Instructional Resource Centers for the Blind and Visually Impaired

The Association of Instructional Resource Centers for the Blind and Visually Impaired is a collaborative group of people who work in or with media centers. Members of the group have worked with the American Foundation for the Blind in the successful passage of parts of IDEA 2004 related to the needs of students who are blind or print-handicapped to have their adapted instructional materials available at the same time as their sighted peers.

Instructional Resource Centers for the Blind and Visually Impaired (IRCBVI) are nonprofit organizations or governmental agencies that have a primary mission to provide specialized services relating to training, education, or adaptive reading or information access needs of blind or other persons with disabilities in local school districts or special school settings. Additional services are often included. These Centers and their respective representatives are considered authorized entities by the American Printing House for the Blind (APH) for the production and delivery of textbooks and instructional materials to students who are blind or have low vision.

Through IDEA 2004, states and local education agencies will soon begin to systematically plan for implementing the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Standard (NIMAS) while opting in to work with the National Instructional Materials Accessibility Center (NIMAC). AFB and the CAST NIMAS Centers suggest states and local education agencies should develop a master plan to support timely delivery of appropriate media of textbooks and instructional materials. Below is the master list of IRCBVI state contacts. Including your state contact in the planning process will support a cohesive focus for implementing IDEA with NIMAS.

As states and local education agencies revise and build their state goals for production and delivery of textbooks and instructional materials, the AFB Textbooks and Instructional Materials Solutions Forum has developed a model checklist or guidelines document that states and local education agencies may use to support their planning process.

Alabama • Alaska • Arizona • Arkansas • California • Colorado • Connecticut • Delaware • Florida • Georgia • Idaho • Illinois • Indiana • Iowa • Kansas • Kentucky • Louisiana • Maine • Maryland • Massachusetts • Michigan • Minnesota • Missouri • Mississippi • Montana • Nebraska • Nevada • New Hampshire • New Jersey • New Mexico • New York • North Carolina • North Dakota • Ohio • Oklahoma • Oregon • Pennsylvania • Rhode Island • South Carolina • South Dakota • Tennessee • Texas • Utah • Vermont • Virginia • Washington • West Virginia • Wisconsin • Wyoming

Alabama

Ms. Teresa Lacy
Alabama Instructional Resource Center
705 E. South St.
Talladega, AL 35160
256-761-3237
Lacy.teresa@aidb.state.al.us

Alaska

Ms. Nancy Nagarkar
Special Ed Service Agency
2217 East Tudor Rd., Ste. 1
Anchorage, AK 99507
907-562-7372
nnagarkar@sesa.org

Arkansas

Mr. James Caton
Arkansas School for the Blind
Instructional Resource Center
2600 West Markham
Little Rock, AR 72205
501-296-1815
jcaton@asb.k12.ar.us

Arizona

Ms. Inge Durre
Arizona Instructional Resource Center
1235 E. Harmont Dr.
Phoenix, AZ 85020
602-678-5816
idurre@the-fbc.org

California

Jonn Paris-Salb
Manager
Clearinghouse for Specialized Media & Translations
1430 N Street, Room 3207
Sacremento, CA 95814
916-323-2202
jparissalb@cde.ca.gov

Colorado

Mr. Jim Olson
Colorado Instructional Materials Center/Visually Handicapped
1015 East High St.
Colorado Springs, CO 80903
719-578-2195
jolson@csdb.org

Connecticut

Ms. Carol Mendela
Board of Education & Services for the Blind
184 Windsor Ave.
Windsor, CT O6095
860-602-4170
carol.mendela@po.state.ct.us

Delaware

Ms. Ann Hitchcock
Division for the Visually Impaired
300 Cornell Dr, Suite A3
Wilmington, DE 19801
302-577-2083
Ann.Hitchcock@state.de.us

Florida

Ms. Suzanne Dalton
Florida Instructional Materials Center/Visually Impaired
4210 W. Bay Villa Avenue
Tampa, FL 33611
813-837-7826
sdalton@fimcvi.org

Georgia

Mr. Jim Downs
Georgia Instructional Materials Center
528 Forest Parkway, Suite C
Forest Park, GA 30297
404-362-1263
jdowns@doe.k12.ga.us

Iowa

Ms. Carol Eckey
Iowa Library for the Blind and Physically Handicapped
Iowa Department for the Blind
524 Fourth Street
Des Moines, IA 50309
515-281-1285
carol.eckey@blind.state.ia.us

Idaho

Ms. Robin Swenson
Idaho School for the Deaf & Blind
1450 Main St.
Gooding, ID 83330
208-934-4457 x339
robin.swenson@isdb.idaho.gov

Illinois

Ms. Barbara Perkis
Illinois Instructional Materials Center
Chicago Lighthouse
1850 W. Roosevelt Rd.
Chicago, IL 60608
312-997-3699
barbara.perkis@chicagolighthouse.org

Indiana

Ms. Leslie Durst
Indiana Educational Resource Center
7725 N. College Ave.
Indianapolis, IN 46240
317-232-0587
ldurst@isbvik12.org

Kansas

Ms. Jackie Denk
Kansas Instructional Resource Center
1100 State Ave.
Kansas City, KS 66102
913-281-3308
JDenk@kssb.net

Kentucky

Ms. Mary Ellen Smith
Office Manager
Kentucky Instructional Materials Resource Center
1867 Frankfort Ave.
Louisville, KY 40206
502-897-1583 ext.219
502-897-8737 (fax)
maryellen.smith@ksb.kyschools.us

Louisiana

Mr. Eric Guillory
Louisiana IMC for the Blind
1230 Government St.
Baton Rouge, LA 70802
225-219-1686
EricGuillory@aol.com

Massachusetts

Ms. Carrie Brasier
Vision Resources Library
3 Randolph St. Baylies Lower
Canton, MA O2021
781-575-1843
cbrasier@mavisionlib.org

Maryland

Ms. Lisa Wright
Maryland School for the Blind Instructional Resource Center
3501 Taylor Ave.
Baltimore, MD 21236
410-319-5715

Maine

Ms. Jean Small
Catholic Charities Maine IMC
St. Michaels Center
1066 Kenduskeag Ave.
Bangor, ME O4401
207-941-2855
jeansmall@ccmaine.org

Michigan

Ms. Collette Bauman
MDE Low Incidence Outreach
1505 W. Court Street, Suite 227
Flint, MI 48503
810-760-2736
baumanc@michigan.gov

Minnesota

Ms. Jean Martin
Resource Center - Blind & Visually Impaired
615 Olof Janson Dr.
Faribault, MN 55021
507-332-5510
jean.martin@state.mn.us

Missouri

Ms. Yvonne Ali
Missouri School for the Blind
3815 Magnolia Ave.
St. Louis, MO 63110
314-776-4320 x256
yali@msb.k12.mo.us

Mississippi

Dr. Kevan Clinard
Mississippi Instructional Resource - MSB
1252 Eastover Dr.
Jackson, MS 39211
601-987-3962
kclinard@mde.k12.ms.us

Montana

Mrs. Staci Bechard
Librarian
Montana School for the Deaf/Blind
3911 Central Ave.
Great Falls, MT 59401
406-453-1401
sbechard@msdb.mt.gov

North Carolina

Drew Fairchild
Textbook Services
Financial Services/School Support
North Carolina Department of Public Instruction
6329 Mail Service Center
Raleigh, NC 27699-6329
919-715-5373
dfairchi@dpi.state.nc.us

North Dakota

Ms. Leslie Klingenstein
North Dakota School for the Blind
500 Stanford Rd.
Grand Forks, ND 58203
701-795-2709
lklingen@state.nd.us

Nebraska

Ms. Karen Duffy
Nebraska Instructional Resource Center
824 10th Ave.
Nebraska City, NE 68410
402-873-5513
kduffy@esu4.org

New Hampshire

Ms. Carrie Hoeckele
New Hampshire Education Service
117 Pleasant St.
Concord, NH O3301
603-226-2900
choeckele@tech.mv.com

New Jersey

Ms. Christine Hinton
The Meyer Center PCBVI
375 McCarter Hwy.
Newark, NJ O7114
973-648-2547
Christine.Hinton@dhs.state.nj.us

New Mexico

Dr. Kenalea Johnson
New Mexico School for the Blind and Visually Impaired
1900 North White Sands Blvd.
Alamogordo, NM 88310
505-439-4493
kjohnson@nmsbvi.k12.nm.us

Nevada

Ms. Tracy Davis
Director, Office of Special Education
700 E. Fifty Street #113
Carson City, NV 89701
775-687-9171
tdavis@doe.nv.gov

New York

Ms. Judy Piscitello
New York Resource Center/VI
2A Richmond Ave.
Batavia, NY 14020
585-343-5384 Ext 427
jpiscite@mail.nysed.gov

Ohio

Ms. Paula Mauro
Center for Instructional Supports and Accessible Materials (CISAM)
Ohio State School for the Blind
Outreach Program and Services
5220 North High Street
Columbus, OH 43214
614-644-8465
pmauro@ossb.oh.gov

Oklahoma

Ms. Teresa Kruta
Administrative Programs Officer
Accessible Instructional Materials (AIM) Center
Oklahoma Library f/t Blind & Physically Handicapped
300 NE 18th St.
Oklahoma City, OK 73105
405-522-0982
800-523-0288 (toll free)
405-521-4033 (fax)
tkruta@drs.state.ok.us

Oregon

Ms. Gail Gibbard
Willamette Educational Service District
Oregon Textbook and Media Center for the Visually Impaired
2600 Pringle Rd SE, Suite 105
Salem, OR 97302
503-540-2940
gail.gibbard@wesd.org

Pennsylvania

Ms. Cathy Nadberazny
Pennsylvania Training and Technical Assistance Network (PaTTAN)
Production Services
6340 Flank Dr.
Harrisburg, PA 17112
717-541-4960
cathyn@pattan.net

Rhode Island

Ms. Jayne Rabideau
Data Facilitator/Braillist
Rhode Island Materials Access Center
Northern Rhode Island Collaborative
640 George Washington Highway, Suite 200
Lincoln, RI 02865
401-495-2033
jrabideau@nric-ri.org

South Carolina

Jill Ischinger, Coordinator
South Carolina Instructional Resource Center
South Carolina School for the Deaf and the Blind
355 Cedar Springs Road
Spartanburg, SC 29302
864-577-7731
jischinger@scsdb.org

South Dakota

Mr. Dan Boyd
South Dakota Braille & Talking Book Library
800 Governors Dr.
Pierre, SD 57501
605-773-3131
dan.boyd@state.sd.us

Tennessee

Ms. Carol McCarroll
Resource Center for the Visually Impaired
115 Stewarts Ferry Pike
Donelson, TN 37214
615-231-7406
cmccarroll@tsb.k12tn.net

Texas

Mr. Jim Durkel
Texas School for the Blind & Visually Impaired
1100 W. 45th St.
Austin, TX 78756
512-454-8613
jimdurkel@tsbvi.edu

Utah

Ms. Lorri Quigley
Utah Educational Resource Center
742 Harrison Blvd.
Ogden, UT 84404
801-629-4810
lorriq@usdb.org

Virginia

Ms. Barbara McCarthy
Virginia Library/Resource Center
395 Azalea Ave.
Richmond, VA 23227
804-371-3661
Barbara.Mccarthy@dbvi.virginia.gov

Vermont

Ms. Judy Cardinal
Vermont Association for the Blind & Visually Impaired
37 Elmwood Ave.
Burlington, VT O5401
800-639-5861
jcardinal@vabvi.org

Washington

Ms. Colleen Lines
Instructional Resource Center for the Visually Impaired
2310 E. 13th St.
Vancouver, WA 98661
360-696-6321 x187
Colleen.lines@wssb.wa.gov

Wisconsin

Ms. Stacy Grandt
Wisconsin Center for the Blind & Visually Impaired
1700 West State St.
Janesville, WI 53546
608-758-6145
stacy.grandt@wcbvi.k12.wi.us

West Virginia

Ms. Donna See
West Virginia Instructional Resource Center
301 E. Main St.
Romney, WV 26757
304-822-4890
dbsee@access.k12.wv.us

Wyoming

Ms. Leslie Bechtel Van Orman
Wyoming Department of Education
Services for the Visually Impaired
320 W. Main
Riverton, WY 82501
307-856-5652
lvanor@educ.state.wy.us

 

For more information, contact:
American Foundation for the Blind
Mary Ann Siller, M.Ed.
Project Manager
Professional Development Department
11030 Ables Lane
Dallas, Texas 75229
469-522-1803
siller@afb.net