Publishers Lead National Effort to Better Serve Students with Disabilities
Publishers Lead National Effort to Better Serve Students with Disabilities
AccessText Network, Created in Collaboration with the University System of Georgia, Will Improve Student Access to College Textbook Content
(MMD Newswire) December 3, 2008 -- The Association of American Publishers (AAP) today announced its agreement with the Alternative Media Access Center (AMAC), an initiative of the Georgia Board of Regents and the University of Georgia, to develop and launch the AccessText Network, a comprehensive, national online system that will make it easier and quicker for students with print-related disabilities, such as blindness, to obtain the textbooks they need for their college courses.
“Many college students with disabilities are struggling to use required or recommended print textbooks that are essential to their course success. The new AccessText Network will improve the way electronic versions of print textbooks are delivered to campus-based disability student service (DSS) offices from publishers and streamline the permission process for scanning copies of print textbooks when publisher files are unavailable. By improving the efficiencies of our present process, AccessText will facilitate quicker access to content for more students,” said Patricia Schroeder, AAP’s president and chief executive officer.
The AccessText Network is leveraging QuickBase®, an online database powered by Intuit Inc., to enable publishers and colleges to effectively combine and share their resources and expertise to meet students’ needs. AccessText Network, scheduled for beta launch in February 2009, will ensure that institutions can more easily obtain information about publishers’ course materials, request electronic text files and use more efficient acquisition and distribution channels.
“AccessText Network is the result of a multifaceted effort that included talks with disability service professionals working on the front line, a nationwide review of current practices, exploration of existing distribution systems, and collaboration with the AAP member publishers,” said Mike Shuttic, president of the Association on Higher Education And Disability (AHEAD), the nation’s largest organization for campus-based disability service professionals. “I believe AccessText Network is a significant step forward that combines stakeholder resources and addresses the rights of students with disabilities. I encourage every member of the disability community to coalesce around this solution, ensuring its success.”
“AMAC is energized about working in conjunction with the disability community to guarantee AccessText becomes the conduit between the publishing world and post-secondary institutions' disability programs nationwide. AMAC is charged with making AccessText the national nucleus of post-secondary distribution of approved alternative textbook file exchanges, training, and technical support. Our goal is to make the college disability professional’s job easier and, in the long run, help save institutions from the high cost of producing electronic textbooks for their students with disabilities,” said Christopher Lee, Ph.D., Department Head/Director of AMAC. “We’re also extremely lucky to have Intuit’s QuickBase as the technology behind the AccessText Network helping us be successful.”
AccessText Network is being funded through donations from publishers Cengage Learning; CQ Press; Macmillan; McGraw-Hill Education; Pearson; Reed Elsevier Inc.; John Wiley & Sons; and W.W. Norton.
Media Contact:
Name : Christopher Lee
Email : leecm@uga.edu
http://www.accesstext.org
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