[Federal Register Volume 76, Number 121 (Thursday, June 23, 2011)]
[Notices]
[Pages 36907-36908]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 2011-15721]
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Advisory Commission on Accessible Instructional Materials in
Postsecondary Education for Students With Disabilities
AGENCY: U. S. Department of Education, Office of Special Education and
Rehabilitative Services, Advisory Commission on Accessible
Instructional Materials in Postsecondary Education for Students With
Disabilities.
ACTION: Notice of an open meeting and public hearing.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------
SUMMARY: The notice sets forth the schedule and agenda of the meeting
of the Advisory Commission on Accessible Instructional Materials in
Postsecondary Education for Students with Disabilities. The notice also
describes the functions of the Commission. Notice of the meeting is
required by section 10 (a) (2) of the Federal Advisory Committee Act
and is intended to notify the public of its opportunity to attend.
DATES: Open Meeting: July 11-12, 2011.
Public Hearing: July 12, 2011.
Time: July 11, 2011: The open meeting will occur from 8:30 a.m.-5
p.m.
July 12, 2011: The open meeting will occur from 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m.
The public hearing will take place from 4 p.m. to 9 p.m.
ADDRESSES: The Sheraton Seattle, 1400 6th Avenue, Seattle, Washington
98101.
FOR FURTHER INFORMATION CONTACT: Elizabeth Shook, Program Specialist,
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, United States
Department of Education, 550 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20202;
telephone: (202) 245-7642, fax: 202-245-7638.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION: The Advisory Commission on Accessible
Instructional Materials in Postsecondary Education for Students with
Disabilities (the Commission) is established under Section 772 of the
Higher Education Opportunity Act, Public Law 110-315, dated August 14,
2008. The Commission is established to conduct a comprehensive study,
which will--(I) ``Assess the barriers and systemic issues that may
affect, and technical solutions available that may improve, the timely
delivery and quality of accessible instructional materials for
postsecondary students with print disabilities, as well as the
effective use of such materials by faculty and staff; and (II) make
recommendations related to the development of a comprehensive approach
to improve the opportunities for postsecondary students with print
disabilities to access instructional materials in specialized formats
in a time frame comparable to the availability of instructional
materials for postsecondary nondisabled students.''
In making recommendations for the study, ``the Commission shall
consider--(I) How students with print disabilities may obtain
instructional materials in accessible formats within a time frame
comparable to the availability of instructional materials for
nondisabled students; and to the maximum extent practicable, at costs
comparable to the costs of such materials for nondisabled students;
(II) the feasibility and technical parameters of establishing
standardized electronic file formats, such as the National
Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard as defined in Section
674(e)(3) of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act, to be
provided by publishers of instructional materials to producers of
materials in specialized formats, institutions of higher education, and
eligible students; (III) the feasibility of establishing a national
clearinghouse, repository, or file-sharing network for electronic files
in specialized formats and files used in producing instructional
materials in specialized formats, and a list of possible entities
qualified to administer such clearinghouse, repository, or network;
(IV) the feasibility of establishing market-based solutions involving
collaborations among publishers of instructional materials, producers
of materials in specialized formats, and institutions of higher
education; (V) solutions utilizing universal design; and (VI) solutions
for low-incidence, high-cost requests for instructional materials in
specialized formats.''
The Commission will meet in open session on Monday and Tuesday, and
will review and discuss the first draft of the Commission's report to
the Secretary and Congress. The Commission will also receive briefings
from subject matter experts on several different topics of interest.
The purpose of the public hearing is for the Commission to receive
information from its stakeholders on issues pertaining to accessible
instructional materials in postsecondary education. The public hearing
session will address issues related to law, technology, the market
model, and low-incidence/high-cost materials. Additionally, the public
hearing will focus on individual experiences related to accessible
instructional materials in postsecondary education.
Detailed minutes of the meeting and hearing, will be available to
the public within 14 days of the meeting. Records are kept of all
Commission proceedings and are available for public inspection at the
Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services, United States
Department of Education, 550 12th Street, SW., Washington, DC 20202,
Monday-Friday during the hours of 8 a.m. to 4:30 p.m.
Additional Information
Individuals who will need accommodations for a disability in order
to attend the meeting (e.g., interpreting services, assistive listening
devices, or material in alternative format) should notify Elizabeth
Shook at (202) 245-7642, no later than June 30, 2011. We will make
every attempt to meet requests for accommodations after this date, but,
cannot guarantee their availability. The meeting site is accessible to
individuals with disabilities. Participants who wish to comment at the
public hearing are encouraged to register in advance by calling Janet
Gronneberg at CAST at 781-245-2212 (voice) or 781-245-9320 (TTY) or
[email protected] by June 30, 2011. The Commission requests that
organizations with multiple participants designate no more than one
individual to speak on its behalf. Participants who will be testifying
in person must report to the hearing registration desk at least thirty
minutes prior to their scheduled
[[Page 36908]]
time. A period of time will be reserved for individuals who choose to
not register in advance. Participation in the hearing for unregistered
participants will be subject to availability. Comments should be
limited to five minutes per person or organization, but participants
have the option of supplementing their testimony with written
statements that will be part of the official hearing record. The
Commission will have technology to facilitate PowerPoint presentations
as needed.
Members of the public who would like to offer comments as part of
the public hearing remotely may submit written comments to
[email protected] or by mail to Advisory Commission on Accessible
Instructional Materials in Postsecondary Education for Students with
Disabilities, 550 12th St., SW., Room PCP-5113, Washington, DC 20202.
All submissions will become part of the public record.
Members of the public also have the option of participating in the
open meeting and public hearing remotely. Remote access will be
provided via an Internet webinar service utilizing VoiP (Voice Over
Internet Protocol). For the July 11th, 2011 portion of the meeting from
8:30 a.m.-5 p.m., the URL is https://aimpsc.ilinc.com/join/yvbmysr. The
login will be available to the public starting at 8 a.m. (Pacific). On
July 12th, the URL will be https://aimpsc.ilinc.com/join/bbmtzsh for
the Commission meeting from 8:30 a.m.-3:30 p.m., and the login will be
open to public at 8 a.m. (Pacific).
The URL for the public hearing portion of the meeting from 4 p.m.-9
p.m. will be https://aimpsc.ilinc.com/join/yvbmyjr. The login will open
to public at 3:45 p.m. (Pacific). Login information is also provided
via the Commission's public listserv at [email protected] and
posted at the following site: http://www2.ed.gov/about/bdscomm/list/aim/index.html.
Electronic Access to this Document: You may view this document, as
well as all other documents of this Department published in the Federal
Register, in text or Adobe Portable Document Format (PDF) on the
Internet at the following site: http://www.ed.gov/news/fedregister/index.html. To use PDF you must have Adobe Acrobat Reader, which is
available free at this site. If you have questions about using PDF,
call the U.S. Government Printing Office (GPO), toll free at 1-866-512-
1800; or in the Washington, DC area at 202-512-0000.
Dated: June 20, 2011.
Alexa Posny,
Assistant Secretary, Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative
Services.
[FR Doc. 2011-15721 Filed 6-22-11; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 4000-01-P