Accessibility Issues and Solutions for Single Entry Points for Community Living Services Fulfilling the Promise of Community Living: Second Annual Systems Change Conference Baltimore, MD March 25-26, 2002 National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research Steven Tingus Director Organization Details Office of Special Education and Rehabilitative Services (OSERS) includes: • Rehabilitation Services Administration (RSA) • Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) • National Institute on Disability and Rehabilitation Research (NIDRR) Legislative Authority: • Title II, Rehabilitation Act, as amended • Assistive Technology Act of 1998 NIDRR's Statutory Charge To support research to maximize the self-sufficiency of individuals with disabilities of all ages President Bush's New Freedom Initiative For Persons with Disabilities • Increasing Access to Assistive and Universally Designed Technologies • Expanding Educational Opportunities • Integrating Americans with Disabilities into the Workforce • Promoting Full Access to Community Life Population Issues: An Overview • 29% of American families have at least one member with a disability • 10% of Americans have a "severe" disability • 50% of Americans aged 65 or older have a disability • 13.1 million Americans use assistive technology to overcome complications created by mobility, hearing, vision, and speech disabilities Types of Disabilities That Could Impact Single Point of Entry Programs • Low Vision or Blindness • Deaf or Hard of Hearing • Physical Disabilities • Speech Disabilities • Cognitive Disabilities ACCESS ISSUES: Intersection with Single Point of Entry Principles • Respectful treatment for all • Need for useful information and services • Ability to navigate the system • Citizen confidence Primary Interface Mechanisms • Printed Materials • Telecommunications, e.g., 800-numbers • Computer/web-based applications Overarching Concept: Universal Design Universal Design - a concept whereby products and environments are designed with built-in flexibility so they are usable by all people, to the greatest extent possible, without the need for adaptation or special design Key concepts: • Interchangeability • Compatibility of components • Modularity • Simplification Printed Materials: Overview and Suggestions/Resources • Large Print • Audio Tapes • Braille • Diskette • CD-ROM/DVD Telecommunications: Key Issues • Can individuals with disabilities use the telephone to access services and to navigate single entry systems? • Distinction between public and private settings • NIDRR-funded analysis of possible solutions in public settings raises the possibilities for private settings as well Telecommunications:Key Design Principles • At any point in time, there are a finite number of information items and control choices that a user has to work with • Should combine discoverability, simplicity, and speed • Standard controls cannot easily be identified by people who have difficulty seeing, reading, or understanding symbols • Some people cannot perform simultaneous/ chorded functions • Access features must be easy to learn and to comprehend Telecommunications: EZ Access Features EZ Access is an example of interface enhancements that can be applied to almost any electronic device in a manner that is inexpensive to implement, easy to learn, and transferable between devices • Button Help (layered help) • 3-Button-List feature (access to all labels, displays, and controls) • Show Sounds feature Phone Design Meeting FCC Proposed Access Requirements World Wide Web World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) • Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 1.0 (WCAG 1.0) • http://www.w3.org/TR/WAI-WEBCONTENT • http://www.w3org/WAI World Wide Web Content Accessibility Guidelines - Priority 1 • Provide equivalent alternatives to auditory and visual content • Ensure that text and graphics are understandable when viewed without color • Clarify natural language usage (improves readability and assists AT devices such as speech synthesizers and Braille devices with automatically switching to new language) • Organize documents so they may be read without style sheets • Ensure that equivalents for dynamic content are updated when the dynamic content changes • Use the clearest and simplest language • Avoid causing the screen to flicker Rehabilitation Engineering Research Centers • Technologies for Successful Aging • Telecommunications Access • Hearing Enhancement • Information Technology Access • Universal Design and the Built Environment (2) • Mobile Wireless Technologies Resources • http://www.section508.gov • http://www.access-board.gov • http://www.loc.gov/nls/guidelines.htm • http://www.large-print.net • http://www.nfb.org/tech/largept.htm Regulatory Requirements That May Impact Single Point of Entry Programs • Title II of the Federal Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA) provides that no qualified individual with a disability shall, by reason of such disability, be excluded from participation in or be denied the benefit of services, programs, or activities of a public entity, or be subjected to discrimination by any such entity. Requirements are generally the same as those applicable to recipients of federal funds under the federal Rehabilitation Act of 1973 Regulatory Requirements That May Impact Single Point of Entry Programs • Section 508, of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 as amended, Accessibility Requirements: When Federal agencies develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology, Federal employees with disabilities must have comparable access to and use of information and data as employees who have no disabilities • Section 255 of the Telecommunications Act of 1996 requires telecommunication service providers and equipment manufacturers to make their services and equipment accessible to persons with the full range of disabilities to the extent that it is readily achievable Accessible NIDRR Web Pages • NIDRR Home page: http://www.ed.gov/offices/OSERS/NIDRR • National Center for the Dissemination of Disability Research Home page: http://www.ncddr.org • National Rehabilitation Information Center Home page: http://www.naric.com/naric