Assistive Technology and Accessibility

Like many organizations, New Editions has shifted to an Agile development methodology over the past few years. The business reasons are plentiful: quicker delivery and shorter release time for systems; greater collaboration and input among development team members and product owners; and earlier and more frequent review and feedback from clients and end users.

Through a subcontract with Octo Consulting, New Editions provides Section 508 support to HRConnect and its associated applications. The HRConnect Product Suite is offered as an Office of Personnel Management (OPM) officially designated Human Resources Line of Business (HRLOB), Shared Service Center (SSC). OPM’s designation enables the U.S. Department of the Treasury to offer interoperable, portable and scalable HR/payroll solutions across the federal space.

This poster highlights the many different types of services the Office of Accessible Systems & Technology (OAST) and DHS Section 508 Coordinators provide.

This poster is designed to promote the Office of Disability Employment Policy's (ODEP's) Accessible Systems Racing League (ASRL), which was created to assist federal contractors ascertain that their career sites are accessible to people with disabilities.

This is one of several banners the Office of Accessible Systems & Technology (OAST) used to promote the DHS Accessibility Help Desk at conferences, meetings and other events. This banner features a DHS employee who is blind using assistive technology (AT), and highlights the many different types of services the help desk provides.

During the first week of August, I attended a conference hosted by Aniridia Foundation International (AFI). Aniridia means “lack of the iris,” which is the colored ring around the pupil of the eye. Advances in research and development have shown that the impact of aniridia extends beyond the eye and can affect the development and maintenance of the eyes, pancreas, central nervous system, olfactory system, and parts of the brain. Aniridia is caused by a mutation of the PAX 6 gene which is now known to control development of the eyes as well as several systems in the body.

Money Follows the Person (MFP) Technical Assistance (TA) Needs Assessment is a survey that collects data on states' progress and TA needs in implementing the MFP Demonstration.

The Money Follows the Person (MFP) Technical Assistance (TA) Tracker allows MFP-related professionals to track TA requests and outcomes. It allows users to track assigned requests, reassign requests to other users, add comments to requests and more.

The Disability Equality Index (DEI) brings together the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD), the nation’s largest disability rights organization, and Disability:IN, the leading nonprofit resource for business disability inclusion worldwide, to collectively advance the inclusion of people with disabilities. The organizations are complimentary and bring unique strengths that make the project relevant and credible to corporate America and the disability community.