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<h1><b>President's Notebook</b></h1><br><br>
<br>
<h1><b>National Federation of the Blind</b></h1><br><br>
<br>
<h1><b>Mark A. Riccobono</b></h1><br><br>
<br>
<h1><b><a href="mailto:officeofthepresident@nfb.org">
officeofthepresident@nfb.org</a></b></h1><br><br>
<br>
<h1><b>(410) 659-9314</b></h1><br><br>
<br>
Dear Fellow Federationists,<br>
<br>
Dear Fellow Federationists,<br>
<br>
I was thinking about our brand promise and I wanted to again bring it to
your attention. “Together with love, hope, and determination, we
transform dreams into reality.” This expression brings so much to mind
about who we are and what we do. I encourage you to reflect on it and
work to make every action we take in the Federation consistent with this
promise. For that matter, in selecting which things we will not do or
which things will be lower priority, the promise should be
considered.<br>
<br>
Since I last sent out the notebook, the National Federation of the Blind
of Virginia brought seventy members to the Jernigan Institute for a
weekend of learning and teaching. I encourage more of our affiliates to
find innovative ways to develop membership and grow the organization, and
to call on me to be a part of innovative gatherings like the one our
Virginia affiliate crafted with me earlier this month.<br>
<br>
Last week I had the opportunity to travel the Midwest visiting the work
of the Federation. I attended the BLAST conference put on by our National
Association of Blind Merchants. Our division is growing and the
conference has become the premier place for innovating opportunities for
blind entrepreneursnot only in Randolph Sheppaard but in all business
ventures. From BLAST I visited our training center in Minnesota. The team
at BLIND, Incorporated continues to raise the standard for training and
is expanding the reach of the Federation every day. While in Minnesota I
had the pleasure of participating in our NFB STEM2U program at the
Science Museum of Minnesota. We are coming to the end of our three-year
project to impact science museums. Here is a little national convention
agenda previewwe will be hearing more about our impacct through our NFB
STEM2U and NFBEQ programs at our convention in July. It is not every day
that I have the opportunity to be present in the places where Federation
activities are taking place. I am grateful to all of the Federationists
who are taking actions, right now, that I am not aware of to help build
our organization. It was great to be on hand to witness many of those
actions happening last week.<br>
<br>
Please note the deadlines coming up and please do your part to help get
the word out. <br>
<br>
Let’s go build the Federation!<br>
<br>
<b>Critical Actions This Week:<br>
</b>Exhibit Hall Deadline:<br>
The exhibit hall deadline for the 2016 National Convention was Friday,
May 20. If your affiliate is planning to exhibit at convention, and you
have not done so already, please fill out the
<a href="https://nfb.org/national-convention-exhibitor-application">
online exhibitor form</a> <b>before noon tomorrow</b> (Tuesday, May 24).
If you have any questions, contact Stephanie Eller at
<a href="mailto:seller@nfb.org">seller@nfb.org</a> or (410) 659-9314,
extension 2423.<br>
<br>
Preregistration Deadlines:<br>
Also, a reminder that the deadline to preregister for both the National
Federation of the Blind 2016 National Convention and the WBU/ICEVI
General Assembly is May 31, 2016.<br>
<br><br>
<h2><b>News:</b></h2><br><br>
Tom Ridge TIME Act Op-Ed:<br>
Today <i>The Hill</i> published an op-ed by former Governor of
Pennsylvania, Tom Ridge, in which he discusses the need to phase out
subminimum wages for people with disabilities and his support of the
Transitioning to Integrated and Meaningful Employment (TIME) Act (H.R.
188, S. 2001). To read this piece, please visit
<a href="https://nfb.org/time-act-real-employment-people-disabilities">
https://nfb.org/time-act-real-employment-people-disabilities</a>.
We have also posted it on the NFB website at
<a href="https://nfb.org/time-act-real-employment-people-disabilities">
https://nfb.org/time-act-real-employment-people-disabilities</a>. Please
share it far and wide, especially with members of Congress who have not
yet co-sponsored this legislation.<br>
<br>
International Council on English Braille (ICEB) 6th General
Assembly:<br>
We are hosting the ICEB 6th General Assembly this week at the Jernigan
Institute. Various options to live stream the proceedings are available
at
<a href="http://www.iceb.org/live.html">http://www.iceb.org/live.html</a>
. <br>
<br>
Article on Blind Parenting:<br>
A recent article on blind parenting can be found at
<a href="http://www.cecildaily.com/news/state_news/article_9bb922f3-03b3-5165-9275-477b577e4196.html">
http://www.cecildaily.com/news/state_news/article_9bb922f3-03b3-5165-9275-477b577e4196.html</a>
. The article describes the recent Maryland legislation and the fact that
in cases assessing parents’ ability to care for their children, judges
and claimants will need to follow new procedures before introducing a
person’s disability in court. Originally written for blindness, the
bill was later amended to include all disabilities, physical or mental,
and covers only private cases that don’t involve public agencies, such
as custody or visitation, as well as adoption or guardianship cases.
Support available from the NFB is also detailed in the article.<br>
<br>
Video:<br>
This week's video, Aleeha Dudley's story of strength and acceptance in
the Federation, can be found at
<a href="https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFlP_Aq6Ttw">
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NFlP_Aq6Ttw</a>. <br>
<br>
<b>Affiliates:<br>
</b>Send Us Your Web Access Stories:<br>
As part of the public comment process related to the recent Supplemental
Advanced Notice of Proposed Rulemaking issued by the Department of
Justice, we are gathering comments regarding state and local government
website accessibility, which is guaranteed under Title II of the
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). At your June meeting, we need you
to gather stories from chapter members about their experience (good or
bad) using state and local government websites. This information should
be collected and emailed to Kyle Walls at
<a href="mailto:kwalls@nfb.org">kwalls@nfb.org</a>.<br>
<br>
State and local government websites offer opportunities for consumers to
handle matters such as voter registration, property tax issues, school
closings and class registration, food stamps, library services, and
community bulletin boards, just to name a few examples. Chapter
presidents are asked to designate a person responsible for assuring that
stories are emailed to Kyle during the month of June. Along with member's
stories, we need a working email address in order to follow-up as
necessary. Stories will be entered as public comments and shared on
<a href="http://www.regulations.gov">www.regulations.gov</a>.<br>
<br><br>
<h2><b>Dates to Keep in Mind:</b></h2><br><br>
· May 21-26: International
Council on English Braille 6th General Assembly<br>
· May 23-August 26: NFB BELL
Academy held at forty-six sites throughout the nation. More information
at
<a href="https://nfb.org/bell-academy">https://nfb.org/bell-academy</a>.
<br>
· June 7: NFB EQ teacher
application deadline,
<a href="https://nfb.org/nfb-eq-teacher-application">
https://nfb.org/nfb-eq-teacher-application</a> <br>
· June 19-25: NFB EQ (first
iteration)<br>
· June 30-July 5: National
Federation of the Blind Convention, Rosen Shingle Creek, Orlando,
Florida<br>
· July 31-August 6: NFB EQ
(second iteration) <br>
· August 2-6: NFB EQ teacher
cohort <br>
· August 18-25: WBU and ICEVI
General Assembly, Rosen Centre, Orlando, Florida,
<a href="http://www.wbu-icevi2016.org">www.wbu-icevi2016.org</a><br>
<br>
The National Federation of the Blind knows that blindness is not the
characteristic that defines you or your future. Every day we raise the
expectations of blind people, because low expectations create obstacles
between blind people and our dreams. You can live the life you want;
blindness is not what holds you back.<br>
<br>
Mark A. Riccobono, President<br>
National Federation of the Blind<br>
200 East Wells Street at Jernigan Place<br>
Baltimore, Maryland 21230<br>
Phone: (410) 659-9314<br>
Fax: (410) 659-5129<br>
Email:
<a href="mailto:officeofthepresident@nfb.org">
officeofthepresident@nfb.org</a><br>
Twitter: @Riccobono and @NFB_Voice<br>
Web: <a href="http://www.nfb.org/">www.nfb.org</a><br>
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