[Ct-nfb] If you have ever experienced inaccessible technology in college, we need your help!

[Justin Salisbury]

Dear Members,

My name is Cindy Bennett. I am an NFB member and the secretary of the National Association of Blind Students (NABS).

NABS is excited to help with the recently introduced Technology, Education, and Accessibility in College and Higher Education (TEACH) act. I am currently working with Lauren McLarney, a Government Affairs Specialist for the National Federation of the Blind, to collect stories about blind student's experiences with higher education. We are contacting you because we want stories from constituents living in every congressional district in the U.S., and we can only do this with your help! Our current push for stories is so they can be used during Washington Seminar, so we need them by Wednesday, January 22!

In summary, the TEACH Act will create accessibility guidelines for electronic instructional materials and related information technologies used by institutions of higher education. The TEACH Act will provide guidelines for manufacturers of educational technology and clarity for institutions of higher education to ensure that materials are usable by all students. Earlier this year, Congressman Tom Petri (R-WI) introduced the TEACH Act (H.R. 3505). Click here to learn more about the TEACH Act.
https://nfb.org/images/nfb/documents/word/2013%20teach%20fact%20sheet.doc.

Now that the bill has been introduced, we need to get it passed! And that's where you come in!

We need stories from current and recent students who are and have been affected by the lack of accessibility in the classroom, whether it be through inaccessible software, lack of materials, or late or inadequate accessible materials. Be sure to include a sentence of how accessibility guidelines would/would have helped you.

Compose your paragraph-long story and send it to me at clb5590 at gmail.com by Wednesday, January 22. Please include the school you attend/attended, and any congressional districts that you live in.
for example, if your permanent address is in a different congressional district from the district in which you go to school, list both. If you do not know this information, you can look it up here.
http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/
There is a simple edit field where you can enter your zip code. On the next page, your zip code and the number district in which you reside are listed like this.

Zip code: 98121
is located in the 7th Congressional district of Washington.

The second way you can help is by reinforcing the appointments Lauren and other NFB members have with congress. If someone has an appointment with your congressperson, I will contact you with the date of the appointment, and you can call your congressperson's office and tell your story. This will show your congressperson that one of their constituents is directly affected by inadequate accessibility and needs the TEACH Act. This part is very important as members of congress work for their constituents!

Of course, you do not have to wait for someone to have an appointment with your representative or senators; we encourage you to go ahead and contact them on your own!

Please pass this announcement on to all of the blind current and recent students that you know!

Finally, please feel free to contact me or Lauren McLarney with any questions. you can reach me at clb5590 at gmail.com, and Lauren at LMcLarney at nfb.org.

We look forward to receiving your stories!

Cindy Bennett and Lauren McLarney


--
Cindy Bennett
Secretary: National Association of Blind Students

B.A. Psychology, UNC Wilmington
clb5590 at gmail.com

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