work at ERI focused on developing and investigating new assistance and automation technologies to support safe mobility for drivers with age-related vision loss.
Dr. Jing Xu holds the position of Research Associate at the Envision Research Institute. Prior to joining Envision, she worked as a postdoctoral research fellow at Dr. Alex Bowers' lab at Schepens Eye Research Institute of Mass Eye and Ear, Department of Ophthalmology, Harvard Medical School. Dr. Xu received her PhD in Industrial Engineering with a concentration in human-machine interaction and driving safety research at Northeastern University. Her current research is focusing on investigating the impact of vision impairments on driving, developing new rehabilitation training device to train drivers with impaired vision, and investigating driver assistance technologies and self-driving car accessibility features to promote safe mobility and life independence for road users who are blind and visually impaired.
Laura was the research institute's first Executive Director. ERI continues to develop upon the foundation Dr. Walker established.
Dr. Laura Walker was the founding Executive Director of the Envision Research Institute (ERI). She completed her Bachelor of Science in Chemical Engineering with a minor in Biomedical Engineering at the Massachusetts Institute of Technology and Doctorate of Philosophy in Vision Science at the University of California, Berkeley.
Dr. Raveendran focused on clinical vision science during his time at ERI. His work explored the new frontier of low-level electrical stimulation for use in low vision evaluation and intervention.
showed in preliminary studies that tDCS has a potential to reduce visual crowding in peripheral vision when it is applied to visual cortex. Dr. Raveendran's research also focused on understanding how eye movements such as fixational eye movements could influence visual crowding in the central and peripheral vision.
Rakesh's deep insights regarding the needs, challenges, abilities, preferences and strategies of blind individuals, coupled with his research experience in blind/visually impaired (BVI) access to employment, education, information, and the Internet uniquely qualifies him as an accessibility scientist.
Dr. Rakesh Babu is Envision's Lead Accessibility Scientist. His work focuses on diversity, equity, and inclusion as these relate to people with vision loss. He investigates accessibility gaps and remedial measures necessary to bridge the gulf between individuals with vision loss and the rest of the society. He employs think-aloud direct observations, exploratory field studies, Delphi panels, and other scientific methods to examine pertinent research questions. His research synthesizes theories in Information Systems, Disability Studies, Human-Centered Computing and the Cognitive Sciences to inform the development of IT artifacts, organizational policies and interventions to bring about social and economic inclusion of individuals with vision loss. Findings of his research is reported in 18 journal articles and 32 conference proceedings papers. Various international, federal and regional funding agencies have sponsored different projects completed or being conducted by him.
Dr. Babu is presently conducting three studies. In one study, he is investigating how to detect, diagnose, and remediate access barriers in the work environment that impede the effective employment of individuals with vision loss. As part of this, he has conducted exploratory case studies at multiple businesses in the financial and healthcare industries. Once completed, this study will deliver a scientific process to enable an employer audit the accessibility of its workplace for employees with vision loss. In the second study, he is investigating how an individual with vision loss could manage a retail store effectively and independently. Once completed, this study will deliver a training model on retail management without sight, as well as the design principles for setting up an enabling retail environment. In the third study, he is investigating how online environments might be designed to accommodate the needs and constraints of screen-reader users. Once completed, this study will deliver a set of design guidelines on accessibility, usability, and utility of Web sites and Web applications for users with vision loss.
In addition to his full-time employment with Envision, Dr. Babu has a part-time employment with the University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee as the Senior Scientist in the School of Information Studies (SOIS). This position precedes his full-time employment of 7 years as a member of the SOIS faculty at UWM. During this tenure, he also served as a board member of the Industries of the Blind & Visually Impaired in Milwaukee, WI. Before joining UWM, he worked briefly at Include-All AS - a Norwegian non-profit organization as the Principal Research Scientist.
He has a Ph.D. in Information Systems from the University of North Carolina at Greensboro, a Masters in Management Information Systems from the Central Michigan University, a second Masters in Organic Chemistry from Sambalpur University, and a P.G. Diploma in Labor Law & Personnel Management from LLR Law College.
Rezaul brought a unique approach to understanding how those who are blind appreciate objects through their sense of touch. His devotion to his science brought him across the globe to study these questions in the unique environment supported by ERI.
Dr. Rezaul Karim was the second Research Fellow with the Envision Research Institute. During his time at ERI, he investigated tactile aesthetics, neuroaesthetics, and tactile memory in these populations by employing the novel behavioral measures (tactile rating scale) in combination with cutting-edge neuroimaging techniques (fMRI).
Job Titles:
- Member of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
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- Clinical Psychologist
- Research Fellow With the Envision Research Institute
Emma is a clinical psychologist committed to the mental health of people facing an illness process, she enjoys learning and seeking answers to her questions through reading, learning about the experiences of other professionals, and above all people who demonstrate that a diagnosis does not determine what we can do.
Emma Rangel is a Pitt plastic Research Fellow with the Envision Research Institute. She earned her Bachelor's degree in Clinical Psychology from the Autonomous University of Querétaro, and she is currently undergoing a Master's degree in Clinical and Health Psychology, through Ibero-American University Foundation. Furthermore, she has 8 years of experience in mental health care for people with chronic degenerative diseases such as kidney disease and cancer. She has developed mental health intervention strategies and support groups for the Queretaro State Transplant Center and the Teleton Children's Oncology Hospital.
Emma comes to ERI as a clinical psychologist in the low vision department of the Mexican Institute of Ophthalmology and will develop a research project to study the process of adjustment to the treatment of visual impairment. The main motivation for her research is to help people with visual impairment meet their goals through mental health care, and giving emotional support during the process of adjustment to treatment. For her, this research project also represents a great opportunity to learn from leading specialists and share her experience and learning for the benefit of people with visual impairment in her community.
Job Titles:
- Member of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
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- SECRETARY of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
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- Member of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
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- Member of the Envision Executive Team
- Senior Vice President, Foundation and Mission Services
Marco conducted his research on the recent regulatory changes related to Section 503 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and their implications on BVI employment outcomes.
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- Chief Financial Officer
- Member of the Envision Executive Team
Job Titles:
- Member of the Envision Executive Team
- Member of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
- President and CEO, Envision Inc., Envision Dallas
Job Titles:
- Member of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
- Board Emeritus Members
Job Titles:
- Member of the Envision Executive Team
- Senior Vice President, Operations and New Product Development
Job Titles:
- Member of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
Job Titles:
- CHAIRMAN of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
Dr. Gopalakrishnan is a highly experienced optometrist and has been the director of a low vision clinic in India for over a decade. While at ERI, Dr. Gopalakrishnan will expand on her doctoral work studying the use of augmented reality devices for low vision rehabilitation.
Ali was a visiting scholar with ERI, a graduate from Wichita State University in the Department of Electrical Engineering and Computer Science, Ali went on to pursue a fellowship at the Smith-Kettlewell Eye Research Institute after leaving ERI.
Shannon headed up our efforts to evaluate internal programs through a research lens, so that we could continually measure, add and improve upon what we already do at Envision.
Susanne explored how one compensates for a loss in facial recognition ability, and how such a loss may affect social interaction.
Tony's passion for his work was a beam of light in our corridors. His dedication resulted in the first ERI-initiated research study to reach completion!
Job Titles:
- Member of the Envision, Inc Board of Directors
Dr. Namboodiri worked with ERI to design and develop technologies to assist in areas of indoor and outdoor wayfinding and smart-home solutions for individuals who are blind or visually impaired.
During her time at ERI, Dr. Xiong focused on effective rehabilitation training methods and tools for clinical assessment.