[Nfbk] FW: National Federation of the Blind Nonvisual Accessibility Web Certification Granted to Instructure Learning Management System

[Cathy]

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From: Freeh, Jessica [mailto:JFreeh at nfb.org]
Sent: Wednesday, September 29, 2010 10:21 AM
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Subject: National Federation of the Blind Nonvisual Accessibility Web
Certification Granted to Instructure Learning Management System




FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE


CONTACT:

Chris Danielsen
Cory Reid, Vice President

Director of Public Relations
Instructure

National Federation of the Blind
(801) 436-8095

(410) 659-9314, extension 2330
cory at instructure.com

(410) 262-1281 (Cell)
cdanielsen at nfb.org





National Federation of the Blind Nonvisual Accessibility Web Certification
Granted to Instructure Learning Management System

 System Certified as Equally Accessible
 to Blind and Sighted Users


Baltimore, Maryland (September 29, 2010): The National Federation of the
Blind (NFB), the nation's leading advocate for Internet access by blind
Americans, has awarded the Gold Level NFB-NVA Certification to Instructure
for its learning management system, "Canvas."  The NFB applauds Instructure'
s commitment to ensuring equal access to its Web-based learning management
system for blind students and commends the company for its leadership in Web
accessibility.



Instructure's Canvas is a new learning management system (LMS) that takes
usability to a whole new level, and saves instructors time, providing more
freedom for curriculum development and working with students.  Since
communication is key to the learning process, Canvas incorporates up-to-date
multimedia and social media tools for reaching way beyond classroom
discussions and e-mail to creating a collaborative learning environment.



Dr. Marc Maurer, President of the National Federation of the Blind, said:
"The Internet has become integrated into every aspect of life, including
education.  As more and more institutions of higher learning employ online
learning platforms, it is crucial to ensure that blind students have equal
access to these systems so that they are not placed at a serious
disadvantage relative to their sighted peers.  We commend Instructure for
making its online learning management system fully accessible and therefore
giving blind students and teachers independent access to Instructure's
services."



Anne Taylor, director of access technology for the National Federation of
the Blind, said: "It has been a pleasure working with Instructure to make
its Web site and learning management system accessible to all blind users.
We appreciate the Instructure team's hard work and congratulate them on
achieving Gold Level NFB-NVA Certification."



Cory Reid, vice president of Instructure, said: "Accessibility has been a
priority since our inception, and we are committed to providing all students
and teachers with the same innovative platform.  We're honored to be working
with the NFB, and are grateful for their pioneering work in accessibility,
and their foundational contributions to education."



The NFB Nonvisual Accessibility Web Certification Program connects Web site
and application developers with leading experts on blindness and
accessibility to ensure that their Internet sites or applications are fully
accessible to and usable by blind people employing screen access software.
Applicants go through a rigorous evaluation and testing procedure and, if
they choose to, work with a web accessibility consultant (WAC) to address
any accessibility issues discovered during the evaluation.  Once the site or
application has addressed all accessibility issues, it is granted the right
to display an NFB-NVA certification seal on its site.  Sites are
continuously monitored to ensure that they remain compliant with
certification criteria.  If a site remains accessible, its certification is
renewed on an annual or a version basis.  If accessibility issues arise, the
National Federation of the Blind and the WAC will work with the site
developers to remedy them.



For more information on the NFB-NVA Certification, please visit
http://www.nfb.org/nfb/certification_intro.asp.  To learn more about the
National Federation of the Blind, please visit www.nfb.org.





###





About the National Federation of the Blind

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
United States.  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 United States for the blind led by the blind.



About Instructure



Instructure set out to build a whole new kind of learning management system
by carefully listening to educators, students, and administrators.  This
user-driven approach to design produced Canvas, a fully-hosted web-based LMS
with a level of usability never seen before in a collaborative learning
environment.  Canvas is used at numerous colleges, universities, and schools
across the US, with students in 27 countries. http://www.instructure.com


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