Eighteen blind and visually impaired youth came from across the state to the Iowa Department for the Blind (IDB) in Des Moines on Saturday, February 7, 2015, to match their Braille skills in the 9th annual Iowa Braille Challenge. It was another great day and the building was brimming with energy and enthusiasm as the K-12 participants competed in their age groups.Many staff from both IDB and the Iowa Braille School, co-sponsors of the event with IDB, were on hand, as well as Teachers of the Visually Impaired (TVI's) from across the state and other supporters.

The Braille Challenge™ is a national program of The Braille Institute of America, Inc. This is the 15th  year for the annual Braille Challenge, the only national reading and writing contest in Braille for blind and visually impaired students. The Iowa Braille Challenge is a regional competition in advance of the national competition in Los Angeles in June. Some winners of the regional competitions qualify for the national contest after results are tallied nationwide.

The day began with a traditional Pep Rally to kick off the event in IDB's Assembly Room, with remarks from Iowa Department of the Blind Director Richard Sorey and Iowa School for the Deaf/Iowa Educational Services for the Blind and Visually Impaired (Iowa Braille School) Superintendent Steven Gettel. The rally would not be complete without the annual song performance by Todd Frank, of the Iowa Braille School, in which each Iowa Braille Challenge participant is recognized by mentioning a humorous fact about them in lyrics set to the tune of a popular song.

Testing proceeded immediately afterward, with two sessions each in the morning and afternoon. Sibling activities and informative sessions for the parents and family members of contestants kept the building buzzing with activity.

The Awards Presentation took place in the Assembly Room after the results were tallied. Here are the final results in each category:

Rookie
 #1 Jordan Danks

Apprentice
#1 Emily Groves
#2 Zachary Nolin
#3 Kayla Bartholomew

Freshman
#1 Daniel Peterson
#2 Brogan Malcom
#3 Lydia Groenendyk

Sophomore
#1 Angela Wittrock
#2 Laura (Griffin) McFarland

Junior Varsity
#1 Emily Brown
#2 Shae Cleveland
#3 Kadyn Haggard

Varsity
#1 Anna Costanzo
#2 Alyssa Townsend
#3 Beth Rouse