[blindlaw] Blind Attorneys Working On Special Education Cases

Thu Sep 8 20:17:01 UTC 2016

Jim,

Thanks for your response. I would appreciate this information off list. 

Tai Tomasi, J.D.
Staff Attorney

400 East Court Ave., Ste. 300
Des Moines, Iowa 50309
Tel: 515-278-2502; Toll Free: 1-800-779-2502
FAX: 515-278-0539; Relay 711
E-mail: ttomasi at driowa.org
www.driowa.org

Our Mission:  To defend and promote the human and legal rights of Iowans with disabilities

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-----Original Message-----
From: BlindLaw [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Jim McCarthy via BlindLaw
Sent: Thursday, September 08, 2016 3:08 PM
To: 'Blind Law Mailing List' <blindlaw at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Jim McCarthy <jmccarthy at mdtap.org>
Subject: Re: [blindlaw] Blind Attorneys Working On Special Education Cases

Tai,
Maryland Tap has used AmeriCorps for staff at times in the past. It has not in the time I have run the organization but there are lots of documents I have that I could share off list if your agency was willing to consider that route. I assume that the people one would get are not of the level of paralegals but could be reader/organizer people who to me from reading your request, could do what you seek.

-----Original Message-----
From: BlindLaw [mailto:blindlaw-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Tai Tomasi via BlindLaw
Sent: Thursday, September 08, 2016 4:07 PM
To: Disability Rights Bar Association; Blind Law Mailing List
Cc: Tai Tomasi
Subject: [blindlaw] Blind Attorneys Working On Special Education Cases

Hello all. I am working on special education cases and having difficulty accessing IEPs and all manner of other documents, some of which are provided as electronic documents and others which have been scanned from hard copy. I use both the OCR software bundled with our scanner as well as ABYY FineReader, and neither is a completely viable option. For example, I am dealing with a case involving a series of text messages which neither OCR system adequately converts.

I am using a sighted reader whenever possible, but am wondering how others gain access to IEPs and other forms  with checkboxes and handwritten materials. In the case of strictly typed material with tables and checkboxes that can make documents inaccessible, has anyone been successful at getting documents in more accessible formats from schools?

I work for a nonprofit. Does anyone know of inexpensive ways that my organization could obtain a paralegal or reader to assist me? Would Americorps be a viable option for something like this? I would appreciate any tips on this.

Tai Tomasi, J.D.
Staff Attorney

[Description: DR%20IA%20LawCenter]

400 East Court Ave., Ste. 300
Des Moines, Iowa 50309
Tel: 515-278-2502; Toll Free: 1-800-779-2502
FAX: 515-278-0539; Relay 711
E-mail: ttomasi at driowa.org<mailto:ttomasi at driowa.org>
www.driowa.org

Our Mission:  To defend and promote the human and legal rights of Iowans with disabilities

CONFIDENTIALITY NOTICE

This e-mail and any attachments contain information from the law firm of Disability Rights Iowa and are intended solely for the use of the named recipient(s). This e-mail may contain privileged attorney-client communications or work product. Any dissemination by anyone other than an intended recipient is prohibited. If you are not a named recipient, you are prohibited from any further viewing of the e-mail or any attachments or from making any use of the e-mail or attachments. If you have received this e-mail in error, notify the sender immediately and delete the e-mail, any attachments, and all copies from any drives or storage media and destroy any printouts.

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