Q & A Corner - Issue #14

NASET Q & A Corner

Question and Answers On the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standards (NIMAS)

Introduction

NIMAS is the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard, established under sections 612(a)(23)(A) and 674(e)(4) of the IDEA. The standard is a file set that includes all information typically prepared for publishing, including metadata, images and text, and is used to produce accessible instructional materials for students who are blind or who have other print disabilities. Under IDEA, all State educational agencies (SEAs) must adopt NIMAS; however, SEAs and local education agencies (LEAs) may choose whether to coordinate with the National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC), a national repository authorized under section 674(e) of IDEA for NIMAS files received from publishers, SEAs, and LEAs. Because implementing NIMAS and NIMAC is a very complex process, is developmental in nature, and involves the integration of two Federal laws (IDEA Parts B and D, and the Chafee Amendment of 1996 to section 121 of the Copyright Act), the Office of Special Education Programs funded two national centers, the NIMAS Development Center and the NIMAS Technical Assistance (TA) Center, to help facilitate the timely implementation of NIMAS by SEAs and LEAs.

The focus of this NASET Q & A Corner is to address questions pertaining to the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard.

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