About Nancy Shugart

Recipient of the 2005 KVUE-TV Five Who Care Community Service Award Recipient of the 2005 Volunteer of the Year award presented by the Austin Chapter of the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation.

Nancy's story of triumph in the face of adversity has appeared in the magazines of the Texas State Teachers Association and the National Education Association. She has been featured in an Associated Press article which appeared in nearly every Texas newspaper. Nancy has also been a guest on numerous radio programs and several local TV programs. Nancy and her Guide Dog, Luke, were even the cover story for the Austin Family Magazine. Nancy is the author of the book, Challenged to Win: Turning Overwhelming Challenges into Unbelievable Results.

Nancy went blind at age eight but she was determined to still live her dream of becoming a teacher. After being told she would never teach in the public schools because of her blindness, she became even more determined to prove them wrong!

Following her successful 21-year teaching career from 1981-2002, she founded Prove Them Wrong with the mission of teaching others how to awaken the power they possess and live their dream.

Nancy has also been very active with community service.

In 2003, Nancy, along with volunteer Becky Hare, founded the Kids Walk to Cure Diabetes school program benefiting the Juvenile Diabetes Research Foundation. In its third year, just as a local program, it raised $250,000 for diabetes research. In 2007, the program went national!

Nancy has received appointments from two Texas Governors to serve four terms as a member of the Texas Governor's Committee on People with Disabilities from 2000-2008.

Nancy is a member of

• Council for Exceptional Children
• National Education Association
• National PTA