On Thursday, May 26, the White House held their monthly disability call hosted by Kareem Dale, Associate Director, White House Office of Public Engagement & Special Assistant to the President for Disability Policy. Guest speakers on this month's call included Secretary of Transportation Ray LaHood; Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights at the Department of Education Russlyn Ali; and Director of Federal Contract Compliance Programs at the Department of Labor Patricia Shui.
Assistant Secretary Ali began her remarks by explaining the role of the Office of Civil Rights within the Department of Education, which is to enforce civil rights laws nationwide through their 12 regional offices. She then described the Department of Justice's June 2010 guidance that addressed the use of electronic readers for people with disabilities and the need to make learning accessible for all students.
May 26 marked another announcement from the Office of Civil Rights-that they have distributed letters and a Frequently Asked Questions document to every K-12 and post secondary school in the country to provide further clarity on the legal obligation of providing students with disabilities an equal opportunity to enjoy the benefits of technology.
For more information regarding the Dear Colleague Letter issued by ED to elementary and secondary schools, please visit this Education Department website.
To read the Dear Colleague Letter to institutions of higher education, go to this Education Department website.
The FAQ that was issued along with both Dear Colleague Letters is available at this Education Department website.
To read the June 29, 2010 letter, see it on this Education Department website.
