Hillsborough County Public Schools Curriculum and Instruction
Action Item

DATE: Tuesday, November 18, 2008
TO: School Board Members
FROM: MaryEllen Elia, Superintendent

SUBJECT / RECOMMENDATIONS

Approve User Agreement with the National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC) (Exceptional Student Education, Florida Instructional Materials Center for the Visually Impaired FIMC-VI)

EXECUTIVE SUMMARY

We request approval of the NIMAC Limitation of Use Agreement (LUA). The Florida Department of Education (FDOE) has officially appointed the School District of Hillsborough County/Florida Instructional Materials Center for the Visually Impaired (SDHC/FIMC-VI) as Florida’s single “Authorized User” to have access to the NIMAC database. A provision in the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) of 2004 established the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) [34 CFR 300.172(a)(1).] The goal of NIMAS is to promote the development of high quality and consistent source files to be used to create specialized formats for students with print disabilities.

The U.S. Department of Education Office of Special Education Programs (OSEP) established NIMAC at the American Printing House for the Blind in Louisville, Kentucky, which has created a national repository of NIMAS source files that can be converted into accessible formats (audio, Braille, large print, digital text or text-to-speech for students with print disabilities). The responsibility of NIMAC is to retrieve files from the textbook publishers and maintain a catalog of these electronic files on the NIMAC database. Through the language of the State Textbook Adoption Contract, all textbook publishers must provide the electronic files of Florida’s textbooks to NIMAC.

All textbook orders for eligible students with print disabilities throughout the State of Florida will now flow through SDHC/FIMC-VI. One of the first responsibilities for SDHC/FIMC-VI is to sign the NIMAC LUA. Both the School Board attorney and the DOE Legal Counsel have approved the wording of the NIMAC LUA.

For the past 35 years, Hillsborough has served as the fiscal agent for FIMC-VI through a grant agreement with the FDOE.

ANNUAL DISTRICT GOAL(S) AND CRITICAL SUCCESS FACTOR(S)

* Increase promotion rates at all grade levels and the percentage of high school graduates, * Demonstrate consistent and effective teaching methods, * Motivate students to become responsible learners, * Challenge and support all students with an appropriate curriculum

FINANCIAL IMPACT (Budgeted: Yes)

Funding for the NIMAS/NIMAC activities is included within the FIMC-VI project budget which is financed by Federal IDEA funds, State General Revenue funds, and State General Revenue/Instructional Materials’ funds provided by the Florida Department of Education, Bureau of Exceptional Education and Student Services. There is no additional cost to the district.

EVALUATION

N/A

SUBMITTED BY: Suzanne A. Dalton, Supervisor, Florida Instructional Materials Center for the Visually Impaired

Joyce L. Wieland
General Director, Exceptional Student Education
(813) 273-7025
Wynne A. Tye
Assistant Superintendent, Curriculum and Instruction
(813) 272-4221
A 1.05
Hillsborough County Public Schools (Florida) * Mtg.#20081118_305 * Section A Item# 1.05