A r c h i v e d  I n f o r m a t i o n

Speeches and Testimony

DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION

Statement by
Tuck Tinsley III, Ed.D.
President
American Printing House for the Blind
Before the House Appropriations Subcommittee
on Labor, Health & Human Services and Education
on the
Fiscal Year 1999 Budget Request
for the American Printing House for the Blind

March 26, 1998

Mr. Chairman and Members of the Committee:

It is a pleasure for me to present the President's fiscal year 1999 budget request for the American Printing House for the Blind (APH). In 1879, Congress passed the Act to Promote the Education of the Blind, which mandates that APH, a nonprofit agency, produce and distribute specially designed and adapted educational materials necessary for precollege level blind students to have an equal opportunity to participate in their educational programs. Availability of these materials is essential in the States' provision of a public education to blind students. Thus, the Act to Promote the Education of the Blind assists State and local agencies to carry out their responsibility to ensure that all children receive a free appropriate public education, as required by the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA).

The Act to Promote the Education of the Blind designates a Board of Ex Officio Trustees, currently 158 professionals, who assure that funding for the Act is used to produce and distribute specially designed educational materials which are not otherwise available. The Ex Officio Trustees are composed primarily of representatives of State departments of education, superintendents of residential schools for the blind, and directors of instructional materials resource centers. They provide ongoing State and local input in the identification of the needs of blind students and approval of the Ex Officio Trustees is necessary for:

  1. research undertaken to identify methods to address students' needs;

  2. development and subsequent field testing of prototype educational aids/materials designed to address students' needs;

  3. actual production of the aids/materials; and

  4. followup revisions of the aids/materials as necessary.
By approving the expenditure of appropriated funds only for unique educational materials designed for blind students, the Ex Officio Trustees ensure that this program does not duplicate other programs.

The total request for funding the Act to Promote the Education of the Blind for Fiscal year 1999 is $8.256 million, an increase of $70,000 over the Fiscal year 1998 appropriation level.

EDUCATIONAL MATERIALS

The request for fiscal year 1999 includes $7.191 million to supply special educational materials to an estimated 58,205 legally blind students, an increase of $141,000 over the 1998 funding for educational materials. The number of students represents an increase of 1,515 or 2.7 percent over the number registered for fiscal year 1998.

These funds are used to produce and distribute textbooks in braille and large type, tangible teaching devices, educational tests, and special instructional aids, tools, and materials adapted for students who are legally blind. While the States are required to provide a free appropriate public education to all students with disabilities under IDEA, this appropriation ensures that a minimum level of materials is made available to the States on an annual basis to assist in the education of students who are blind.

These educational materials are distributed free on a national basis to programs serving blind students through proportional allotments based on the number of blind students in each State. An annual census is conducted by APH to identify legally blind students in each State and allotments are provided in the form of credits. Materials are selected and ordered at the local level based upon student need. Most States have developed instructional materials resource centers which act as lending libraries; thus, the materials can be reused year after year. The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act requires States to provide a free appropriate public education to students who are blind. The Act to Promote the Education of the Blind helps States to address this requirement on a nationwide basis.

ADVISORY SERVICES

The 1999 request maintains funding for Advisory Services at the 1998 level of $175,000. The appropriation for Advisory Services supports a variety of activities necessary to administer the Act. These activities include the annual census of blind students; meetings of two advisory committees, the Educational Research Advisory Committee and the Publications Advisory Committee; a required Annual Meeting of Ex Officio Trustees; the production of catalogs of educational materials produced through the Act; and field services such as consultation, in-service training, and workshops. These Advisory Services activities help to ensure that the research and development undertaken, and the special materials produced and distributed, address current and future needs of blind students. The activities also focus on ensuring that schools and educational personnel are aware of the materials available and have the knowledge necessary to use them. The request for Advisory Services also includes:
  1. $145,000 for an initiative to create an Electronic File Repository;

  2. $61,000 for a Student-Use Initiative for the CARL ET AL database;

  3. $100,000 for the continuation of the Expert Database Service begun in 1998; and

  4. $50,000 for continuation of the videotape technology project.
The request for $145,000 for 1999 for an initiative to create an Electronic File Repository supports a current national effort to expedite the provision of publishers' files to producers of alternative media. This national effort has recently gained momentum due to improvements in computer technology, braille translation software, and the passing of State braille laws requiring publishers to provide electronic files. Under this initiative, APH would create a repository of electronic files that will meet the needs of both reproduction agencies and print textbook publishers. APH would receive text converted files from publishers ready for alternative media production. The repository would also house braille translated files from APH and other alternative media reproducers.

The request for $61,000 for the CARL ET AL Student-Use Initiative will allow students, who are the ultimate consumers of the materials, to access the database. Using the upgraded CARL ET AL, students will be empowered to identify, locate, and access their educational materials as needed. CARL ET AL will become more navigable in speech access mode and will be Internet accessible. This initiative will fund the design and presentation of workshops for visually impaired students to teach them to independently use and interact with the resources available through the APH Website and CARL ET AL database.

The $100,000 requested for the continuation of the Expert Database Service begun in 1998 involves the development of an on-line database of facts, references, and resources, and will provide a user-friendly, accessible means of providing technical assistance. It will provide a services directory and location center, and a repository of information vital to those who are legally blind and to the administrators of their programs.

The 1999 request also includes $50,000 for continuation of the videotape technology project. This project has been well received, providing important information regarding products provided through the Act to the field, including individuals in isolated or remote areas.

EDUCATIONAL AND TECHNICAL RESEARCH

The request for educational and technical research is $464,000. Although $171,000 less than 1998, the $171,000 has been reallocated to other priority areas. Educational and technical research funds are used by APH to conduct a program of comprehensive research directed toward achieving its mission of providing visually impaired individuals with special media, tools, and materials needed for education and life.

The research request includes $70,000 for a new project to develop guidelines for computer administered testing of visually impaired students. Computers have become an essential tool in the realm of education, and research is increasingly being conducted in the areas of computer-administered testing and computer-adaptive testing. As research progresses on this front for the sighted population, research needs to be conducted in these areas for students who are visually impaired so they have an equal opportunity when confronted with computer administered testing situations.

In 1999, APH's educational and technical research efforts will continue to focus on:

  1. developing instructional materials and programs for teaching braille reading and writing skills;

  2. building on programs begun under the special three-year initiative to adapt nationally-used educational achievement tests for access by visually impaired students;

  3. creating materials and programs for parents and teachers to assist in the development of critical skills in visually impaired infants, and preschool, primary, and elementary students;

  4. developing materials to address the unique needs of visually impaired students with additional handicapping conditions;

  5. developing materials to assist students with low vision;

  6. developing educational software and other technological media that are accessible by blind and visually impaired students;

  7. building on programs begun under the special three-year initiative to develop educational materials for blind students in the critical areas of mathematics, science, and geography;

  8. developing core skills at the elementary and middle school levels related to career choice and preparation;

  9. developing tactile graphic educational materials; and

  10. developing materials for use in assessing visually impaired infants and preschoolers.
In providing needed materials for a very low incidence population, the Act is structured and administered to maximize federal resources in the service of local needs:

  1. needs are identified at the local level;

  2. experts in the field who serve as project consultants and evaluators are identified;

  3. research is conducted to identify the most effective methods of addressing the needs;

  4. prototype aids/materials are developed;

  5. teaching materials from the field are evaluated for potential usefulness;

  6. extensive pilot and field testing are conducted;

  7. aids/materials are manufactured and disseminated; and

  8. product review and revision, if necessary, is conducted periodically.
The American Printing House for the Blind continues to be committed to meeting the needs of blind students through the research, development, and provision of unique educational materials necessary for them to have an equal opportunity to benefit from their educational programs. The Act to Promote the Education of the Blind is a program that works. The key is the continuous commitment of direct service providers at the State and local levels, with all the obvious benefits of grass roots involvement.

Mr. Chairman, I will be glad to answer any questions concerning our fiscal year 1999 budget request.

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Last Updated -- March, 25 1998, (mjj)