When people think about the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), most think about wheelchair ramps and handicapped parking spaces. However, recommendations for new federal standards due to be released in February, 2000, may start a lot of people thinking about ways to ensure that people with disabilities are not left behind in the information age. The standards, currently being developed by the U. S. Architectural and Transportation Barriers Compliance Board (more commonly known as the Access Board), will set forth technical and functional performance criteria for accessible electronic and information technology. The new rules will require Federal agencies to ensure that all Federal employees and members of the public seeking information from Federal agencies have access to that information which is equivalent to the access afforded individuals without disabilities, unless providing such equivalent access constitutes a provable undue burden on the agency.
In many State agencies, the computer network has become, in effect, the organization's nervous system – it is the primary way in which information is conveyed from one part of the organization to another. The e-mail message has replaced the memo, e-mail lists and forwarded e-mail messages have taken the place of buck slips, and document management and databases are beginning to replace the agency's filing cabinets.
Think about how many times a day you glance at a computer screen -- maybe to read an e-mail message, to look at a favorite web site, or to find a record in an agency database. Now imagine losing your ability to clearly see that screen. What impact do you think that would have on your ability to effectively perform your job?
This June's 29th annual Interdepartmental Committee on Electronic Data Processing (ICEDP) conference offered a session that focused on the issue of access to information technology for persons with disabilities. The Office for Technology (OFT) and the Office of the Advocate for Persons with Disabilities (OAPwD) have co-chaired a multi-agency workgroup charged with looking at this problem in State agencies and recommending potential solutions. Members of that workgroup shared some insights into the problems faced by individuals with disabilities in accessing electronic information and problems encountered by administrators and MIS personnel in their attempts to ensure that employees with disabilities are not left behind or negatively impacted by agency technology changes and upgrades. The presentation highlighted three subject areas: assistive technology, accessible systems design and accessible web site design.
Peter Crowley and Steven Leifer of the Dormitory Authority of the State of New York (DASNY) discussed what was entailed in providing Peter, who is legally blind, with the adaptive technology necessary for him to function effectively doing project management work in DASNY's Project Management Unit. The system demonstrated consisted of a standard Pentium PC with a sound card and a scanner, which gives Peter access to printed documents by using optical character recognition technology to "read" what is on the page. In addition, Peter uses several pieces of adaptive software, one program to enlarge portions of his computer screen, a"screen reader" program to provide voice output of what is on the screen, and dictation software to provide Peter with voice input capabilities.
Steven outlined the steps he went through in trying to find a solution that would work for Peter, and offered some surprising information on how little it cost to provide Peter with a system to meet his individual needs. Peter demonstrated some of the features of the assistive technology devices and software used, and briefly discussed his views on what gaining independence in the workplace has meant to him.
Mary Beth Metzger and Dick Martin from the Department of Corrections (DOCS) and Mike Gregoire from the Department of Civil Service (DCS) discussed the problems Mary Beth, who is a blind Assistant Director of Personnel, encountered when DCS switched from the text-based APPS system to the graphical NYSTEP system implemented last year. Prior to NYSTEP, Mary Beth's primary interface with her computer system was a 40-character Braille display, which translates the characters on the computer screen into Braille characters. Now, primarily because of NYSTEP, Mary Beth is moving into the Windows environment, which raises significant problems with the text-to-Braille interface she used previously.
Also, since NYSTEP displays a picture of the data being accessed rather than the actual information being used, neither her screen reader nor her Braille display could interpret NYSTEP's output for her. The group discussed their experiences in trying to find a solution for Mary Beth, and also shared some of the principles of accessible system design and counseled the audience to consider these principles when designing application systems.
In a preview of a forthcoming OFT technology policy on accessible web design, developed by the workgroup and requiring State agencies to make their web sites accessible to individuals with disabilities, Shara Bunis from the Education Department presented some of the principles of accessible Web design, based on the guidelines adopted by the Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI), a working group of the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), the international body that sets standards for HTML, the programming language of the web. Caroline Forsberg from SUNY shared some of her experiences as a blind person attempting to surf the web, and gave attendees a first-hand idea of the frustrations that an inaccessibly designed web site can pose for people with visual disabilities.
Deborah Buck from the Office of the Advocate for Persons With Disabilities provided some legal background about the State's responsibilities to ensure that persons with disabilities have access to the information and services provided by State agencies equivalent to that available to persons without disabilities. New York has guidelines in place to provide “reasonable accommodations” to State employees with disabilities. “Procedures for Implementing Reasonable Accommodations,” a booklet developed by the NYS Department of Civil Service, can be accessed online at http://www.cs.state.ny.us/pio/Reasonaccom/tocsummofreason.htm.
If an employee in your agency requires an accommodation such as adaptive equipment or assistive software in order to perform his or her job, the OAPwD’s information and referral service and TRAID Project can help you to identify organizations, consultants and vendors in your area that can help you provide the accommodation. The Advocate’s Office can also help you find businesses that can assist your agency in converting informational materials to an accessible format (e.g., Braille, audiotape or captioning). The Office can be reached at 1-800-522-4369 (Voice/TTY/Spanish); their web site can be found at http://www.state.ny.us/disabledAdvocate.
