At St. Joseph's School for the Blind in Jersey City, New Jersey, Ana Centeno, 19, stands out not just for her notable achievements but also for her ability to navigate her challenges and cultivate distinct capabilities to enrich her life and inspire others.
Centeno was born with anophthalmia, a rare birth defect where a baby is born without one or both eyes. Anophthalmia affects approximately 1 in every 5,200 babies, according to the Centers for Disease Control and Prevention.
Blind since birth, Centeno has attended St. Joseph's School for the Blind for 16 years.
"I would love to act in movies. I would also love to be a singer-songwriter. I get to write my own songs, expressing my feelings," Centeno said, speaking with "Good Morning America."
She expressed her appreciation for the supportive atmosphere at her school. "I love how we all come in and bring a lot of good energy," she said, adding that she values the commitment of the staff, "because they always dedicate their time to us. Anytime we need help, they're always there for us."
Established in 1891 by the Sisters of St. Joseph of Peace, St. Joseph's School for the Blind provides programs for the visually impaired and students with disabilities from birth to adulthood, according to its website. The school states that it is committed to assisting underserved communities in living independent and productive lives and "Learning to Be All We Can Be."
Centeno's classes at St. Joseph's are thoughtfully adapted to her needs, allowing her to engage in hands-on experiments and utilize assistive technology such as a refreshable braille display.
"So, whatever I'm typing on the iPad, like whatever shows up on the screen, shows up on the display but in braille for us to feel," Centeno explained.
With these adaptations, she said she is able to learn and engage fully in her educational experiences.
Lauren Marron, a teacher specializing in visual impairments and an assistive technology specialist at St. Joseph's, who has taught Centeno since her early school days, hailed her progress.
"Ana has been one of my students since my first-year teaching here in 2016. When I first started with her, she was really a new academic learner," Marron said. "She began exposing herself to new novels and new technology that helped her to make big improvements in her reading and her writing and her math."
Diana Lao, Centeno's transition teacher, has also witnessed her growth from a 3-year-old to a young adult, ready to tackle the challenges of adult life and higher education. Speaking with "GMA," she described Centeno as a motivated student who "always wants to continue and do things in life, and like there's never an end and is always like, if I can do this, I can do more."
What really sets Centeno apart, her teachers say, is her unyielding spirit and her profound belief in herself.
"She really has the confidence and believes in herself to do better and, you know, achieve everything that she can," Marron said. "She takes her disability and makes it an ability and is able to use that to push herself forward."
Centeno's decision to audition for a part in a movie where she plays a 15-year-old blind girl illustrates her desire to challenge social norms and showcase the capabilities of individuals with disabilities.
"Ana's a fantastic student because she believes in herself. She's been given those little steps, I think, from teachers, staff members, transition coordinators, Braille teachers," Marron explained.
Centeno lost her mother when she was just 1 year old. "I didn't even get to know her, but I knew she was a great woman," she said.
She added, "She never let anyone talk about us in a bad way, especially me and one of my other brothers [who] also has a disability."
She said she is thankful for her older sister who has taken care of her since her mother died in 2006.
Centeno also described her struggle to accept her condition when she was young.
"When I was growing up, I never wanted to use my cane," Centeno said. "I mostly didn't want to tell people I was blind. I also didn't want to hear the word ... because I would feel sad and I would think, 'Oh my God, no I'm not.'"
As Centeno looks to the future, she explained how the acceptance of her visual impairment has been greatly influenced by the acknowledgment and normalization she received as a student at her school.
"As I started growing up, I'm like, hey, you know this is me. I have to accept myself the way I am," she said. "When I came here [to St. Joseph's], a lot of people treated me like a normal person."
Centeno said she enjoys listening to "Close Your Eyes" by her favorite singer, Meghan Trainor. "That song is very powerful and it always tells you hey, you're beautiful, you're perfect." she said.
"Even though I'm blind, I'm still perfect the way I am… Even though we have a disability, we're still perfect the way we are. No matter what, just support us in any way."
