[Ncabs] Fwd: [nabs-l] ANNOUNCEMENT: The Accessible Instructional Materials in Higher Education Act is introduced in the House!

[Kenia Flores]

Hi Friends,

Please read below for some very exciting news about AIM HIGH!!!!

Best,
Kenia Flores
President, North Carolina Association of Blind Students

---------- Forwarded message ----------
From: "Kathryn Webster, NABS President via NABS-L" <nabs-l at nfbnet.org>
Date: Wed, 29 Mar 2017 20:31:28 -0400
Subject: [nabs-l] ANNOUNCEMENT: The Accessible Instructional Materials
in Higher Education Act is introduced in the House!
To: National Association of Blind Students mailing list
<nabs-l at nfbnet.org>, nfbnet-students-list at nfbnet.org
Cc: "Kathryn Webster, NABS President" <nabs.president at gmail.com>


Please read this in its entirety:


Our work has just begun!





The National Federation of the Blind Applauds Introduction of AIM HIGH Act


Law Will Promote Equal Access to Higher Education for People with
Disabilities

Baltimore, Maryland (March 29, 2017): Today, the National Federation of the
Blind commends Congressman Phil Roe (R-TN) and Congressman Joe Courtney
(D-CT) for introducing the Accessible Instructional Materials in Higher
Education Act of 2017, also known as the AIM HIGH Act (H.R. 1772). This act
will promote instructional technology and content that are accessible to the
blind and other students with print disabilities.

Mark A. Riccobono, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said:
"The National Federation of the Blind has worked for years toward the
introduction of this much-needed legislation, which will give postsecondary
institutions guidance to help them meet their legal obligations to students
with disabilities, and also bring more accessible instructional materials to
the higher education market. Blind students are adversely impacted daily by
educational technologies that artificially limit students because they were
designed without accessibility in mind. As a past member of the Commission
on Accessible Instructional Materials, whose work identified this crucial
need, and a father of three, including two daughters who are blind, I am
pleased to see this goal come to fruition. We applaud Congressman Roe and
Congressman Courtney for their introduction of this legislation and urge
their colleagues to join them in supporting its swift passage."

Congressman Roe said: "No student pursuing their education should be put at
a disadvantage because they have a disability, and this bill simply
encourages higher education institutions to provide equal access to all
instructional materials. With more students' coursework requiring digital
resources, it makes sense to encourage colleges and universities to make
accessible material available to support all their students, including those
who have a disability. I thank Rep. Courtney for partnering with me on this
important issue and I look forward to moving this bill through the
legislative process. I also thank all the stakeholders who have worked so
hard to develop a common sense solution that can be supported on a
bipartisan basis."

"The goal of our bill is to ensure that no student is put at a disadvantage
while pursuing a higher education degree because they have a disability,"
said Congressman Courtney. "With colleges and universities across the
country converting to digital resources, we need to ensure that students
with disabilities have equal access to the tools and resources at the
disposal of other students. I want to thank Rep. Roe for once again leading
this bipartisan effort with me, and I look forward to working with him to
get this measure passed this Congress."

The AIM High Act will authorize a purpose-based commission comprised of
persons with disabilities, developers, and manufacturers, as well as
representatives from institutions of higher education. This commission will
develop voluntary accessibility guidelines for instructional materials used
in postsecondary educational programs. Additionally, the commission will be
tasked with developing an annotated list of existing national and
international information technology standards as an additional resource for
institutions of higher education and companies that service the higher
education market. Institutions of higher education that only use technology
that conforms with the guidelines will be deemed in compliance with the
provisions of Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act and Titles II and III of
the Americans with Disabilities Act that pertain to the use of electronic
instructional materials, giving them a safe harbor protection from
litigation. Colleges and universities will be permitted to use material that
does not conform with the guidelines as long as equal access laws are still
honored. Conformity with the AIM High guidelines is only one path to
compliance; schools can pursue a different path, but will forfeit the safe
harbor legal protection.

The AIM High Act is a collaborative legislative initiative of the National
Federation of the Blind, the American Council on Education, the Association
of American Publishers, EducauseR, and the Software and Information Industry
Association.



We need our universities to take action, now! The time is critical.



Don't deny, AIM-HEA!

Please contact me with any questions.



For equal access to education,

Kathryn C. Webster

President | National Association of Blind Students

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