Full Transcript
Yahya Abdikadir:
Welcome to Minnesota y’all. We’ll be playing some hockey today.
Jeff Thompson:
Please welcome, transition age student Yahya Abdikadir.
Yahya Abdikadir:
My goal is to take computer science and minor in business management because I think both fields are trending. If I do that, I think I’ll be good to go for a while.
Jeff Thompson:
Working and volunteering and preparing for college.
Yahya Abdikadir:
I just tell them to follow their dreams, follow their passion. I can do it if you put your mind to it.
Jeff Thompson:
For more podcasts with the blindness perspective? Check us out on the web at www.blindabilities.com. On Twitter @blind abilities and download our free Blind Abilities app from the app store. That’s two words, blind abilities. And now available on Android from the Google Play store. That’s two words. Blind Abilities.
Yahya Abdikadir:
My resume looks enticing and they accepted me so it was very cool.
Jeff Thompson:
Enable the blind abilities skill on your Amazon device just by saying enable blind abilities.
Yahya Abdikadir:
About etiquette, for the most part it was all about professionalism. Like say you’re eating some dinner with your employer and then kind of utensil holding and stuff like that. It was basically about how to look professional with your employer kind of thing. It was cool.
Jeff Thompson:
And now here’s Yahya talking about the pathway he has chosen to achieve his goals and choose the career that he wants.
Yahya Abdikadir:
You’ll be the first to know when I become a millionaire. I’m just kidding.
Jeff Thompson:
Welcome to Blind Abilities. I’m Jeff Thompson and today in the studio we have a transition age student who has been doing all sorts of stuff to get ready for college. He’s aiming to go into computer programming, IT, all sorts of stuff like that. He’s kind of a geek, I guess if you want to call him. I call him Hollywood, but his name is Yahya Abdikadir. How are you doing?
Yahya Abdikadir:
I’m doing good, sir. How about you?
Jeff Thompson:
Good. Good. You got some big plans coming up?
Yahya Abdikadir:
I do.
Jeff Thompson:
University of Minnesota?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yes sir.
Jeff Thompson:
All right. But on your way there, I met you up when you were with the summer transition program when you were visiting SSB, State Services for the Blind.
Yahya Abdikadir:
You did. It was fun meeting you there.
Jeff Thompson:
Yeah. How was the program?
Yahya Abdikadir:
I mean, I’m not going to lie. It was good. I got to meet some cool people and got to make some friends along the way. Yeah, it was fun.
Jeff Thompson:
And for our listeners, the summer transition program, STP as it’s known is a two week summer program held at St. Thomas university for college bound students. And that summer transition program helps them build confidence and gain the skills to enhance their opportunities while they prepare for college and ultimately enter the workplace. Yah ya, what is the curriculum like at the STP program?
Yahya Abdikadir:
So every year they have something different. So like this year was about job etiquette. For the most part it was all about professionalism, like say you’re eating some dinner with your employer and then kind of utensil upholding and stuff like that. It was basically about how to look professional to your employer kind of thing.
Jeff Thompson:
Kind of suave.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah, it was cool.
Jeff Thompson:
One of the big programs, Blind And Socially Savvy is a program that State Services for the Blind has been supporting through training centers and programs where students get the opportunity to engage in and learn all about the necessary soft skills that help people engage in conversations, in first impressions, and one, for example, etiquette at the dinner table. And here’s the Lisa Larges, from State Services for the Blind talking about the impact that Blind and Socially Savvy can have on transition age students.
Lisa Larges:
Learning those soft skills has been really important and it will take you a long way. Having that kind of confidence, being able to introduce yourself to people, those first impressions make a huge difference. So I’d recommend that young adults take those classes, do reading about it, practice. Put yourself in situations where you feel just a little bit uncomfortable. It’s really good to develop. I think that’s fantastic.
Jeff Thompson:
I think it’s really great what State Services for the Blind is doing to help enhance these programs by bringing in Blind and Socially Savvy, and you yourself by attending this, you’ve been able to take what you’ve learned into the jobs that you have. And Yahya, you’ve got quite a few jobs right now.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Oh yeah.
Jeff Thompson:
And one of them is at a middle school.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Totally.
Jeff Thompson:
So how you come about that job?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Well the middle school one I worked with my SOP coordinator too, and I landed this middle school job for… Because I used to teach middle school previously, which [inaudible] called DP. It was a highly competitive course in high school in where you get two credits from Mandatory State University. We’re just enrolling in that course and we have to teach sixth graders about drugs and stuff. And I guess my resume looked enticing, and they accepted me, so it was very cool.
Jeff Thompson:
You sold them on it?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah.
Jeff Thompson:
That’s great. Was your visual impairment any problem for you?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Not really.
Jeff Thompson:
What kind of assisted technology do you utilize?
Yahya Abdikadir:
My day to day activities, I usually use the MacBook for the most part because I kind of like using the Mac because I’m kind of more familiar with it even though I’m getting familiar with the Microsoft right out because I kind of launch Microsoft too. Mac and iPhone and the iMac pro. Those are the three things I use clearly. And that Windows sometimes.
Jeff Thompson:
So when you’re talking Windows, Mac and other tools like that, you also do some work with Apple, Microsoft and Google. Three small little companies.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah I do.
Jeff Thompson:
What kind of work is that?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Raffle. I volunteer for them for the accessibility thing as an accessibility specialist. I just make sure everything is working fine, in order and send them my feedback and stuff and what needs to be changed and then implement it. And then later on they release it to the public basically. And for Microsoft, I generally do the same thing except for sometimes I do Windows technical support. Like today I was helping Eagle ridge, the middle school I currently work at, dissolve some Windows issues and I had to contact Richard because I didn’t know how to do that thing to. It’s all about the learning experience too. It was fun.
Jeff Thompson:
How did you get connected with the State Services for the Blind?
Yahya Abdikadir:
When I was like sophomore in high school, I guess. Two years ago. I saw Ashland. I guess it just happened.
Jeff Thompson:
And Ash land’s a counselor at State Services for the Blind.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah. He’s my counselor currently.
Jeff Thompson:
The state of Minnesota state services for the blind gets involved with students, transition age students, as early as age 14 and this relationship between SSB and the teachers of the blind and visually impaired in the school districts enables not only the student but along with the parents, the teachers of the blind and visually impaired, and the counselors to all come together to make sure that they have a seamless transition from high school to college and ultimately the workplace. And here’s SSB counselor, Ashland Ca hill to talk about this relationship.
Ashland Cahill: The great thing is, is that all counselors here, when they’re working with a student, we work closely with anyone they’re working with at their school. So we work with their BVI teachers, their own M instructors, special education teachers. We really work as one unit and as a team to help that student achieve their goals and make sure that the transition from high school to their goals post high school are achieved.
Jeff Thompson:
So how did you find out about the summer transition program and what did you think that would bring you?
Yahya Abdikadir:
The first year up I found up from my vision teacher, and then now it’s like this sounds cool. I’m always like wanted to go explore a St. Thomas and stuff. And when I found out they were doing the summer transition program thing on St. Thomas, I was like, “Sweet.” And when my friend wanted to go there, I was like, “Cool. I’ll tell you all about it.” And I went there for the first year, two weeks. It was cool. We did a lot of that. Got to visit SSB twice. It was cool. And my vision teacher encouraged me kind of to go there.
Jeff Thompson:
Cool. And your vision teacher is someone from the public schools?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah, she is.
Jeff Thompson:
Well that’s great that they relay that information, gets you out there because that’s two years there, and you’re aiming to go to the University of Minnesota and what are you going to be taken up?
Yahya Abdikadir:
My goal is to take computer science and minor in business management because I think both fields are trending currently. If I do that, I think I’ll be good to go for a while in life.
Jeff Thompson:
Yeah. I think that computers and technology will be around for a while.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Me too.
Jeff Thompson:
You’ve got a good start by volunteering and doing stuff with Apple, Microsoft, Google. It seems like you’re following a passion there. How are you preparing to go to college? What skills have you been working on? What tools are you going to be using to succeed in college?
Yahya Abdikadir:
So far I’ve been using communication skills like advocation, to advocate for yourself and your needs because I did get to visit U of M twice, and I also went to visit Lake Calhoun, and I talked to both of the disability services office and they were pretty flexible.
Jeff Thompson:
Oh, that’s great. So how’d you feel about the University of Minnesota? It seems like that’s when you chose.
Yahya Abdikadir:
It’s a big place, but I think I’ll survive.
Jeff Thompson:
They had more to offer or what did you like about the University of Minnesota?
Yahya Abdikadir:
It’s more closer and majority of my friends are going there. Plus I found great courses for computer science.
Jeff Thompson:
Well that’s great. So as you’re getting ready, what advice would you have for other students who are thinking about their education and plans and ready to just start their transition process?
Yahya Abdikadir:
I’d just tell them to follow their dreams, follow their passion, like I can do it if you set your mind to it.
Jeff Thompson:
And if you have an opportunity for the STP program or a summer transition type of program, take it. Right?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Oh, yeah. Totally.
Jeff Thompson:
You still keep in touch with some of the other students?
Yahya Abdikadir:
I do. I do keep in touch with them, and they said they’re doing awesome.
Jeff Thompson:
Oh, that’s great.
Yahya Abdikadir:
It’s very cool.
Jeff Thompson:
That’s great. So what are your hobbies?
Yahya Abdikadir:
I like to program by apps, codes, read books, watch Netflix and generally just go for a run.
Jeff Thompson:
Really? What kind of running?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Like jogging.
Jeff Thompson:
Oh yeah? One mile? Two miles? Five? 10?
Yahya Abdikadir:
I usually keep it four and then run four miles and then four miles backwards. Cool.
Jeff Thompson:
You run four miles forward and then backwards?
Yahya Abdikadir:
No, not backwards. Like go like two miles in, two miles back.
Jeff Thompson:
Ah, I was thinking… And then backwards, I was like “Wow, you just undid everything you’d done.”
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah, I know, right?
Jeff Thompson:
Programming. So you want to program apps like for the iPhone and stuff?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah.
Jeff Thompson:
Good stuff. Well it’s good to know that someone’s coming up could be doing all this stuff. So as we all get older we got someone making us programs. Job security, right?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah. If you start making apps and you’re like… You can really lean into that too by making apps and stuff.
Jeff Thompson:
That seems really be something that you really like to do.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah. Although my goal is not monetize my apps because I know there are some people who can’t afford it in general. So that’s my goal.
Jeff Thompson:
Well, hopefully there’s some big corporations that want to sleep good at night and want to pay you to make them so they can give them away for free.
Yahya Abdikadir:
It’s true.
Jeff Thompson:
It seems like you’re off to a good track out of high school, taking the summer programs two years in a row and now your eyes are on the University of Minnesota and you got your goals set out for you. So good for you, Yah ya.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Thank you, sir.
Jeff Thompson:
Is there anything else you want to tell the listeners?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Well, you know that the Apple card released so you can get it if you want.
Jeff Thompson:
It just came out?
Yahya Abdikadir:
It just came up today. It’s in America basically.
Jeff Thompson:
I just signed up for mine and I saw the notice came in. I went into my wallet and there was the option and I kept going, continue, continue and boom.
Yahya Abdikadir:
I mean, I’m not going to lie. I got it like three weeks before you, but it’s worth it.
Jeff Thompson:
I mean, you’re volunteering, you’re working for them. I mean, hey, you know, I’m just a little nobody out here in the world, and I feel good at least I still got a zero balance on mine.
Yahya Abdikadir:
True that. But I’ve field tested that thing and it’s kind of secure. I know there were some rumors in YouTube that said like Apple card is getting hacked in some things, but that’s kind of not true because we kind of field tested it and really did find something had been dark cards, but it’s good. Hopefully they’ll approve your credit union and you can just chill.
Jeff Thompson:
Yeah, yeah. They’re going to send me a card. They said five to seven days I’ll get the titanium card, which is… that’s like you Hollywood, you got to have a titanium card, right?
Yahya Abdikadir:
I do have one. And the thing is the titanium card is like… It doesn’t have a CVC or an actual number. And the cool thing about the Apple card is like you get daily cash, unlimited daily cash basically. Like whenever you buy, you get money back.
Jeff Thompson:
Yeah, 2%.
Yahya Abdikadir:
If you buy from Apple you get 4%.
Jeff Thompson:
Really?
Yahya Abdikadir:
If you spend something on iCloud or… I know they’re taking out the iTunes store on iOS 13 on the app store to buy something, all your recurring subscriptions like iCloud or Apple Music… Or you just go to the Apple store like, “I want to buy some Air Pods or something. You get like 4%.” You can get a lot more cash if you pay with Apple.
Jeff Thompson:
I’m going to have to battle it out with my Amazon card. It’s a neat application because your approval, your sign up is pretty much pre-populated. You’re in. I just can’t wait to get to that titanium card so I can just like take some selfies with it or something, just fun.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Well, you don’t have to worry about like security and everything. You can just be like, “I just got my Apple card. Yay.” That’s what I did.
Jeff Thompson:
So Yah ya, describe your visual impairment.
Yahya Abdikadir:
I can see some stuff, but mostly like perceptions and I can kind of discern shadows and outlines and stuff. That’s pretty much about me.
Jeff Thompson:
So you’re using voiceover, jaws, whatever it takes, everything is typically out there?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Currently, I’m not using voiceover because of iOS 13. You know what the cool thing about iOS 13 Apple has rolled out this feature called voice control into where you can control your phone with your own voice instead of you using voice arranged. Instead of you saying, “Hey Siri and stuff,” you can just be like write stuff with your own voice. You can just be dictating stuff. And then at least you’d be saying the commas, periods in there, but other than that, it can just do whatever. It’s kind of cool.
Jeff Thompson:
So you’ve gone cold turkey. You went all in on voice control?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Oh yeah. It was cool. Although it kind of feels weird sometimes speaking to just your phone is like, “Whoa, what am I doing?”
Jeff Thompson:
Oh wow. So how do you get information back off the phone then?
Yahya Abdikadir:
For example, let’s say you wanted to close an app. You’d be like, tap app switcher and then it’ll just open your apps switcher. You know how your apps are kind of numbered in like one, two, three, four kind of thing? It’d be like, “three” and then it can close it. It’s kind of cool.
Jeff Thompson:
We got something to look forward to and we’ve got any problems, we’ll just call you up.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Well I always did it [inaudible] up in September something. So I cannot tell you the exact date because I don’t even know myself. Even most Apple employees don’t know it.
Jeff Thompson:
Well I heard something about September 10th but sometimes it’s a little after that so it might be a week after that. So we’ll see.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Probably.
Jeff Thompson:
If you wait till October you’ll probably have it.
Yahya Abdikadir:
It’s going to be more faster too.
Jeff Thompson:
That’s going to be exciting. I’m kind of looking forward to this next lineup that’s going to be coming out and all the information.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Unless your plan’s to upgrade to iPhone 11.
Jeff Thompson:
I got the 10 S Max. I don’t know if I really want to yet.
Yahya Abdikadir:
I’m on upgrading next year. Not this year. Because thing is I have both 10 S max and 8 plus. So I feel like I’m good for now.
Jeff Thompson:
I think if people are looking for a phone right now, the 8 and the 8 plus is a good phone. I always suggested that to people that were indecisive, especially if they’re sitting on a 6 or a 5S or something like that, and it was very affordable compared to going all out with the 10S Max.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Well it has that home button too. Some people really liked that 6 so they could use that. But if you were to upgrade though, you should upgrade to the MacBook pro. The MacBook is on fire, man. It’s the newest, redesigned MacBook, and it has like more processing speed. Yeah.
Jeff Thompson:
And the old keyboard?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Totally. That’s what I’m going to get.
Jeff Thompson:
Butterfly? Did they go with a butterfly or are they going with the-
Yahya Abdikadir:
Actually I think it’s a butterfly. So that’s what I’m going to get.
Jeff Thompson:
Yeah. I’m at the point now, I have the one that is going to blow up or catch on fire and won’t be allowed on planes, my MacBook pro. I do have a Mac, but my MacBook pro is a mid 2015 retina display, and I checked the serial number and I called it up and they sent me a box. I got to send it in now.
Yahya Abdikadir:
So you traded it in?
Jeff Thompson:
No, I just send it in. They’re going to open it up and tear apart the battery. I should just trade it in.
Yahya Abdikadir:
You could trade it in. You can just get a brand new Mac for your own MacBook depending on your estimation.
Jeff Thompson:
I’m going to take a look at September coming up here and see what Apple has to announce. See when the release is coming up, and I might just save onto this box.
Yahya Abdikadir:
You should.
Jeff Thompson:
See you’re doing your job right now. Look at that.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah.
Jeff Thompson:
So Yahya, if anyone wanted to get a hold of you, do you want to give him all your Twitter or anything like that so people can follow you?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Sure. My Twitter is like a RealYahya101. It’s like the @ sign and then real like R-E-A-L Yahya, Y-A-H-Y-A. And then 101, like 1-0-1.
Jeff Thompson:
Ah, RealYahya101. There you go.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah, totally. I’ll play blind hockey, man. It’s going to be fun.
Jeff Thompson:
Tell me about blind hockey.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Blind hockey is basically your traditional hockey, but instead of an actual hockey thing you have a puck that’s kind of shaped like a pancake I guess because that’s how that kind of looks like. And the puck has something about it… it has like some jingles inside it. It jingles basically. And people who are blind kind of tend to play either goalie or defense and people who are sighted play forward.
Jeff Thompson:
You enjoy it?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah, it’s kind of fun, plus the skating part is kind of cool because I didn’t know how to skate at first. So I took my fair share of experimentation on skating, but now I kind of learned it so I’m good to go.
Jeff Thompson:
Well that’s pretty cool. I did an interview with the Minnesota Wild Blind Hockey with Lonny Evans. It was a good time.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Awesome man.
Lonnie Evans:
I think the benefits or the fruit of skating for the Minnesota Wild Blind Hockey program is already happening, and we’re seeing some really neat things take place right now, but I’m confident that that’ll continue on and probably in ways that we can’t even anticipate as an organization or individually. The feedback has been really positive. I think people are really grateful for this opportunity. It’s just really fun to hear the excitement that kids and adults and parents and guardians have for this whole thing and as if any of us needed any other motivation to see those smiles and to hear the excitement about doing this is just amazing. I think we’re just scratching the surface here.
Jeff Thompson:
Well this is a great opportunity. Lonnie, can you tell people who are interested in this or want to learn more about Minnesota Wild Blind Hockey where they can go to find more information?
Lonnie Evans:
Yes. If you go to mnspecialhockey.org, there is a link to blind hockey specifically, and you can sign up as a skater, as an individual volunteer or as a volunteer team.
Jeff Thompson:
That’s when they first started out. This is the second year they’ve done it, right?
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah. This is going to be the second year.
Jeff Thompson:
All right. The big summit. That’s teams from all the way across the country.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Yeah, I saw their roster yesterday, and I was like, “Whoa.” The team, they’re coming from California and Washington. I’m like, “Whoa, cool.” Going to be cool.
Jeff Thompson:
You’re going to show them that this is your house, right?
Yahya Abdikadir:
I’m going like, welcome to Minnesota, y’all. We’ll be playing some hockey today.
Jeff Thompson:
All right, so Yahya I want to thank you for coming on to Blind Abilities. Good luck with the hockey. Good luck with the college, challenge yourself. Go get ’em and you’re going to do great. I know you are.
Yahya Abdikadir:
You’ll be the first to know when I become a millionaire. I’m just kidding.
Jeff Thompson:
All right. Sounds great. We’ll see you around.
Yahya Abdikadir:
Thank you.
Jeff Thompson:
Be sure to contact your State Services for the Blind your Voc Rehab and find out what they can do for you. Live, work, read, succeed. A big shout out to Chee Chau for his beautiful music. You can follow Chee Chau on Twitter @LCheeChau.
[Music] [Transition noise] -When we share
-What we see
-Through each other’s eyes…
[Multiple voices overlapping, in unison, to form a single sentence]
…We can then begin to bridge the gap between the limited expectations, and the realities of Blind Abilities.
Jeff Thompson:
For more podcasts with a blindness perspective:
Check us out on the web at www.BlindAbilities.com On Twitter @BlindAbilities
Download our app from the App store:
‘Blind Abilities’; that’s two words.
Or send us an e-mail at:
Thanks for listening.
*****
Contact Your State Services
If you reside in Minnesota, and you would like to know more about Transition Services from State Services contact Transition Coordinator Sheila Koenig by email or contact her via phone at 651-539-2361.
To find your State Services in your State you can go to www.AFB.org and search the directory for your agency.
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