Harrison Tu is just 14 years old. He'll be in the ninth grade in the fall. He says that in his spare time, he likes getting on the computer to chat with friends and play games.
Sounds about right for someone his age, but Harrison can't see the computer screen or the keys. He was born with a condition called micropthalmia, which means he's blind. He uses a computer program called Jaws, which converts the typed word into something he can hear.
The number of awards on his wall is no indication that he is working at a disadvantage.
"Blind people are just like other people," Tu said. "We can do things that you all can do. Of course, we do them sometimes in different ways, but we can still do and act the same way you all can."
And sometimes better. Tu was recently gearing up for the annual Braille Challenge, in Los Angeles. The preliminary round is held at each student's school, and only the Top 12 from each age group around the country are invited to the finals round. Tu has been invited every year since he started competing in 2001.
There will be four events at the finals: speed and accuracy; charts and graph reading; proofreading; and speed reading and comprehension.
Tu wants to major in computer science in college, but he's not sure what he wants to do with that yet. He's got some time to figure it out. In the meantime, he'll just keep being an outstanding local kid. On Aug. 6-9, he's planning to do a 220-mile tandem bike ride to raise money for the Braille Institute of America.
