[humanser] Need help with Ongoing Advocacy with Accessible Instructional Materials in Higher Education Act ; Resources to Help

[Steven Johnson]

You may want to look at Wisconsin's Instructional Materials Act which was passed in 2012 if I recall correctly.  Many entities, but spear-headed by the Wisconsin Council of the Blind and Visually Impaired, worked with not only legislators, but the printing industry to pass a model law which I believe, is still the only law in existence providing such on-demand accommodations to the greater BVI community, but also others who rely on electronic formats.

Steve


-----Original Message-----
From: humanser [mailto:humanser-bounces at nfbnet.org] On Behalf Of Sarah Meyer via humanser
Sent: Sunday, March 13, 2016 2:48 PM
To: humanser at nfbnet.org
Cc: Sarah Meyer
Subject: [humanser] Need help with Ongoing Advocacy with Accessible Instructional Materials in Higher Education Act ; Resources to Help

Hi everyone,
I am writing to you to ask, maybe even beg, for your help in joining the advocacy efforts of the NFB with addressing the current issues of lack of consistent access to instructional materials in higher education for blind and otherwise print-disabled students. These barriers affect us in the human services field in the class room, in practicum, in internship, and in the process of seeking licensure.
Technology has the capacity to level the playing field, yet because it is constantly changing and there are know current guidelines for manufacturers or for institutions of higher education in their selection process, blind students are bearing the burden and falling behind.  This is not fair, and it isn’t right.  We need to be asking Congress to establish a purpose-based commission that would bring together stakeholders from the manufacturers, the universities, and the disability community to brainstorm and come up with guidelines that universities could then voluntarily (emphasis on voluntarily) adopt and thus have a safe harbor from litigation, which right now is the only option that students have for addressing these issues.  It would also start to stimulate the market and show people that including accessibility from the beginning and not as an afterthought is the most cost effective approach for all.

We need your help.  If you are a student, have been a student and have faced some of these issues, or know students who face these obstacles and want to advocate (Please, we need you), then check out the following websites and call or write to your legislators.  I am attaching the fact sheet on the Access to Instructional Materials in Higher Education Act (AIM HE – supposed to be pronounced “Aim High”), and I am attaching a few sample letters to give you some ideas of how or what to write.  Please make them personal to you and let me know if I can help. I am actually considering writing a second letter now that I have encountered significant accessibility issues in my practicum clinic.

Find your House Representative:
http://www.house.gov/representatives/find/
This website is great because it will help you know what congressional distrect you are in if you don’t know, it will tell you what committees your reps serve on (which is helpful to know where to put some extra pressure for certain issues), and gives you their contact info, all based on your zip code.

Common Cause (Will show you your state senators, House Representatives, and in-state Representatives); just enter your address information):
http://act.commoncause.org/site/PageServer?pagename=sunlight_advocacy_list_page

Please let me know if you have questions or concerns, and thank you in advance for your advocacy.  Our members of Congress, both Senators and Representatives, need to hear from us!

Best wishes,

Sarah

--
Sarah K. Meyer
Graduate Student, Clinical Mental Health Counseling/Social Psychology Ball State University Board Member, National Federation of the Blind Human Services Division Board Member, National Federation of the Blind of Indiana State Affiliate sarah.meyer55 at gmail.com
(317)402-6632

The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the characteristic that defines you or your future. You can live the life you want; blindness is not what holds you back. Together with love, hope, and determination, we transform dreams into reality.