[NFBMI-Talk] NFBMI-Talk Digest, Vol 172, Issue 6

Wed Oct 7 16:46:09 UTC 2020

Is Michigan's  office of Disability Rights involved with advocating for
blind/visually impaired persons on these issues? This sounds like a
class-action lawsuit waiting to happen. I hope it doesn't have to go that
far. 

Lisa Irving

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Today's Topics:

   1. BSBP Resolution (Fred Wurtzel)
   2. Re: BSBP Resolution (Susan A. Stoneman)
   3. National Federation of the Blind and Pearson Announce
      Agreement to Promote Equal Access to Education
      (National Federation of the Blind)

----------------------------------------------------------------------

Message: 1
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 2020 08:00:45 -0400
From: "Fred Wurtzel" <f.wurtzel at att.net>
To: "'NFBMI-Talk'" <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: [NFBMI-Talk] BSBP Resolution
Message-ID: <004e01d69bd8$52e83840$f8b8a8c0$@att.net>
Content-Type: text/plain;	charset="US-ASCII"

Hello,

Our state convention is coming up the first weekend in November.  One of the
things the NFB of Michigan does at our conventions is focus on those issues
which we wish to work on.  We do this by adopting resolutions about a topic
which we wish to speak about as an organization.  In the past we have had
resolutions on a wide variety of topics.  Our Braille Literacy Law, the
Commission for the Blind bill, State ID and many other things are examples
of how we have identified things we wish to work on and have successfully
passed into law.  At this year's virtual convention, the Resolutions
committee meeting is tentatively scheduled for Friday morning November 6.
President Powell will send out the final agenda as it is developed.

I have noticed widespread reports of poor or non-responsive services from
the BSBP, even more than usual.  I rarely hear of blind persons getting good
jobs.    I have talked to a few folks and it seems we need another
resolution specifically stating our concerns and what we expect the BSBP to
do.  For example, we asked the BSBP Director to do something to replace the
rehabilitation services eliminated when the contract with Receiving hospital
was cancelled.  To my knowledge, nothing has happened.  I am aware that some
high school graduates have not been able to transition to college because
they have not been able to jump through the BSBP hoops to go to college.

Another issue is services to seniors.  A member of ours who needs services
to work cannot get even the simplest service.  This person has been required
to complete extensive paperwork which is difficult since the person is
losing their vision and needs services for adjustment to blindness as such
services are often called.  This has been very frustrating and demoralizing
for someone who is coping with losing their vision and wishes to continue to
work to earn enough money to live on.

I know of another person who has faithfully done all that has been asked of
them and still was unable to get the training services they need to go to
work.  The counselor approved the plan but it was repeatedly blocked by
supervision.

So, I am willing to write, or help write, 1 or more resolutions to address
what appears to be a troubling difficulty to receive services from the BSBP.
I do not need a formal resolution, only the issue.  My email is
f.wurtzel at att.net <mailto:f.wurtzel at att.net> .

Steve Handschu is the Chair of the Resolutions Committee.  At this moment,
there is no deadline for resolution submission, though I am sure it will be
in the next 2 or 3 weeks.    

Please let me know of any issues you would like us to work on to improve
BSBP services.

Warmest Regards,

Fred

------------------------------

Message: 2
Date: Tue, 6 Oct 2020 13:19:37 +0000
From: "Susan A. Stoneman" <renaissance_susan at hotmail.com>
To: NFB of Michigan Internet Mailing List <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: Re: [NFBMI-Talk] BSBP Resolution
Message-ID:

Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

Morning, Fred:  Read your email and love the way you are approaching the
"poor, non-responsive services," for people with vision impairment or
blindness.  The way you stated this issue is exactly what I experienced with
Rosemarie and trying to get assistance with keeping my business up-to-date
and the inability to have the money to purchase a new phone and for getting
another printer.

Just wanted you to know I appreciate all your efforts and the efforts put
out by the NFB of Michigan.

Hope you and Mary are safe and protected.

Namaste  !!!

Susan A. Stoneman

renaissance_susan at hotmail.com<mailto:renaissance_susan at hotmail.com> (Primary
Account)

SusanAStoneman6915 at gmail.com

(517) 894-1577

(517)  993-6837 (Business Line Only)

[https://encrypted-tbn1.gstatic.com/images?q=tbn:ANd9GcQkiqjvjoG5vyPIUwO28_r
ADhE5Rm6E4GTj_tPGRLDh97IEwzcb3A]<http://www.google.com/url?sa=i&rct=j&q=&esr
c=s&source=images&cd=&cad=rja&uact=8&docid=gZo1l4n2GfAlCM&tbnid=Rnat0ucdbrFj
CM:&ved=0CAcQjRw&url=http://concurrentrecovery.com/see-future/&ei=ZDw0VIy_Hc
KnyASizIDQAg&bvm=bv.76943099%2cd.aWw&psig=AFQjCNF4d4USLWfJDzLwRrPrh4B680vB5Q
&ust=1412795900567120>

"I Am Not What Happened to Me, I Am What I Choose To Become."  - Carl Jung

________________________________
From: NFBMI-Talk <nfbmi-talk-bounces at nfbnet.org> on behalf of Fred Wurtzel
via NFBMI-Talk <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Sent: Tuesday, October 6, 2020 8:00 AM
To: 'NFBMI-Talk' <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Cc: Fred Wurtzel <f.wurtzel at att.net>
Subject: [NFBMI-Talk] BSBP Resolution

Hello,

Our state convention is coming up the first weekend in November.  One of the
things the NFB of Michigan does at our conventions is focus on those issues
which we wish to work on.  We do this by adopting resolutions about a topic
which we wish to speak about as an organization.  In the past we have had
resolutions on a wide variety of topics.  Our Braille Literacy Law, the
Commission for the Blind bill, State ID and many other things are examples
of how we have identified things we wish to work on and have successfully
passed into law.  At this year's virtual convention, the Resolutions
committee meeting is tentatively scheduled for Friday morning November 6.
President Powell will send out the final agenda as it is developed.

I have noticed widespread reports of poor or non-responsive services from
the BSBP, even more than usual.  I rarely hear of blind persons getting good
jobs.    I have talked to a few folks and it seems we need another
resolution specifically stating our concerns and what we expect the BSBP to
do.  For example, we asked the BSBP Director to do something to replace the
rehabilitation services eliminated when the contract with Receiving hospital
was cancelled.  To my knowledge, nothing has happened.  I am aware that some
high school graduates have not been able to transition to college because
they have not been able to jump through the BSBP hoops to go to college.

Another issue is services to seniors.  A member of ours who needs services
to work cannot get even the simplest service.  This person has been required
to complete extensive paperwork which is difficult since the person is
losing their vision and needs services for adjustment to blindness as such
services are often called.  This has been very frustrating and demoralizing
for someone who is coping with losing their vision and wishes to continue to
work to earn enough money to live on.

I know of another person who has faithfully done all that has been asked of
them and still was unable to get the training services they need to go to
work.  The counselor approved the plan but it was repeatedly blocked by
supervision.

So, I am willing to write, or help write, 1 or more resolutions to address
what appears to be a troubling difficulty to receive services from the BSBP.
I do not need a formal resolution, only the issue.  My email is
f.wurtzel at att.net <mailto:f.wurtzel at att.net> .

Steve Handschu is the Chair of the Resolutions Committee.  At this moment,
there is no deadline for resolution submission, though I am sure it will be
in the next 2 or 3 weeks.

Please let me know of any issues you would like us to work on to improve
BSBP services.

Warmest Regards,

Fred

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------------------------------

Message: 3
Date: Tue,  6 Oct 2020 18:00:41 +0000 (UTC)
From: "National Federation of the Blind" <webmaster at nfb.org>
To: <nfbmi-talk at nfbnet.org>
Subject: [NFBMI-Talk] National Federation of the Blind and Pearson
	Announce Agreement to Promote Equal Access to Education
Message-ID: <20201006180041.DBB0561012F5 at lx-web-pri.nfb.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=utf-8

 		 [1]

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE 

NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND AND PEARSON ANNOUNCE AGREEMENT TO PROMOTE
EQUAL ACCESS TO EDUCATION

_AGREEMENT TO IMPROVE ACCESSIBILITY COMES AS BLIND STUDENTS ARE INCREASINGLY
AFFECTED BY COVID-19 DISRUPTION_

BALTIMORE, MARYLAND (OCTOBER 6, 2020): The National Federation of the Blind
(NFB), the nation's leading advocate for the equal education and employment
of the blind, and Pearson, the world's learning company, have announced a
formal agreement to enhance the accessibility of Pearson's educational
products and courses, deepen Pearson's culture of accessibility, and
accelerate the effectiveness of Pearson's accessibility efforts broadly.
Ultimately the shared goal of the NFB and Pearson is to identify and remove
accessibility barriers that prevent blind students from receiving a full
learning experience. The agreement, officially announced [2] at the recent
2020 National Convention of the National Federation of the Blind, formalizes
and expands upon previous collaboration between the two organizations. The
agreement comes as blind students are being disproportionately affected by
COVID-19. 

The agreement's components include: 

 	* The National Federation of the Blind is now formally acting in a
consulting role with Pearson to inform Pearson's accessibility roadmap and
specific product remediation and to review and advise Pearson on the
accessibility roadmaps for its key higher education and assessment products.

 	* The National Federation of the Blind is helping Pearson promote a
culture of accessibility internally.
 	* Pearson is establishing a communications channel through which the
National Federation of the Blind can directly and regularly inform Pearson
about accessibility issues that blind students are experiencing. This will
help Pearson to respond and remediate barriers more quickly, and in turn
Pearson will keep the NFB apprised of resolutions.
 	* Pearson has already begun to conduct an audit of its most
important higher education products. This focuses on more than 40 of its
most widely used MyLab and Mastering courses, with the goal to identify and
remediate accessibility issues as quickly as possible. Pearson is also
conducting audits of key user journeys through the MyLab and Mastering
products, such as registration, completing homework assignments, and using
the eText, to ensure that blind students have a simple and positive
experience with these products.
 	* Pearson will share accessibility updates on its public-facing
websites and make details on accessibility status and plans available to
customers who need them.

"The National Federation of the Blind has long called upon Pearson to
improve the accessibility of its products and to be accountable for its
efforts to blind students, to parents, and to schools," said Mark Riccobono,
President of the National Federation of the Blind. "We commend Pearson for
answering that call by entering into this agreement and we look forward to
the collaboration and innovation promised by this new partnership." 

"As a leader in education, we can only fulfill our mission to serve all
learners by making our products and services accessible to the blind and all
people with disabilities. I am proud that Pearson and the National
Federation of the Blind have officially locked arms and begun working in
concert towards a more accessible future for blind learners," said Tim
Bozik, President for Global Product and North America Courseware for
Pearson. "As many blind students are being disproportionately affected by
COVID, this is an especially important time for us to advance our work
together." 

In addition to this partnership, Pearson and the National Federation of the
Blind recently expanded a Corporate Disability Mentoring Program [3] to help
blind youth learn and succeed in their careers. The expanded program is also
an opportunity for Pearson employees to learn directly from blind mentees
and better understand their lived experiences. 

### 

ABOUT THE NATIONAL FEDERATION OF THE BLIND

The National Federation of the Blind (NFB), headquartered in Baltimore, is
the oldest and largest nationwide organization of blind Americans. Founded
in 1940, the NFB consists of affiliates, chapters, and divisions in the
fifty states, Washington DC, and Puerto Rico. The NFB defends the rights of
blind people of all ages and provides information and support to families
with blind children, older Americans who are losing vision, and more. We
believe in the hopes and dreams of blind people and work together to
transform them into reality. Learn more about our many programs and
initiatives at www.nfb.org [4]. 

ABOUT PEARSON

We are the world's learning company with more than 22,500 employees
operating in 70 countries. We provide content, assessment and digital
services to learners, educational institutions, employers, governments and
other partners globally. We are committed to helping equip learners with the
skills they need to enhance their employability prospects and to succeed in
the changing world of work. We believe that wherever learning flourishes so
do people. Visit www.Pearson.com [5] for more. 

CONTACT:

Chris Danielsen
 Director of Public Relations
 National Federation of the Blind
 (410) 659-9314, extension 2330
 (410) 262-1281 (Cell)
 cdanielsen at nfb.org 

 		 [6] 
 		 [7] 
 		 [8] 
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Baltimore, MD
21230 | 410-659-9314 

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End of NFBMI-Talk Digest, Vol 172, Issue 6
******************************************