[nabs-l] [Blindtlk] Fwd: [BANA-Announce] BANA Meeting Report Release

[Chris Nusbaum]

 ---- Original Message ------
From: David Andrews <dandrews at visi.com
Subject: [Blindtlk] Fwd: [BANA-Announce] BANA Meeting Report 
Release
Date sent: Tue, 03 May 2011 04:46:41 -0500



Press Release

April 2011

For Immediate Release

CONTACT: Judy Dixon, Chair

Braille Authority of <?xml:namespace prefix =
st1 ns = "urn:schemas-microsoft-com:office:smarttags" />North 
America

Phone: 202-707-0722, Email: jdix at loc.gov



BANA Dialogues about Braille at Spring Board Meeting



The Braille Authority of North America (BANA)
held its spring meeting on April 1 – 3, 2011, in
Cincinnati, Ohio.  This meeting was hosted by The
Clovernook Center for the Blind and Visually
Impaired (CCBVI), a BANA member organization.



The Board Meeting was preceded by its
traditional open forum on the evening of
Thursday, March 31, at the Hyatt Regency.  This
round-table meeting provided an opportunity for
participants to learn more about the workings of
BANA and to offer feedback about issues surrounding braille and 
its future.



The BANA Board welcomed two new participants.
Friday morning, at the opening session of the
business meeting, Chair Judy Dixon introduced
Kim McEachirn, Clovernook’s new representative
to the BANA Board.  Later in the business
meeting, the Board voted unanimously to accept
the application of Crawford Technologies to join
BANA as an associate member.  Congratulations to
both Mr.  McEachirn and Crawford Technologies.



Topics on the agenda included tactile graphics,
foreign language braille, strategic planning,
and the recent review of the formats guidelines.
Pete Osborne, Chair of the United Kingdom
Association for Accessible Formats (UKAAF),
attended the full meeting and provided a helpful
international perspective.  UKAAF was formed in
2009 when the Braille Authority of the United
Kingdom merged with two other industry organizations.

The Board participated in lengthy and thoughtful
deliberations as they explored the evolving ways
in which braille is produced and used.  These
essential considerations have been spurred by
the rapid changes and impact of technology as
well as the escalation of changes in print materials.



The Board approved a code change recommended by
the Braille Mathematics Technical Committee.
This change to Rule XXV Sections 191a(v) and
191b(vi) in the Nemeth code is effective as of
April 3, 2011.  The change – which is posted at
<http://www.brailleauthority.org/nemethupdates2011/rule25/index.h
tml>http://www.brailleauthority.org/nemethupdates2011/rule25/inde
x.html
–

eliminates the blank line between a cell-5
heading and directions that immediately follow the heading.



For additional information and resources, visit
<http://www.brailleauthority.org/>www.brailleauthority.org



The mission and purpose of the Braille Authority
of North America are to assure literacy for
tactile readers through the standardization of
braille and/or tactile graphics.  BANA promotes
and facilitates the use, teaching, and
production of braille.  It publishes rules,
interprets, and renders opinions pertaining to
braille in all existing codes.  It deals with
codes now in existence or to be developed in the
future, in collaboration with other countries
using English braille.  In exercising its
function and authority, BANA considers the
effects of its decisions on other existing
braille codes and formats; the ease of
production by various methods; and acceptability to readers.

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