[Nfbf-l] Justice Dept. Settlement
REPCODDS at aol.com
REPCODDS at aol.com
Fri Feb 5 19:54:34 UTC 2010
____________________________________
From: MisterAdvocate at aol.com
To: repcodds at aol.com
Sent: 2/5/2010 2:05:01 P.M. Eastern Standard Time
Subj: Fwd: FW: [ADA Expertise] JUSTICE DEPARTMENT REACHES THREE
SETTLEMENTS UNDER
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From: Phyllis.Dill at dbs.fldoe.org
To: bgrzesik at cfl.rr.com, brianj at advocacycenter.org, Brokerbruc at aol.com,
dawn.saunders at fldoe.org, misteradvocate at aol.com, ab4zq at juno.com,
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hullted at verizon.net, ctownsend24 at cfl.rr.com
Sent: 2/4/2010 9:18:41 A.M. Eastern Standard Time
Subj: FW: [ADA Expertise] JUSTICE DEPARTMENT REACHES THREE SETTLEMENTS
UNDER THE A
FYI Please refer to the following email and attachments. The attachments
are in a pdf file plus text. Dawn provided the information.
Subject: JUSTICE DEPARTMENT REACHES THREE SETTLEMENTS UNDER THE AMERICANS
WITH DISABILITIES ACT REGARDING THE USE OF ELECTRONIC BOOK READERS
This sends a strong message to public entities that they need to insist on
accessibility of new technologies.
____________________________________________________________________________
___
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
CRT
WEDNESDAY, JANUARY 13, 2010
(202) 514-2007
_WWW.JUSTICE.GOV_ (http://www.justice.gov/)
TDD (202) 514-1888
JUSTICE DEPARTMENT REACHES THREE SETTLEMENTS UNDER THE AMERICANS WITH
DISABILITIES ACT REGARDING THE USE OF ELECTRONIC BOOK READERS
WASHINGTON – The Justice Department today announced separate agreements
under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) with Case Western Reserve
University in Cleveland, Pace University in New York City and Reed College
in Portland, Ore., regarding the use in a classroom setting of the
electronic book reader, the Kindle DX, a hand-held technological device that
simulates the experience of reading a book.
Under the agreements reached today, the universities generally will not
purchase, recommend or promote use of the Kindle DX, or any other dedicated
electronic book reader, unless the devices are fully accessible to students
who are blind and have low vision. The universities agree that if they use
dedicated electronic book readers, they will ensure that students with
vision disabilities are able to access and acquire the same materials and
information, engage in the same interactions, and enjoy the same services as
sighted students with substantially equivalent ease of use. The agreements
that the Justice Department reached with these universities extend beyond
the Kindle DX to any dedicated electronic reading device.
These agreements follow the Jan. 11, 2010 agreement between the Justice
Department, Arizona State University, the National Federation of the Blind
and the American Council of the Blind concerning the use of electronic book
readers.
“Advancing technology is systematically changing the way universities
approach education, but we must be sure that emerging technologies offer
individuals with disabilities the same opportunities as other students,” said
Assistant Attorney General Thomas E. Perez. “These agreements underscore the
importance of full and equal educational opportunities for everyone.”
A handful of universities participated in a pilot project in cooperation
with Amazon.com Inc. to test the viability of the Kindle DX in a classroom
setting. The terms of the Justice Department’s agreement with each
university become effective at the end of the pilot projects.
The current model of the Kindle DX has the capability to read texts
aloud, so that the materials would be accessible to blind individuals, but the
device does not include a similar text-to-speech function for the menu and
navigational controls. Without access to the menus, students who are blind
have no way to know which book they have selected or how to access the
Kindle DX Web browser or its other functions. The technological “know how”
to make navigational controls or menu selections accessible is available.
Other universities, such as Syracuse University and the University of
Wisconsin at Madison, also examined the utility of the Kindle DX as a teaching
device and decided that they would not use the Kindle DX until it is
accessible to blind individuals.
In passing the ADA and the recent ADA Amendments Act, Congress found that
individuals with disabilities were uniquely disadvantaged in critical
areas, including education. It is a core priority of the Civil Rights Division
to strengthen and expand the educational opportunities for individuals
with disabilities.
The ADA prohibits discrimination by public accommodations on the basis of
disability, including discrimination in private post-secondary
institutions. Those interested in finding out more about these agreements or seeking
information about and how to comply with the ADA can call the Justice
Department’s toll-free ADA Information Line at (800) 514-0301 or (800) 514-0383
(TDD), or access its ADA Web site at _http://www.ada.gov_
(http://www.ada.gov/) .
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