Of Quota Money and Blind Students

Of Quota Money and Blind Students

Future Reflections Spring/ Summer1989, Vol. 8 No. 2
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OF QUOTA MONEY AND BLIND
STUDENTS
by Peggy Finder
Editor's note: Peggy Finder is the President of
the National Federation of the Blind of Iowa, the
Second Vice President of the National Federation
of the Blind, and a practicing attorney. The initiative
Miss Finder discusses in this article is a very important
one to all parents and educators of blind
children. Please read it carefully and consider the
action you ought to take.
The National Federation of the Blind, a nationwide
organization of blind persons, is spearheading
an initiative to create additional opportunities
for educational materials and equipment
for blind children in America's schools. The initiative
deals with the Congressional appropriation
commonly known as the Quota money.
In 1879, the Congress passed an excellent law
providing that for each blind student in the
United States, an annual allotment for books and
supplies would be provided out of federal funds.
This allotment is now approximately $ 111.00 per
year per student. Each year Congress appropriates
a lump sum, and the amount of the
Quota is determined on the basis of the census of
legally blind students. Each school district (or
Area Education Agency) administers the funds
for children in its district.
Rather than being dispensed as cash, the Quota
is in the form of actual books and supplies from
the American Printing House for the Blind
(APH) in Louisville, Kentucky. (That is, for each
blind student in 12th grade and below, the school
can receive $111.00 worth of goods from APH
per year without charge.) In 1879, the American
Printing House was the only supplier of
transcribed books and of aids and appliances for
the blind. Today there are many such suppliers
-yet the Quota can only be used for the materials
at APH. Frequently a school finds that at APH
a given item is more expensive or in a less convenient
form than elsewhere-or not available at
all-yet to buy these items elsewhere, the school
must use its own funds.
One of the most exciting developments in the
blindness field in recent years has been the appearance
of small, "high-tech" firms, creating
useful and inexpensive devices, or producing
Braille at reduced cost. Quota money cannot be
used to purchase these books and devices because
they are not made or sold by APH. The
Federation's initiative would open these opportunities
to schools and to children.
The National Federation of the Blind is proposing
that the law be changed to allow Quota funds
to be used for the purpose of specialized
materials from any. supplier, at the discretion of
the school. We propose that the American Printing
House for the Blind continue to administer
the entire program, but that it be required to obtain
items from other suppliers as well as from its
own stock, as directed by the school. We are convinced
that this modification will update this excellent
law to make it even more helpful to blind
students in the modern environment.
If you wish to help with this important initiative,
please write your Congressional Representatives
and Senators or get in touch with the National
Federation of the Blind. Working together, we
can continue to improve the education of blind
children.
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