What Were Helen Keller's Accomplishments

Helen Keller
Valorie Mitchell
UNIV103 Academic and Professional Success
November 10, 2013

Helen Keller was an extremely determined young lady. I chose her because I am amazed and inspired by the many achievements she accomplished throughout her lifetime. Her hard work and determination to become the woman she became is unfathomable. Helen Keller was born June 27, 1880. Tragically, before the age of two, she was struck with what was believed to be Scarlet Fever which left her deaf, blind, and mute. Keller’s parents took her to see Alexander Graham Bell, an inventor who was known for his work with the deaf. He saw a spark in Keller and recommended she go to Perkin’s School for the Blind. Soon, Keller was working with
It took quite a while for Keller to be able to write again without fear that her writing was not her own work. Keller was confronted several times throughout her life with others questioning whether or not she was a fraud. At the age of fourteen, Keller began studying at the Wright-Humason School for the Deaf in New York City, followed by the Gilman School for Young Ladies in Cambridge, Massachusetts. She was doing so well in school, she was able to add German and French into her studies. In 1900, Keller attempted to take the entrance exam for Radcliffe University. She was provided with a transcript of the exam in Braille, however, in the early 1900’s there were five different versions of Braille and the version she was given was the least similar to the version she was familiar with. Eventually the confusion was resolved and she passed the exam but it is just another example of overcoming the challenges of special education. After the exam, she forgave the examiners and looked at the obstacles she overcame as character-building exercises. In 1902, while attending the university, Keller wrote her first book, her autobiography, “The Story of My Life.” It detailed her experiences in overcoming obstacles. It became a bestseller and was translated into more than fifty languages. After graduating from college, Keller began to write articles about her blindness. In
Helen Keller’s education made her the woman she was. Her ability to overcome the obstacles thrown at her and not only get an education, but go on to complete higher education at a university, proved even the disabled can do whatever they put their mind to. Keller used her education and experience to lecture for the American Foundation for the Blind and set up an endowment fund to support improvements in treatment of the blind and deaf. Because of Keller, disabled persons who were previously locked away in asylums were able to be removed. She spent several years using her experiences to lecture the importance of educating the disabled. (Stevenson, 2005, p. 2) Helen Keller was determined and strong-willed. She was motivated by her intense eagerness to learn and determination to succeed. She loved to write and worked with Ms. Sullivan to learn step by step to go from writing a few words on a sheet of paper to the brilliant student who wrote over fourteen books in her lifetime. As she grew older, she became devoted to improve the treatment of the disabled so they did not have to go through the challenges she faced. She opened the public’s eyes to see what it is like for the disabled. Because of Helen Keller the disabled have a chance at