I am no longer a new user but I rarely use this account anyways, mostly to read Wikipedia in the uncluttered, modern theme. I created my account June 1, 2008.
Hello, I am Marco A. Meza. I have extensive knowledge on SimCity 4 and similar games, and some knowledge on other games, many movies (and songs/artists), Seattle, XML (including SVG), C++, and less in Python. I am more active on Wikia because my expertise is usually better suited for the specialty wikis there. I want to be as helpful as possible so I appreciate (positive) criticism. I have read some of the many rules on Wikipedia but as long as this sentence is on my page I have read less than 3/4 of all the rules. I have read enough rules (the basic/important ones) that I feel ready to start contributing. I plan on getting at least a bachelor's degree in biology and a master's degree in biochemistry (regular chemistry is OK). I worked on a little open source game called OpenTower but the other developers could no longer stand the administrators and made Highrise Developer with OpenGL (as opposed to SFML for OpenTower). Lastly, I have Asperger Syndrome and I am in the Disabilities Opportunities Inter-networking Technology Program.
My Great Grandfather was Mark Manca, the owner of both the Manca Cafe and Restaurant. He died when I was a child. My family has an extensive record of everything Mark Manca wrote about the restaurant including notices to the employees, recipes, finances, etc. We also keep items from the restaurants after they closed down. I can take photographs of them or describe any part of the restaurant, cafe, or menu that is not a secret.
Have a nice day!
I already donated. Why am I asked for more?
Contributions: Nothing major on the actual pages yet, only suggestions on the talk pages and some grammar and spelling fixing.
Please do not delete my page. I want to write a proper stub on DO-IT before posting it. DO-IT has received state (Washington) national, and international awards and attention. Almost all disability groups are aware of DO-IT. Please help me make and improve this stub.
DO-IT Scholars Program edit
DO-IT stands for Disabilities Opportunities Inter-networking, Technology. It accepts, accommodates, and prepares for college, scholars with a wide range of disabilities including Visual Impairment, Hearing Impairment, Learning disability, Mental disorder, Developmental disability, and Physical Disability. It was originally funded by the National Science Foundation when it was founded in 1992 by Sheryl Burgstahler and accepted dozens of scholars with disabilities from around the United States each year. Now it is funded by the state of Washington, charities, and corporations and the number of new members accepted each year has halved. It inspired Japan and more recently South Korea to to start their own versions of the program. DO-IT Japan has 40 scholars and DO-IT South Korea just began in July 2010.
Disabled students face challenges and frustrations between High School and College. Parents, IEP, and other support systems are no longer involved in advocacy. Disability Support during K-12 school is required by law in order to provide all children with free education in the United States that they are entitled to and required to attend. On the other hand, no one is actually "entitled" to Post-Secondary Education and students must apply for higher education and all students must be able to do what is needed to learn regardless of accommodations. Legislation regarding disability services are far different and less strict for higher education than primary and secondary education.
It is really hard to get into DO-IT but it is impossible to leave it!
DO-IT is an investment to make the world more accessible and friendly to all. In particular, DO-IT searches for
- Leadership qualities
- Challenges and willing to overcome them
- Desire and ability to attend higher education
DO-IT believes that one cannot fully be an excellent leader without knowledge of all disabilities.
Below is retrieved from DO-IT's official website:
Many capable individuals with disabilities face challenges as they pursue academics and careers. They are underrepresented in many rewarding career fields, including science, engineering, business, and technology. DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology) serves to increase the participation of individuals with disabilities in challenging academic programs and careers. It promotes the use of computer and networking technologies to increase independence, productivity, and participation in education and employment.
DO-IT has received national and regional awards including the National Information Infrastructure Award in Education; the King County Adult Service Agency Award, an Outstanding Program Award from the Washington Association on Post Secondary Education Disability (WAPED); the HealthyWay Best of the Web Award; and the President's Award for Excellence in Science, Mathematics, and Engineering Mentoring of underrepresented groups. DO-IT was also showcased in the 1997 President's Summit on Volunteerism and the 1996 NSF Dynamic Partnerships invitational conference.