The Front Page Blog: Blogs on Disability

By Cindy Ryan, Vice President

New Editions was pleased to honor Alan King at the 7th Annual ICT Testing Symposium in October by sponsoring the Best Paper Award for the conference in his honor. Alan, a former New Editions employee who passed away unexpectedly this year, was a leading expert in the field of digital accessibility. Alan inspired others and encouraged them to give their talents and energy to support the disability community. Alan was well respected for his innovative ideas in the accessibility field. He had a kind and compassionate attitude toward…

On April 18, 2023, the Biden-Harris Administration announced a historic, expansive set of executive directives to improve the long-term care landscape. Lack of access to affordable and high-quality long-term care is a longstanding issue in the United States that crucially impacts the lives of children, older adults, people with disabilities, and both professional and family caregivers. While advocates have been calling attention to concerns about the country’s long-term care system for decades, the COVID-19 pandemic exacerbated many of these issues and uniquely highlighted the scope of the…

As the leaves put on a daring display, we are reminded of the innovative spirit built into every cell of nature including ourselves. Innovation is at the forefront of October’s National Disability Employment Awareness Month (NDEAM), which celebrates the contributions of America’s workers with disabilities past and present and showcases supportive, inclusive employment policies and practices. This year’s NDEAM theme is “Disability: Part of the Equity Equation” echoing the spirit of the Americans who raised their voices in order to be heard and achieve advancements in equitable treatment…

July is a landmark month for the disability rights movement as the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law on July 26, 1990. This historic event was the culmination of decades of effort by Disability Rights advocates to address discrimination and have their civil rights recognized. After the passage of the ADA, the idea of Disability Pride began to take shape with celebrations and parades all over the country. Disability Pride celebrates the diversity and uniqueness of each person with a disability, as well as the disability community as a whole.

One of the most…

There has been an appropriate emphasis in recent years to educate developers on accessibility requirements outlined by the Revised 508 standards and the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). The development of a repeatable test process, like the Trusted Tester methodology New Editions helped develop, helps to ensure developers receive a consistent message as to what constitutes accessible Information and Communication Technology (ICT). These have been positive steps forward in creating accessible products. However, the focus to “shift left” that we now see beginning to happen has…

Since 1945, Congress has sought to educate the public about the role of people with disabilities in the labor force. Originally known as “National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week,” Congress broadened its celebration and instituted “National Disability Employment Awareness Month” (NDEAM) as an annual October celebration in 1988. This celebration coincides with Mental Illness Awareness Week, recognized by Congress since 1990 to educate the public about mental illness. The overlap between these two observances is particularly relevant in light of the continuing COVID-19 crisis and the…

This year is the 31st anniversary of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), signed into law on July 26, 1990, by President George H. W. Bush.  The landmark legislation prohibits discrimination against people with disabilities in employment, public transportation, telecommunications, public accommodations, and state and local government services.  Since 1990, the ADA has helped lessen discrimination and promote inclusion for people with disabilities, laying the groundwork for the Olmstead decision, the Home and Community Based Services (HCBS) Settings Rule, and other notable…

Each May, the Administration for Community Living observes Older Americans Month. In 2021 the theme is “Communities of Strength,” celebrating the resilience and strength older adults have built during lives filled with successes, failures, joys, and difficulties. The focus this year is on the power of connection and the vital role it plays in well-being. More information about the celebration of Older Americans month, as well as materials, resources, and activities related to this event can be found on ACL’s website through the link above.

As the United States population continues…

At New Editions, we believe designing and developing accessible information and communication technology should be a normal course of action. We pride ourselves on being Section 508 and WCAG 2.1 experts and leaders in the accessibility field.  New Editions provides accessibility consulting and support services to our clients to help them gain the necessary knowledge and expertise to develop fully accessible products.

Often, accessibility is somewhat of an afterthought or even completely forgotten. That’s where we accessibility experts can help. Having accessibility tools and…

According to Enchroma.com, there are approximately 300 million people around the world with some form of color blindness. Color blindness is more common in men than women with the same or similar conditions. The most common type of color blindness is Red-Green color blindness, which makes it difficult to differentiate red and blue. Less common is Blue-Yellow color blindness, which makes it difficult to differentiate between blue and green, and between yellow and red.

One of the first decisions a designer makes is selecting the color scheme for a project. This selection is an…

Cognitive, learning, and neurological disabilities are often overlooked when addressing accessibility because most designers and developers are focused on other forms of disabilities, such as visual and hearing impairments. Those who have cognitive and intellectual disabilities often find it difficult to complete certain mental tasks that may come easier to other users.  We’ve seen rapid progress in the field of digital accessibility in recent years, but more effort is needed to create and design better solutions for people with cognitive, learning, and neurological disabilities.…

Accessibility trainings, whether in-person, virtual, or a hybrid learning model, are a great way to introduce folks to what accessible information and communications technology (ICT) is, why it’s important, and how to remediate inaccessible content and create accessible content moving forward. Here are six quick tips on how to deliver a successful accessibility training.

1. Prepare a PowerPoint presentation outlining the topics that will be covered over the course of the training. Make this PowerPoint available to participants prior to the event. This allows them…

Automated Section 508 compliance web scanning software has become a popular tool for accessible code testing over the last decade. This blog will discuss some of the software’s pros and cons to determine if it’s the right tool for your organization.

Knowing where to start when it comes to Section 508 standards for the web can be overwhelming, especially if you are unfamiliar with the standards or do not have an accessibility team or web testers on staff. This is where using automated web testing software can be a good first step in testing websites before they…

Learning accessibility standards, techniques, and testing methodologies can seem overwhelming. You may not know where to start; you may need to refresh your skills; or you may want to find resources to share with colleagues to build accessibility expertise. Below are some of the many resources available to help you on your accessibility journey.

There are several resources you may wish to consider for learning what accessibility is, how users with disabilities interact with content, and overall accessibility knowledge. These resources provide a solid foundation…

“Making accessible technology is a lot like making blueberry muffins. You can’t put the blueberries in the muffin after the muffin is baked.” - Cordelia McGee-Tubb, web accessibility engineer at Salesforce

Too often, accessibility has been an afterthought and accessibility teams have been viewed as “enforcers,” rather than collaborators with shared goals – until the development of the Department of Homeland Security (DHS) Section 508 Playbook!

In the sports world, a playbook is a resource containing the team’s strategies and plays to win. The DHS Playbook provides a series of…

Virtual meetings have become so prevalent that “Zoom fatigue” is now part of our vocabulary. As we move to more virtual presentations, an often overlooked aspect is presenting content accessibly and inclusively. Captioned videos, labeled graphics, content structure, and correctly color-contrasted font are some of the major components that make the content of any virtual or in-person presentation more accessible. Accessible content, however, comprises only a half of the presentation. The other half, which is just as important but more often times overlooked, is delivering an…

In 2020, the onset of the COVID-19 virus accelerated a move to a remote and digitally dependent workforce. Many companies were able to accommodate employees working from home by providing a few technological changes and additional equipment to enable workers to maintain communication with their colleagues, supervisors, and clients. Some even found that productivity increased for employees working from home. The success of this remote workforce revealed a side benefit for people with disabilities.

People with disabilities are often overlooked by organizations because of the…

On Wednesday, October 28th, New Editions supported the Administration for Community Living (ACL) National Disability Employment Awareness Month Virtual Event (NDEAM) through our Management Support contract with the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living and Rehabilitation Research (NIDILRR). The theme of the event was “Employment Innovation: Improving Work for People with Disabilities” and the agenda highlighted the past, present and future of research to advance employment opportunities for people with disabilities. The…

Seventy-five years ago, in response to the large number of service members with disabilities returning home from World War II, Congress passed a law establishing the first week in October of each year as “National Employ the Physically Handicapped Week.” Over the years, this week-long national observance has undergone several changes in name, focus and duration: In 1962, the name was changed to “National Employ the Handicapped Week” to embrace the entire disability community. And then in 1988, the week-long national observance became the month-long event that we know and celebrate today…

New Editions is pleased to be a Silver sponsor of the 5th annual ICT TESTING SYMPOSIUM 2020. The testing symposium provides support to those tackling the issue of ensuring equal access to digital information for all members of our society, and is especially important in this time of rapid transition towards the use of online tools as a primary means of communication. This year’s conference will be online, as many conferences have converted to this year. As a leader in accessible solutions and ICT testing and remediation, we will present a paper on leveraging Trusted Tester with Test…

“Let the shameful walls of exclusion finally come tumbling down” is the directive that former President George Bush gave us when he signed the ADA into law 30 years ago, on July 26, 1990.

I graduated from the University of Maryland in 2008, and I can still recall the excitement of that day with such clarity. I remember the nervous anticipation I felt sitting in that huge auditorium with my family and friends in front of me; how surreal it felt to stand beside my fellow graduates as we took our place in the procession line; and the thrill of finally hearing my name being called. I…

Why is April 1, 2020 so important? Every residence in the U.S. should have received a letter from the U.S. Census asking them to complete information about where they live on that day. The Census is constitutionally mandated to count every individual in the U.S. every 10 years.

What’s the big deal? Every response makes a difference. Federal funding and state/local distributions for public safety, roads, education, human services, housing, emergency assistance, and more are based on individual responses. The number of individuals in a state determine…

The Centers for Medicare & Medicaid (CMS) Money Follows the Person (MFP) Demonstration Program provides funding and support for 44 state grantees to design and develop services and supports to assist individuals move from institutional to home and community-based settings. Additionally, MFP provides the foundation and framework for states to transform their systems to be more focused on home and community-based systems. 

For the past eight years, New Editions provided technical assistance to the 44 grantees. The advancements in home and community-based services that states…

Each year, the American Public Health Association (APHA) sponsors National Public Health Week. Today, April 2, kicks off the week-long celebration aimed at starting conversations and engaging communities to create a healthier nation. As an APHA member, I wanted to share this important initiative, as it impacts not only our personal and work lives, but also the work we do at New Editions for many of our clients in supporting healthy lives. This year’s theme, “Changing Our Future Together,” represents the important role…

March 8 is International Women’s Day. The theme of this year’s campaign is #PressforProgress, a call-to-action to press forward and make progress toward gender parity by uniting together in our communities, schools, legislatures, and workplaces to support a gender-inclusive environment. As a woman-owned and women-led company, New Editions celebrates the advancement and achievements of women in our office and around the world. Our leadership believes we can create a better society where everyone benefits, regardless of race, religion, age, culture, or disability and that those benefits…