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<FONT size=2 face=Tahoma><B>From:</B> Barbara Pierce
[mailto:bpierce@oberlin.net] <BR><B>Sent:</B> Monday, May 07, 2012 2:19
PM<BR><B>To:</B> gwunder@earthlink.net<BR><B>Subject:</B> FW: National
Federation of the Blind Applauds New Jersey Ruling on Braille Instruction for
Blind Child<BR></FONT><BR></DIV>
<DIV></DIV>
<DIV class=Section1>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT color=blue size=3 face="Times New Roman"><SPAN
style="COLOR: blue; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
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style="COLOR: blue; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<DIV>
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face="Times New Roman"><SPAN style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt">
<HR tabIndex=-1 align=center SIZE=2 width="100%">
</SPAN></FONT></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><B><FONT size=2 face=Tahoma><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma; FONT-SIZE: 10pt; FONT-WEIGHT: bold">From:</SPAN></FONT></B><FONT
size=2 face=Tahoma><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Tahoma; FONT-SIZE: 10pt"> Freeh,
Jessica [mailto:JFreeh@nfb.org] <BR><B><SPAN
style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Sent:</SPAN></B> Monday, May 07, 2012 8:56
AM<BR><B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">To:</SPAN></B> Undisclosed
recipients:<BR><B><SPAN style="FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Subject:</SPAN></B> National
Federation of the Blind Applauds <st1:State w:st="on"><st1:place w:st="on">New
Jersey</st1:place></st1:State> Ruling on Braille Instruction for Blind
Child</SPAN></FONT><o:p></o:p></P></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face="Times New Roman"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><B><FONT size=4 face=Helvetica><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica; FONT-SIZE: 13.5pt; FONT-WEIGHT: bold">FOR
IMMEDIATE RELEASE<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P></DIV>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face="Times New Roman"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B><FONT size=3 face=Helvetica><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-WEIGHT: bold">CONTACT:<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Helvetica><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Chris
Danielsen<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Helvetica><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Director of Public
Relations<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Helvetica><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">National Federation of the
Blind<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Helvetica><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">(410) 659-9314, extension
2330<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Helvetica><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">(410) 262-1281
(Cell)<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face="Times New Roman"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><A href="mailto:cdanielsen@nfb.org"><FONT
face=Helvetica><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Helvetica">cdanielsen@nfb.org</SPAN></FONT></A><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face="Times New Roman"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<H1
style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 3pt; MARGIN-LEFT: 0in; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0in; mso-margin-top-alt: 12.0pt"
align=center><B><FONT size=4 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 13.5pt">National Federation of the Blind
Applauds <BR><U1:PLACE u2:st="on"><U1:STATE u2:st="on">New
Jersey</U1:STATE></U1:PLACE> Ruling on Braille Instruction for Blind
Child<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></H1>
<H2
style="TEXT-ALIGN: center; MARGIN-BOTTOM: 3pt; MARGIN-LEFT: 0in; MARGIN-RIGHT: 0in; mso-margin-top-alt: 12.0pt"
align=center><EM><B><I><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">After Three-Year <U1:PLACE
u2:st="on"><U1:CITY u2:st="on">Battle</U1:CITY></U1:PLACE>, Hank Miller Will
Receive Braille Instruction</SPAN></FONT></I></B></EM><EM><I><FONT size=3
face="Times New Roman"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></I></EM></H2>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face="Times New Roman"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><B><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-WEIGHT: bold">Oceanport, New
Jersey (May 7, 2012):</SPAN></FONT></B><FONT face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"> After a three-year administrative and legal battle
against their local school board, the Oceanport Board of Education, Jeffrey and
Holly Miller obtained a ruling (docket number: </SPAN></FONT><SPAN
class=fontstyle230><FONT face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">2011
17218</SPAN></FONT></SPAN><SPAN class=fontstyle230><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 11pt">)</SPAN></FONT></SPAN><FONT
face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial"> from an administrative law judge
that their eleven-year-old son Henry “Hank” Miller was improperly denied
instruction in Braille, the reading and writing code for the blind. The
legal victory, obtained with the assistance of the <A
href="http://www.nfb.org/">National Federation of the Blind</A> (NFB), comes on
the heels of <A
href="http://blogs.edweek.org/edweek/speced/Letter%20to%20Secretary%20Duncan%20re%20Braille%20Literacy.pdf"><FONT
color=purple><SPAN style="COLOR: purple">a letter from 26 U.S.
Senators</SPAN></FONT></A> urging the Department of Education to take steps to
ensure that blind children who need Braille instruction receive it.
<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white" class=style7><FONT size=3
face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Holly and Jeffrey
Miller brought the legal case on behalf of their son, Hank, whom they adopted
from <U1:PLACE u2:st="on"><U1:COUNTRY-REGION
u2:st="on">China</U1:COUNTRY-REGION></U1:PLACE> and who is blind due to albinism
and nystagmus. Hank has limited vision that allows him to read enlarged
print for short periods of time, but he is unable to read for sustained periods
of time. Although Hank’s parents continued to tell school officials that
their son was experiencing visual fatigue and was having difficulty reading, the
school board and its consultant, the New Jersey Commission for the Blind and
Visually Impaired (CBVI), insisted that Hank was a proficient print reader,
notwithstanding his continued placement in a special resource room for language
arts. In a nearly ten-day hearing, held under the due process provisions
of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, Mrs.
Miller testified that she watched Hank routinely struggle with his homework,
suffering from eye strain and fatigue, but was unable to convince school
officials or the CBVI that Hank needed Braille instruction. She also
testified that Hank’s schoolwork was not of the same quantity and quality as
that of his classmates. Although experts from the school and the
commission claimed that Hank was a “visual learner” and should participate in
the “sighted world,” experts hired by the Millers and the NFB concluded after
thorough assessment that Hank could not read print for extended periods of time
without eye strain, neck and back pain, fatigue, and loss of reading speed and
comprehension. <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white" class=style7><FONT size=3
face=Garamond><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Garamond; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="MARGIN: 0in 0in 0pt; BACKGROUND: white" class=style7><FONT size=3
face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">In her order,
Administrative Law Judge </SPAN></FONT><SPAN class=fontstyle21><FONT size=2
face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 11pt">Lisa
James-Beavers</SPAN></FONT></SPAN><STRONG><B><FONT size=2 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 11pt"> </SPAN></FONT></B></STRONG><FONT
face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">found that the school board and the
commission displayed a clear “bias against Braille.” She found that the
school board and the commission had failed to assess Hank’s “sustained reading
ability” with print, relying instead on reading assessments involving only brief
passages, and citing Hank’s alleged failure to complain about struggling to read
print. The judge was unconvinced by the board and CBVI’s contention that
Hank could rely on audio technology as reading demands increased through his
school years, noting that “<SPAN class=fontstyle23>as pointed out by all of
petitioners’ well-qualified experts, listening does not equate to reading.
One does not enhance the active skill of comprehending text by passively
listening, even if one is following along with the reading.” The order
noted that “</SPAN></SPAN></FONT><SPAN class=fontstyle230><FONT size=2
face=Arial><SPAN style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 11pt">the CBVI failed to
do what Oceanport relied on them to do, which is to help construct a program
that would give H.M. meaningful educational benefit considering H.M.’s future
needs.” </SPAN></FONT></SPAN><FONT face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial">Judge James-Beavers ordered that Hank Miller be
provided with Braille instruction for forty-five minutes, five days a week, and
that the school board provide compensatory instruction because of the three
years that Hank was not provided with Braille instruction, in the form of
intensive Braille summer programs or tutoring. <FONT color=black><SPAN
style="COLOR: black"><o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the
National Federation of the Blind, said: “Based on the experience of countless
parents of blind children and blind adults who had never learned Braille and
have contacted us over the years, the National Federation of the Blind has
consistently argued that blind children are being improperly assessed and denied
Braille instruction when it is clearly appropriate. Now after a thorough
and comprehensive examination of the evidence in Hank Miller’s case, an
independent judge has confirmed what we always knew. We hope that school
and agency officials across the nation take note of this landmark ruling and
commit to giving blind children access to Braille, the true key to literacy for
the vast majority of children who are blind or losing vision. The National
Federation of the Blind will continue to stand with families like the Millers
who find themselves pitted against the educational establishment in obtaining
the equal education to which their children are entitled and which they
deserve.”<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">Holly Miller, Hank’s mother, said:
“I am obviously thrilled with this ruling, although I am still saddened that it
took such a prolonged battle to achieve it. I am stepping forward to tell
Hank’s story in hopes that other parents of blind children will not have to
struggle as we did. I thank the National Federation of the Blind and all
of the individuals and experts who came forward to assist in this case. I
plan to strongly and publicly advocate with the National Federation of the Blind
for Braille instruction for blind children.”<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">The plaintiffs are represented in
this matter by <U1:PERSONNAME u2:st="on">Sharon Krevor-Weisbaum</U1:PERSONNAME>
of the <U1:CITY u2:st="on"><U1:PLACE u2:st="on">Baltimore</U1:PLACE></U1:CITY>
firm Brown, Goldstein, and Levy, and Jayne M. Wesler of the Cranbury firm Sussan
and Greenwald.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt">For more information about the
National Federation of the Blind, please visit <A
href="http://www.nfb.org/">www.nfb.org</A>. For more information about
Braille, the reading and writing code for the blind, please visit <A
href="http://www.braille.org/">www.braille.org</A>.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><B><FONT size=3
face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-WEIGHT: bold"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><B><FONT size=3
face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-WEIGHT: bold">###<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><B><FONT size=3
face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-WEIGHT: bold"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P style="TEXT-ALIGN: center" class=MsoNormal align=center><B><FONT size=3
face="Times New Roman"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-WEIGHT: bold"><o:p> </o:p></SPAN></FONT></B></P>
<P style="mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto"
class=MsoNormal><B><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt; FONT-WEIGHT: bold" lang=EN>About the
National Federation of the Blind </SPAN></FONT></B><o:p></o:p></P>
<P style="mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto"
class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face="Times New Roman"><SPAN
style="FONT-SIZE: 12pt"> <o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
<P style="mso-margin-top-alt: auto; mso-margin-bottom-alt: auto"
class=MsoNormal><FONT size=3 face=Arial><SPAN
style="FONT-FAMILY: Arial; FONT-SIZE: 12pt" lang=EN>With more than 50,000
members, the National Federation of the Blind is the largest and most
influential membership organization of blind people in the <U1:PLACE
u2:st="on"><U1:COUNTRY-REGION u2:st="on">United
States</U1:COUNTRY-REGION></U1:PLACE>. The NFB improves blind people’s lives
through advocacy, education, research, technology, and programs encouraging
independence and self-confidence. It is the leading force in the blindness field
today and the voice of the nation's blind. In January 2004 the NFB opened the
National Federation of the Blind Jernigan Institute, the first research and
training center in the <U1:PLACE u2:st="on"><U1:COUNTRY-REGION u2:st="on">United
States</U1:COUNTRY-REGION></U1:PLACE> for the blind led by the
blind.<o:p></o:p></SPAN></FONT></P>
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