Enactus Works on an App with Washington State Senator and the National Federation of the Blind

Getting a hands-on education has new meaning for some of CityU’s Enactus team members. Through one of their entrepreneurial initiatives, students Anushka Hariharan and Swati Swaminathan have been working with the National Federation of the Blind, Seattle Chapter to promote a sophisticated mobile app called the KNFB Reader that detects text, processes it and reads it out loud to users in 13 different languages. The app is intended for users who are seeing or reading-impaired.

Looking to get more support and guidance to effectively market the KNFB Reader, Swati and CityU Enactus Advisor, Kathy Cox, connected the group with Washington State Senator Cyrus Habib. Senator Habib, who has been legally blind since age 7, has provided counsel to the group and said he appreciated the KNFB Reader for its portability and ease of use.  Senator Habib tested the reader by listening to a number of sentences be read from a book at his desk.

“Seeing the smile on his face was the moment I’ll remember for the rest of my life,” Swati said. “I have never seen technology have such an impact on someone.”

Through their meeting, Swati said she learned the value of being prepared and knowing her audience. As a student at CityU studying project management, the experience taught her the importance of a sales pitch and how to face an audience with confidence — both of which are key elements in successful project management.

“This sort of exposure to top management officials is very rare and I want to especially thank CityU for this formative opportunity,” Swati said.

Promoting the KNFB Reader is just one of several projects led by CityU’s Enactus. As a student organization, the Enactus team carries out social entrepreneurial projects that serve the betterment of the community.

Visit the CityU Enactus page to learn more about the team’s entrepreneurial initiatives.