[NFBK] Fwd: NFB President’s Notebook - week of 05/18/2020

Tue May 19 15:43:02 UTC 2020

Good Morning,
I am forwarding President Riccobono’s President’s Notebook. Often times I
have posted snipers from the notebook, or the info has been sent through
email and other social media platforms. This one is so James packed with
important news and dates that I want to make sure you have all of the
details.
Have a great day.
Cathy

---------- Forwarded message ---------
From: President, National Federation of the Blind <
OfficeOfThePresident at nfb.org>
Date: Tue, May 19, 2020 at 11:24 AM
Subject: NFB President’s Notebook - week of 05/18/2020
To: President, National Federation of the Blind <
OfficeOfThePresident at nfb.org>

President’s Notebook National Federation of the Blind Mark A. Riccobono
officeofthepresident at nfb.org 410-659-9314

Dear Fellow Federationists,

Today we are eight weeks from our national convention and it is reflected
in the announcements you find below. Help share and amplify these
announcements with the membership. In particular, I want to call out our
current work with the College Board regarding advanced placement exams. It
is truly critical that you help families get connected with us so we can
understand the scope of the problem while we advocate on behalf of blind
students.

Thank you again to those affiliates who have donated additional funds to
support our national Braille enrichment efforts. Your outreach at the local
level, as well as financial resources at the national level, are making
connecting, engaging, and protecting blind students possible across the
nation.

Critical Actions: *College Board AP Tests:*

Last week, five blind high school students and the NFB filed a complaint
against the College Board with the United States Department of Education
Office for Civil Rights and Department of Justice on behalf of themselves
and all other blind and deafblind students who are registered to take the
May 2020 advanced placement (AP) tests from the College Board. Read the
press release and complaint at
https://www.nfb.org/programs-services/legal-program/rulings-filings-and-letters#highstakes.

If you are a blind high school student or the parent of a blind high school
student who is scheduled to take a College Board AP test this spring and
requires accommodations, including but not limited to Braille and tactile
graphics, please contact our legal coordinator, Valerie Yingling, as soon
as possible at vyingling at nfb.org.

*Please Help Us Spread the Word to Federal Employees:*

The Office of Personnel Management has launched a special solicitation
window for the Combined Federal Campaign (CFC). This campaign is in support
of nonprofit organizations that are working overtime to fight the
coronavirus pandemic and will run through June 30, 2020. Please help us
spread the word to federal employees. If you are in a position to give as a
federal employee, or know someone who can, please consider donating to the
National Federation of the Blind by selecting Blind Federation of America,
number 11162.

News: *Advocacy and Policy Update:*

The staff of the Jernigan Institute has remained hard at work throughout
the COVID-19 pandemic. Some recent activities include a letter I sent to
the US secretary of education
<https://www.nfb.org/sites/www.nfb.org/files/files-pdf/letter-to-secretary-of-education-regarding-rethink-k-12-grant-program.pdf>
regarding a grant program for local education agencies that would aid in
their distance-learning pursuits during these quarantines and lockdowns. We
urged Secretary DeVos to remember students with disabilities in the
Department of Education’s review of the grant applications. I also
wrote an open
letter to school districts
<https://www.nfb.org/sites/www.nfb.org/files/files-pdf/open-letter-to-school-districts-concerning-rethink-grant-applications.pdf>
that urged them to remember students with disabilities in their grant
requests.

In other news, the House and Senate are both expected to be back in
Washington the week of June 1. There’s a good chance they will use that
week to negotiate the provisions of the most recent COVID-19 relief bill,
the HEROES Act. We need to make sure that all members of Congress know
about the major priorities we want included in that legislation. One of
those key priorities, the Access Technology Affordability Act (ATAA),
currently has eighty-eight cosponsors in the House and twenty-two in the
Senate. We believe that Congressional leaders will really take notice of
this bill if we can reach one hundred cosponsors in the House. With that
kind of support, our Congressional champions would have more leverage to
argue for the bill’s inclusion in the larger piece of legislation. So
please call or email your member of Congress and ask them to cosponsor the
ATAA (H.R. 2086/S. 815). We are so close, but we’re going to need to work
harder than ever to ensure this bill passes.

*Elections:*

As a number of states begin to relax the restrictions that were put in
place due to the coronavirus pandemic, many upcoming primary and local
elections will remain all vote-by-mail elections. If your state and/or
local jurisdiction does not provide an accessible way to mark a
vote-by-mail ballot, the *Accessible Vote-by-Mail Toolkit*, developed by
the National Federation of the Blind with grant funds from the US
Department of Health and Human Services, will provide our members with the
information they need to know to advocate for accessible vote-by-mail.
Visit our Voting, Accessibility, and the Law
<https://www.nfb.org/programs-services/center-excellence-nonvisual-access/national-center-nonvisual-election-3>
webpage to download a BRF or MS Word file of the toolkit. You will also
find many other important voting-related resources on this webpage. If you
have questions or need assistance in your advocacy efforts, please contact
Lou Ann Blake, deputy executive director of Blindness Initiatives at
lblake at nfb.org or 410-659-9314, extension 2221.
  *National Telecommuting Institute:*

We would like to speak with anyone who has either worked for National
Telecommuting Institute (NTI) or who applied to work for NTI. Additionally,
we would be interested in speaking with anyone who is actively looking for
customer service work who wishes to work from home. Please contact Valerie
Yingling at vyingling at nfb.org or 410-659-9314, extension 2440.

*The Give $20 Campaign—**A Donation Drawing:*

Each year, Federation members purchase tickets to drawings or make
donations during national convention to various funds that support blind
people. In 2020, your generosity is still needed to fund our great
programs. Give $20 or more between May 15 and July 18 at noon eastern to
one of the specified funds, and be entered into the Kenneth Jernigan
convention drawing to win BIG! Learn more about the Give $20 Campaign
<https://www.nfb.org/get-involved/national-convention/give-20-campaign>.

*Presidential Release—**Behind the Scenes and More:*

Go behind the scenes of the presidential release live in the newest episode
of the *Nation’s Blind Podcast*. Join this conversation with President
Riccobono on the history of the presidential release and the recent new
direction. Check out the *Nation’s Blind Podcast *now
<https://www.nfb.org/resources/publications-and-media/nations-blind-podcast>
.
  *Save-the-Date: *

The next live presidential release will be held June 4, 2020, at 8:00 p.m.
eastern with the opportunity for questions and answers again. Send your
questions in advance to cdanielsen at nfb.org and put PR495 in the subject
line, or call 410-659-9314, extension 2473.
  *New Contest—**Share Your First Convention Experience:*

Attending the NFB National Convention is a memorable experience. And the
first one is life changing for so many. Share a video or audio message
about a special memory of your first convention in less than sixty seconds
to be entered to win a cash prize and have your story shared at this year’s
convention. Learn more about the contest rules and prizes for the Convention
Memory Minute Contest
<https://www.nfb.org/get-involved/national-convention/convention-memory-minute-contest>
.

*Upcoming Accessibility Boutiques:*

We host accessibility boutiques that are workshops or introductions to best
practices and latest trends in access tech. Take advantage of these free,
upcoming boutiques:

·       Don’t Make Us Do This! Tricks We Shouldn’t Have to Use to Get
through a Website on May 19 at 2:00 p.m. eastern

·       The COVID-19 Response: Keeping Employees and Students Connected
from Home on May 21 at 2:00 p.m. eastern

·       Textbook-Provider Showdown on May 26 at 8:30 a.m. eastern

·       Comparison of Cloud Storage Solutions on June 2 at 2:00 p.m. eastern

Learn more about accessibility boutiques and register today
<https://www.nfb.org/programs-services/center-excellence-nonvisual-access/trainings/accessibility-boutiques>
.

*Blind Parents—**Attend Discussion this Week:*

Join the national dialog regarding blind parents this Thursday, May 21, at
3:00 p.m. eastern. Chat with some of our nation's leaders in the blind
parenting community on what’s keeping you sane during this time, distance
learning and children in school, social distancing, and more. Share your
experiences, ask questions, and let us know what topics you would like to
have us discuss on future calls. Register today for the national dialog
regarding blind parents <https://www.nfb.org/our-community/blind-parents>.

*Graduates: Participate in NABS Graduation Celebration:*

It’s graduation season! Many graduations are being put on hold or going
virtual. This year, the National Association of Blind Students, a division
of the National Federation of the Blind, wishes to celebrate the class of
2020 through a virtual ceremony on June 6 from 5:00 to 6:00 p.m. eastern
via Zoom (Zoom meeting ID: 467 883 3687). The celebration is open for
anyone to join and blind students who are graduating are asked to submit
the graduate celebration form <https://forms.gle/bVarvstZg344syYb9> by June
1 if they wish to be recognized during this virtual celebration.

*Virtual Choir for Convention:*

This year, the Performing Arts Division will be putting together a virtual
choir project for national convention. It will be a great time to unite
with one another and make music together. Rehearsals will be held over Zoom
every Friday from June 5 until June 26 at 8:00 p.m. eastern, and music will
be made available online. Members will submit recordings of themselves
singing their parts to be put together into a virtual choir recording to be
played during convention. We will be sending out more details as they
become available, but if you would like to participate, please email
nfbpad at gmail.com with your name, contact information, and voice type.

Dates to Keep in Mind:

·       June 1-12: NFB BELL® In-Home Edition

·       June 4: Presidential Release Live

·       June 10: Membership Open House

·       June 14: National Leadership Call during #COVID19

·       June 22-July 3: NFB BELL® In-Home Edition

·       July 27-August 7: NFB BELL® In-Home Edition

   - July 14-18: NFB National Convention <https://www.nfb.org/convention>,
   Everywhere

·       February 8, 2021: Washington Seminar Great Gathering-In

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.

Mark A. Riccobono, President

200 East Wells Street, Baltimore, MD 21230
<https://www.google.com/maps/search/200+East+Wells+Street,+Baltimore,+MD+21230?entry=gmail&source=g>

(410) 659-9314 | officeofthepresident at nfb.org

[image: National Federation of the Blind] <https://nfb.org/>

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The National Federation of the Blind is a community of members and friends
who believe in the hopes and dreams of the nation’s blind. Every day we
work together to help blind people live the lives they want.
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