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On the Cover

Jonathan McCarty, student at the Kentucky School for the Blind, uses the Braille+^TM. Introduced by APH during fiscal year 2007, the Braille+ Mobile Manager is a revolutionary, hand-held device similar to a PDA. The Braille+ has a braille keyboard and allows students or adults to:

• Stay connected with a wireless web browser and email
• Manage appointments with a calendar and address book
• Create documents in a word processor
• Record lectures
• Read audio book, or listen to music

2007 Annual Report
October 1, 2006 — September 30, 2007
American Printing House for the Blind, Inc.

• INTRODUCTION TO THE AMERICAN PRINTING HOUSE FOR THE BLIND
• MISSION STATEMENT
• CORPORATE SECTION
  • Officers, Trustees, and Committees—Fiscal Year 2007
  • Financial and Production Highlights
  • Executive Report
• ADMINISTRATION OF THE FEDERAL APPROPRIATION SECTION
  • Secretary's Report
  • Highlights from the 2007 APH Annual Meeting
  • Reports from the Ex Officio Trustee Advisory Committees of APH
    • Report from the Nominations Committee
    • Report from the Educational Services Advisory Committee
    • Report from the Educational Products Advisory Committee
  • Distribution of Eligible Students for Fiscal Year 2007, Based on the Federal Quota Census of January 2, 2006
  • Agencies for the Education of the Visually Impaired in the United States Receiving Federal Quota Funds Due Under An Act to Promote the Education of the Blind, Fiscal Year 2007
• DEVELOPMENT SECTION
  • Department of Development and Magazine Services
• FINANCIAL SECTION
  • Revenue Statement
  • Statements of Financial Position
  • Statements of Activities and Changes in Net Assets
  • Statements of Cash Flows
  • Schedules of Costs of Products Distributed, General and Administrative, Program Support, and Fund-raising and Developmental Functional Expenses

Introduction

SERVICE SINCE 1858

The American Printing House for the Blind (APH) has served our nation's blind and visually impaired citizens since before the Civil War. Founded in 1858, APH is the oldest company in the U.S. dedicated to creating products for people who are blind or visually impaired and is the largest organization of its kind in the world.

EXTENSIVE RANGE OF PRODUCTS

APH's product lines uphold our mission and include a wide variety of unique educational and daily living items. Some examples of our hundreds of products include: accessible textbooks and tests; large print organizers; braille teaching programs; talking educational software; tactile graphics tools; and science teaching kits.

These offerings are detailed in our comprehensive Products Catalog, organized into the National Agenda's core and expanded core curriculum instructional areas. APH also provides specialized catalogs: Daily Living, Family Life, Bookstore, and Assessments. In addition, we offer the APH Demo Disc, which includes accessible catalogs and demo versions of our software.

Specialty products, such as audio books and braille restaurant menus, are created by APH for commercial customers. In addition, APH makes custom-ordered materials on demand, such as single copies of enlarged print textbooks.

In partnership with the field of blindness, the APH Department of Research supports the creation of a wide range of products by maintaining ongoing research and development activities.

UNIQUE SERVICES OFFERED

Examples of services offered by APH include:

• The APH News monthly newsletter featuring the latest information on APH products and services
• The Louis accessible materials database, including the APH File Repository
• NIP Training Events: APH partners with Ex Officio Trustees and others to provide National Instructional Partnership events across the country. Contracted experts create and present expanded instruction on the use of specific APH products in educational settings and across educational curricula.
• Accessible Magazines: APH offers a free subscription service for accessible editions of Reader's Digest^® and Newsweek^®. Donations are accepted to defray costs.

CORPORATE STATUS AND MANDATE

APH is a private, nonprofit 501(c)(3) corporation. Responsibility for its administration rests with:

• Corporate Trustees chosen from the local business and professional community
• Ex Officio Trustees from educational and rehabilitation entities that serve students who are visually impaired or blind across the United States.

APH voluntarily complies with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 that sets the business standards for corporate governance and financial disclosure.

Much of APH's mandate is derived from the federal Act to Promote the Education of the Blind of 1879. This act designates APH as the official supplier of educational materials to all eligible blind students in the United States working at less than college level.

For additional information on APH and its full range of products and services that support products, visit www.aph.org.

Mission Statement

The American Printing House for the Blind promotes independence of blind and visually impaired persons by providing specialized materials, products, and services needed for education and life.

Officers, Trustees and Committees

W. James Lintner, Jr.,
Board Chairman

CORPORATE TRUSTEES

• Charles Barr, M.D.
• S. Gordon Dabney
• George N. Gill
• Jane Hardy
• Virginia T. Keeney, M.D.
• Julie S. Lee, M.D.
• W. James Lintner Jr.
• W. Barrett Nichols
• Herbert W. Perkins III
• Tuck Tinsley III, Ed.D.
• Darrell R. Wells
• Albert C. Horton, Trustee Emeritus
• J. A. Paradis, Trustee Emeritus
• J. A. Paradis III, Trustee Emeritus
• JoAnn Paradis, Trustee Emerita

CORPORATE OFFICERS

• W. James Lintner Jr., Chairman
• S. Gordon Dabney, Vice Chairman
• Darrell R. Wells, Treasurer
• Tuck Tinsley III, Ed.D., President
• William G. Beavin, Vice President of Finance and Secretary
• Robert B. Brasher, Vice President of Advisory Services and Research
• Jack N. Decker, Vice President of Production
• Donald J. Keefe, Vice President of Development
• J. Gary Mudd, Vice President of Public Affairs

EX OFFICIO TRUSTEES

Ex Officio Trustees are responsible for the administration of the federal Act to Promote the Education of the Blind of 1879. The Ex Officio Trustees are the executive heads of schools for the blind, the chief state school officers of each state department of education, or the executive officers of other agencies serving the blind. If they choose, these executives may designate the Trusteeship to an appropriate professional within their organizations.

EX OFFICIO TRUSTEE ADVISORY COMMITTEES OCTOBER, 2006 - OCTOBER, 2007

The name of each member is followed by his or her term expiration date.

EDUCATIONAL SERVICES ADVISORY COMMITTEE

• Jean Martin, Chair, Minnesota, 2007
• Michael Bina, Massachusetts, 2008
• Jacqueline Denk, Kansas, 2007
• James Downs, Georgia, 2007
• Barbara L. Perkis, Illinois, 2008

EDUCATIONAL PRODUCTS ADVISORY COMMITTEE

• Joseph Catavero, Chair, New York, 2007
• Bernadette Kappen, Pennsylvania, 2007
• Nancy Niebrugge, California, 2009
• Lorri Quigley, Utah, 2008
• Steven M. Rothstein, Massachusetts, 2009
• Dean Stenehjem, Washington, 2008
• Tom Winton, North Carolina, 2007
• Jean Small, Maine, 2007, Alternate for Both Committees

Financial and Production Highlights 2007

Revenue Dollar

• 64.2% Federal Quota
• 19.8% Other
• 3.6% Nongovernment Contracts
• 12.4% NLS and Other Federal Agencies

Types of Products Sold

• 52.0% Educational and Other Aids
• 14.6% Braille Publications
• 25.4% Large Type Publications
• 8.0% Recorded Publications

APH PRODUCTION HIGHLIGHTS

Braille Pages Produced

• FY 2007 — 15,572,224
• FY 2006 — 13,905,171
• FY 2005 — 18,617,043

Pages Printed in Large Type Department

• FY 2007 — 21,280,097
• FY 2006 — 21,270,306
• FY 2005 — 21,927,314

Audio Cassettes Produced

• FY 2007 — 1,694,058
• FY 2006 — 1,843,279
• FY 2005 — 3,363,784

Executive Report

Tuck Tinsley III,
APH President

2007 was another excellent year for the American Printing House for the Blind with significant demand for new products introduced and net assets exceeding $100 million for the first time in APH's history. While our attention was focused on products and product-related services throughout the year, during the last quarter, we began planning activities to recognize and celebrate APH's 150th anniversary in 2008.

A record 84 new products were made available for purchase during fiscal year 2007. At year-end, Research Department staff members were working on 225 products in pre-production status. In addition, 19 product concepts had been approved by the Product Evaluation Team and were awaiting project leaders to begin development, and 28 product ideas had been "screened in," but not yet reviewed by the Product Evaluation Team.

PRODUCTION HIGHLIGHTS

• New Products — The 84 new catalog items included many popular products, such as the Braille+^TM Mobile Manager, Building on Patterns, Reclaiming Independence, MathBuilders Unit 1, and Address: Earth: Large Format Color Atlas.
• Assessment Tests — 500 state, district, and alternate assessments were reviewed, edited, and produced in contracted braille, uncontracted braille, tactile graphics, large print, and/or audio formats.
• Braille Production — During 2007, we facilitated the transcription of 100 new textbook titles.
• Braille Transcribers — We continue to identify and provide training to increase the number of certified transcribers. At year end, APH utilized a pool of 372 National Library Service (NLS) Certified Transcribers in textbook transcription activities.

PRODUCT-RELATED SERVICES/OUTREACH ACTIVITIES

• Webcasts — We provided 26 webcasts on a variety of APH products, services, and programs, including tactile graphics, the National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC), and the Braille+^TM Mobile Manager.
• File Repository — The APH File Repository increased by 16% to 5,685 electronic textbooks in 2007.
• Databases — At year end, the Louis Database contained 140,161 records describing accessible resources; the Accessible Media Producers (AMP) Database had 216 listings for accessible media producers, up 12% from 2006; and Fred's Head contained over 3,000 tips, techniques, and resources by and for blind people.
• Fred's Head Companion — This blog site republishes the records in Fred's Head so they are pushed out to users rather than users having to come to the database. The blog averaged over 6,900 unique visitors per month in 2007.
• Presentations — APH staff made 96 formal presentations at 55 conferences and meetings during 2007. APH exhibited at 44 separate venues during the year.
• National Instructional Partnerships (NIPs) — We hosted seven NIP events led by contracted experts from around the country and focused on the use of APH products to teach skills across the areas of the core curriculum and expanded core curriculum.
• Teacher Training — Hands-on product training sessions were provided for teacher training programs at the University of Alabama at Birmingham, Portland State, Vanderbilt, and Middle Tennessee State.
• University Loan Program — Ten universities borrowed APH products for pre-service teacher training. This program allows each program to borrow up to 25 products for a period of six weeks.
• Catalogs — Four major catalogs were published in 2007: APH Products, Bookstore, Demo Disc CD-ROM, and APH's first-ever Assessment Catalog. Accessible editions were created on discs and for the website.

OTHER ACTIVITIES OF SIGNIFICANCE

• NIMAC — As part of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Improvement Act of 2004, APH was designated as "The National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC)," a repository of publishers' files of K-12 textbooks. The NIMAC opened on schedule on December 3, 2006.
  
  Funded as a special project by the United States Department of Education, the NIMAC is not part of the Act to Promote the Education of the Blind. Year-end statistics included: over 2,000 files available for downloading; 475 files were downloaded; contracted participants included 40 states, 37 publishers, and 43 alternative media producers.
  
  
• Expert Panel Review — In November 2006, seven research experts reviewed 10 randomly selected new products introduced by APH in FY 2006. The review was part of the federal government's Program Accountability Results Tool, which included an on-site visit by USDOE representatives in the spring of 2007.
• Executive in Residence — Dr. Cay Holbrook, Program Coordinator in Visual Impairment at the University of British Columbia, served as APH's first Expert in Residence. She provided support and counsel for the research department and assisted with several key projects.

DATA FROM THE FY2007 FEDERAL QUOTA CENSUS

Data for 2007 regarding the Act to Promote the Education of the Blind indicate the number of legally blind students registered was 57,696, a decrease of 0.5% (287) from the number registered for FY 2006. The 2007 appropriation provided $240.44 per student for educational materials, a 1.0% increase over the $237.91 per capita allocation in 2006. Of the 57,696 students, 10% (5,626) were registered as braille readers, 27% (15,303) as visual readers, 7% (3,942) as auditory readers, 34% (19,793) as non-readers, and 23% (13,032) as pre-readers. Of this group, 83% (48,080) were registered by state departments of education, 9% (5,085) were registered by residential schools for the blind, 5% (2,791) were registered by rehabilitation programs, and 3% (1,740) were registered by multiple disabilities programs.

Congress was unable to finalize a budget for 2007; therefore, federally funded programs operated under Continuing Resolutions throughout the year, maintaining appropriations at 2006 levels. Although APH requested $20 million for 2007, the appropriation was $17.5 million, the same as 2006.

GOVERNANCE

APH's Board voluntarily complies with the provisions of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002, which sets the busines standards for corporate governance and financial disclosure for for-profit companies. APH engaged Cotton & Allen Certified Public Accountants and Consultants to audit APH's 2007 financial statements and prepare the 2007 annual income tax return, Form 990, for a fee not to exceed $27,135.

CLOSING

As we look to APH's 150th year, we are reminded of the progress of our field and the progress of APH. In 1858, the only education for blind students was within the 20 residential schools that served 1,000 students. Today there are over 58,000 legally blind students under college level in the United States, with the great majority educated in their local public school programs. APH was founded solely to emboss books in raised letters. APH products now include braille, large print, recorded books and magazines, and over 1,100 unique manufactured products — including a wide variety of educational and daily living products, and electronic devices that encompass 21st century technology.

One aspect of APH that will remain as constant in 2008 as it was on January 23, 1858, when the Kentucky General Assembly established this corporation, is our commitment to provide information in appropriate media to people who are blind. We still work to "level the playing field" for all people with vision loss as we implement the current APH mission: "To promote the independence of blind and visually impaired persons by providing specialized materials, products, and services needed for education and life."

In closing, we salute our Ex Officio Trustees for the extremely important role they play in the administration of the Act. Special recognition must also be paid to members of APH's corporate Board of Trustees for their strong support and guidance. And finally, we thank APH's greatest resource — the APH employees — for their hard work, dedication, and "can do" attitudes.

Respectfully submitted,
W. James Lintner, Jr., Chairman
Tuck Tinsley III, President

SECRETARY'S REPORT

SECRETARY'S REPORT, 2007 FORMAL MEETING OF EX OFFICIO TRUSTEES

The 139th Formal Meeting of the Ex Officio Trustees of the American Printing House for the Blind convened at 12:00 p.m.,October 13, 2007, at the Marriott Downtown in Louisville, Kentucky. The following conferees were present:

EX OFFICIO TRUSTEES ATTENDEES

• Yvonne Ali (MO)
• Dee Amundsen (WA)
• Dorothy Arensman (GA)
• Barbria Bacon (NC)
• Collette Bauman (MI)
• Michael Bina (MA)
• Dan Boyd (SD)
• Madeleine Burkindine (KS)
• Joseph Catavero (NY)
• Laraine Caton (NY)
• Irina Chernyak (MD)
• Mike Cole (CA)
• Derrick Cox (KY)
• Suzanne Dalton (FL)
• William Daugherty (TX)
• Jacqueline Denk (KS)
• James Downs (GA)
• Karen Duffy (NE)
• Inge Durre (AZ)
• Jim Durst (IN)
• Leslie Durst (IN)
• Steve Gettel (MT)
• Gail Gibbard (OR)
• Sally Giittinger (NE)
• Dottie Goodman (TX)
• Stacy Grandt (WI)
• Ann Hicks (CO)
• Robert Hill (AZ)
• Jeremiah Holiday (WI)
• Michael Hooley (IA)
• Cathy Johnson (KY)
• Julie Kagy (NC)
• Bernadette Kappen (PA)
• Jerry Kitzhoffer (NJ)
• Teresa Kruta (OK)
• Jean Martin (MN)
• Carol McCarroll (TN)
• Barbara McCarthy (VA)
• Marty McKenzie (SC)
• Cheryl Misialek (ND)
• Nancy Niebrugge (CA)
• James Oldham (TN)
• Barbara Perkis (IL)
• Rosie Pridgen (MS)
• Lorri Quigley (UT)
• Todd Reeves (PA)
• John Roberts (KY)
• Steven Rothstein (MA)
• Donna See (WV)
• Patsy Shank (WA)
• Frank Simpson (NY)
• Jean Small (ME)
• Dean Stenehjem (WA)
• James Sucharski (MO)
• Carmen Suminski (ND)
• Robin Swenson (ID)
• Louis Tutt (CO)
• Tom Winton (NC)
• Stuart Wittenstein (CA)

APH STAFF ATTENDEES

• Ralph Bartley
• Bill Beavin
• Janie Blome
• Scott Blome
• Bob Brasher
• Jack Decker
• Don Keefe
• Mary Nelle McLennan
• Gary Mudd
• Julia Myers
• Kathy Smiddy
• Jane Thompson
• Tuck Tinsley

The meeting was opened with a welcome from Dr. Tuck Tinsley III, President and member of APH's Board of Trustees. Ex Officio Trustees and APH staff in attendance introduced themselves and the organizations and departments they represented.

MINUTES OF THE BUSINESS MEETING

COMPANY UPDATE

Dr. Tinsley thanked Ex Officio Trustees for their attendance and stressed the importance of their participation in Annual Meeting.

Barbara Perkis, Ex Officio Trustee representing the Illinois Instructional Material Center was invited by Dr. Tinsley to report on the successful efforts to increase state funding of her agency.

Dr. Tinsley provided a brief state-of-the-company report, including information on the following topics:

• Continuing Resolution for FY2007 federal funding
• APH's Expert-in-Residence program
• Increase in number of APH products brought to market
• Legislative efforts regarding the National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC), which is not part of the Act to Promote the Education of the Blind
• 2008 Continuing Resolution, but currently flat funded
• U.S. Department of Education's on-site review of APH
• Panel of Experts review of APH product development activities
• The crucial role played by Ex Officio Trustees.

APPROVAL OF COMMITTEE NOMINEES

Jerry Kitzhoffer, Chair of the Nominations Committee and Ex Officio Trustee representing St. Joseph's School for the Blind, presented the committee's slate of nominees for chairpersons and members of the two standing advisory committees, as follows:

EDUCATIONAL PRODUCTS ADVISORY COMMITTEE (EPAC)

Tom Winton, North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, was nominated as EPAC Chairman for 2007. Suzanne Dalton, Florida State Department of Education, and Stacy Grandt, Wisconsin School for the Visually Handicapped and Education Services for the Visually Impaired, were nominated to serve as EPAC members for three-year terms.

EDUCATIONAL SERVICES ADVISORY COMMITTEE (ESAC)

Jacqueline Denk, Kansas State Board of Education, was nominated as ESAC Chairman for 2007. Angyln Franquemont, Arkansas State Department of Education, and Frank Simpson, Lavelle School for the Blind, were nominated to serve as ESAC members for two-year terms.

James Downs, Georgia State Department of Education, was nominated as the alternate committee member for both EPAC and ESAC.

A motion to accept the slate of nominees was made, seconded, and unanimously passed.

APPROVAL OF ADVISORY COMMITTEE REPORTS

Joe Catavero, 2007 EPAC Chairman and Ex Officio Trustee representing the New York Institute for Special Education, and Jean Martin, 2007 ESAC Chairman and Ex Officio Trustee representing the Minnesota State Department of Education, recognized each of their committee members and requested approval of the reports previously distributed to the Ex Officio Trustees. A motion to accept the reports as offered was made, seconded, and passed unanimously.

Bob Brasher and Janie Blome acknowledged Jean Small, Ex Officio Trustee representing the Maine Division for the Blind and Visually Impaired, who served as the alternate Advisory Committee Member; and the Advisory Committee Member Chairs, Joe Catavero and Jean Martin.

Bob Brasher and Janie Blome provided the closing remarks. The meeting was adjourned at 1:45 p.m.

Respectfully submitted,
Bill Beavin,
Secretary

Reports from the Ex Officio Trustee Advisory Committees of APH are provided in this annual report.

HIGHLIGHTS FROM THE 2007 APH ANNUAL MEETING

"APH and Ex Officio Trustees: Expanding the Core"

Millie Smith, retired teacher and consultant, (TX), right, winner of the Zickel Award for product development, is congratulated by APH's Janie Blome, left, and Tristan Pierce.

Elizabeth Carroll (center), First Place Preschool/Kindergarten award winner from the 2007 APH InSights Art Competition, is accompanied by her family.

Eleanor Pester, APH, offers an important comment to Lou Tutt, Principal, Colorado School for the Deaf and the Blind, and Mike Cole, Administrator, Orientation Center for the Blind, (CA).

APH Product Consultant Edith Ethridge (KY), shares at the annual Information Fair about a new product in development.

Bill Daugherty, Superintendent, Texas School for the Blind, left, facilitated the opening session after a welcome by APH President, Tuck Tinsley, right. They are flanking keynote speaker Dr. Phil Hatlen, retired Superintendent of the Texas School.

The landmark ABC Braille Study was unveiled at Annual Meeting. Study contributors are: back row: Ralph Bartley (KY); Tom Winton (NC), Session Facilitator; Tessa Wright-Carlsen (TN); Deb Sitar, Canada; Eleanor Pester (KY); Cheryl Kamei Hannan (CA); John Aicken (KY). Seated: Jane Erin (AZ); Cay Holbrook, Canada; Anne Corn (TN); Sharon Sacks (CA); Diane Wormsley (NC).

APH Museum Director Mike Hudson brings an historic APH figure — Morrison Heady — to life.

2007 Hall of Fame inductee Charles F.F. Campbell's family with Rick Welsh (PA)

Annual Meeting attendees tour the unique APH manufacturing facility.

2007 Hall of Fame Inductee Everett "Butch" Hill's widow, Mary Maureen Atkin, and son, Marc Hill.

REPORTS FROM THE ADVISORY COMMITTEES

FORMAL REPORT: 2007 NOMINATIONS COMMITTEE FOR EX OFFICIO TRUSTEE ADVISORY COMMITTEES

The members of the 2007 Nominations Committee are:

• Gerald Kitzhoffer, New Jersey, Chair
• Jean Small, Maine
• Louis Tutt, Colorado

Members of the Committee are honored to have been asked to perform the important assignment of nominating Ex Officio Trustees to serve on APH's two Advisory Committees.

The Educational Products Advisory Committee and the Educational Services Advisory Committee support APH in their efforts to provide quality products and services that effectively meet the needs of our field. Ex Officio Trustees benefit and contribute through service on the Advisory Committees; the experience is an opportunity to learn about APH and to impact our important work.

Advisory Committee members are nominated with the following in mind:

• Geographic representation;
• Representation from a variety of agencies eligible for Federal Quota Funds;
• Experience as an Ex Officio Trustee;
• No Advisory Committee experience in the last three years;
• Gender diversity;
• A willingness to accept the responsibilities of the membership;
• The members of the Nominations Committee may not self-nominate.

The 2007 Nominations Committee recommended the following slate that was unanimously approved at the Formal Meeting of the Ex Officio Trustees convened on October 13, 2007 in Louisville, Kentucky:

EDUCATIONAL PRODUCTS ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Chair for a one-year term: Tom Winton, Ex Officio Trustee representing the North Carolina Department of Public Instruction, PNP

For three-year terms as committee members: Suzanne Dalton, Ex Officio Trustee representing the Florida State Department of Education; Stacy Grandt, Ex Officio Trustee representing the Wisconsin School for the Visually Handicapped and Educational Services for the Visually Impaired

Alternate for a one-year term: James Downs, Ex Officio Trustee representing the Georgia State Department of Education

The full 2007-2008 Educational Products Advisory Committee will be: (The year preceding the name indicates the final year of regular committee tenure.)

• Chair — Tom Winton, North Carolina
• 2008 — Lorri Quigley, Utah
• 2008 — Dean Stenehjem, Washington
• 2009 — Nancy Niebrugge, California
• 2009 — Steven Rothstein, Massachusetts
• 2010 — Suzanne Dalton, Florida
• 2010 — Stacy Grandt, Wisconsin
• Alternate — James Downs, Georgia

THE EDUCATIONAL SERVICES ADVISORY COMMITTEE

Chair for a one-year term: Jacqueline Denk, Ex Officio Trustee representing the Kansas State Board of Education

For two-year terms as committee members: Angyln Franquemont, Ex Officio Trustee representing the Arkansas State Department of Education; Frank Simpson, Ex Officio Trustee representing the Lavelle School for the Blind, New York.

Alternate for a one-year term: James Downs, Ex Officio Trustee representing the Georgia State Department of Education

The full 2007-2008 Educational Services Advisory Committee will be: (The year preceding the name indicates the final year of regular committee tenure.)

• Chair - Jacqueline Denk, Kansas
• 2008 - Michael Bina, Massachusetts
• 2008 - Barbara Perkis, Illinois
• 2009 - Angyln Franquemont, Arkansas
• 2009 - Frank Simpson, New York
• Alternate - James Downs, Georgia

The Nominations Committee thanks the new and returning Advisory Committee members and chairs for their willingness to serve. We encourage all interested Ex Officio Trustees to declare your interest to be a future Advisory Committee member; it is the single most important way to contribute as an Ex Officio Trustee.

Respectfully submitted,
Gerald Kitzhoffer, Chair

Jean Small and Louis Tutt,
Members of the Nominations Committee Louisville, Kentucky October 13, 2007

REPORT OF THE EDUCATIONAL SERVICES ADVISORY COMMITTEE TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE AMERICAN PRINTING HOUSE FOR THE BLIND FOR FISCAL YEAR 2007

INTRODUCTION

The purpose of the Educational Services Advisory Committee (ESAC) is to:

• Provide oversight and leadership in the planning, evaluation, and delivery of services,
• Identify new services needed,
• Assist the promotion of APH products through services and,
• Advise APH on general operations and communications as they relate to the accountability of services provided.

In May of 2007 the Educational Services Advisory Committee (ESAC) and the Educational Products Advisory Committee (EPAC) met in joint and separate sessions. Committee members determined this format would be time efficient for APH staff as well as provide opportunities for communication between members of the committees. The ESAC committee met to address the 2006 ESAC report and to develop commendations and recommendations. To assist with this endeavor, interactive presentations were made by APH's administrative staff and ESAC committee members. These interactive presentations provided progress updates on the 2006 recommendations, operations, and information on new initiatives.

ESAC COMMENDATIONS 2007

The Committee commends APH for its on-going commitment to promoting and improving services and products as related to the Act to Promote the Education of the Blind (1879) by:

1. Creating an open, transparent, customer-responsive administrative climate that invites communication and collaboration between EOTs and the APH upper level leadership team.
2. Effectively providing information to policy and lawmakers on the needs of blind and visually impaired students and the resources necessary to meet those needs.
3. Remaining focused on their mission through continuous planning and improvement efforts and not diverting time and fiscal resources to other non-mission endeavors.
4. Increasing training opportunities which utilize webcasts, webinars, web-based and other multi-media training formats planned and presented by multiple APH departments.
5. Expanding information and communication to the field by establishing APH News online and beginning the enhancement of the APH website.
6. Publishing a more market-savvy product catalog and a newly developed assessment catalog.
7. Updating the on-line Student Registration System (SRS), which now provides more report functions, and timely and efficient transmission of and access to information.
8. Expanding the National Instructional Partnerships (NIPs) and making APH staff readily available national-wide to multiple and diverse audiences.
9. Developing a plan to celebrate APH's 150th year of service to the field and the beginning development of a book that chronicles the APH achievements and progress over the years.

ESAC RECOMMENDATIONS 2007

The Committee recommends that APH:

1. Accelerate the implementation of the Braille Improvement Project (BIP) with full vigor to ensure that the majority of the key projected outcomes are accomplished by September 30, 2008.
2. Reduce braille embossing and binding production time from four to two weeks.
3. Explore developing a full range of training opportunities which include face to face trainings, live and archived webcasts, basic training manuals, compact disk and web-based tutorials for high demand and/or complex products.
4. Expand the internet infrastructure (i.e., bandwidth) to allow increased distance education training formats.
5. Identify an Integrated Library Services (ILS) platform that will accommodate a user-friendly full access system with state-of-the-art e-Commerce features.
6. Implement the National Prison Braille Program focus group goals designed to improve quality braille transcription services.
7. Implement the tactile graphic database plan that allows for electronic download.
8. Intensify initiatives toward the development of guidelines, position papers and recommendations to improve the intellectual testing of students who are blind or visually impaired.
9. Continue to celebrate through the museum the past and stimulate future achievements in the field through museum activities about the capabilities of individuals who are blind or have low vision.
10. Explore the development of Student Registration System (SRS) data transmission protocols that will allow EOTs to download their records to APH.
11. Consider assigning students a permanent Student Registration System (SRS) identifying number for purposes of longitudinal data analysis.
12. Implement a management system that will reliably track pre-production orders and the production of materials from order to delivery.
13. Investigate and, if feasible, implement the electronic dissemination of acknowledgements and invoices to EOTs as a means to save time and resources.
14. Increase the number of annual APH Scholars as part of the process to identify, develop, and inspire new leaders.

Respectfully Submitted,

Jean Martin, Chair
Educational Services Advisory Committee

REPORT OF THE EDUCATIONAL PRODUCTS ADVISORY COMMITTEE TO THE TRUSTEES OF THE AMERICAN PRINTING HOUSE FOR THE BLIND FOR FISCAL YEAR 2007

INTRODUCTION

In May of 2007, the Educational Products Advisory Committee (EPAC) met for the sixth year as a formal advisory body to the American Printing House for the Blind (APH). The committee members reviewed products under development, met with APH staff, and approved new products for sale with Federal Quota Funds. The EPAC would like to express our thanks to the staff of APH for their congeniality and frank discussions during our stay. After thoughtful review the EPAC offers the following commendations and recommendations to APH for consideration.

EPAC COMMENDATIONS 2007

The Committee commends APH for:

1. Successfully implementing new processes that expedite key product research and development.
2. Seeking collaborative partnerships within the industry to develop new technology product lines in a timely fashion, as was demonstrated by the one-year timeline from drawing board to product launch for the Braille+^TM Mobile Manager.
3. The successful shift of braille textbook priorities to recent copyrights of national editions of math, science, and geography to best allocate resources.
4. The vision statement of the Braille Improvement Project for establishing APH as a credible leader in the professionalism of braille transcribing and proofreading, and for launching the first phase of building a highly trained team of in-house bargaining and non-bargaining staff members.
5. The highly creative innovation, organization and goal oriented process and resulting products introduced by the Tactile Graphics team.
6. Improving the focus of the Core Curriculum project area.
7. The efforts of the Accessible Tests Dept. in developing a relationship with Riverside Publishing to provide the large print version of the Woodcock-Johnson^® III Achievement Test. We anxiously await the braille version.
8. Although not formally part of APH's administration of the Act to Promote the Education of the Blind, the leadership of APH demonstrated in the successful National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC) launch, including initiating the necessary training and infrastructure for this new textbook file format and process.
9. The Emergent Literacy Project, including the quality of research and timeliness of information.
10. Support of a creative, dedicated, flexible, innovative and talented staff.

EPAC RECOMMENDATIONS 2007

The Committee recommends that APH:

1. APH continue active partnerships with vendors/partners. The balance of input by LevelStar^TM and APH brought forth a well-thought out product, the Braille+ Mobile Manager. We recommend a project leader be equally involved in the research phase, as with the Braille+, of all products to avoid over-reliance on vendor capabilities and be sure all consumer needs are met.
2. APH review and analyze the product management and review process and follow up used by the Tactile Graphics, Multiple Disabilities, and Technology Product Teams for possible wider application among all Project Leaders, possibly to develop as a team standard.
3. APH re-emphasize 2006 Recommendation #12, to explore non-traditional ways to convene focus groups using current technology to assist APH with research and product development. While we recognize the increased use of webinars and conference calls for feedback and training, many projects appear to be based on out-dated information from the field.
4. APH review policies regarding employee internet access and bandwidth to ensure APH is poised to meet future technology needs, to assist staff involved in research, and to explore expanded wireless and interactive video training capabilities.
5. APH explore ways to facilitate a more coordinated effort for in-house projects to avoid duplication of efforts or objectives.
6. APH closely examine project areas and develop the individualized supports and/or frequent benchmarks for each project leader to successfully meet annual objectives.
7. The 2006 Recommendation #6, which was not fully addressed, and the late release of Grade 1 of the Patterns Series planned now for release in Fall 2008, be accelerated to no later than Spring 2008. Furthermore, we recommend the remaining three grades be released no more than one year apart.
8. Both in-house and field low vision specialists review and edit the manual to be included with the MaximEyes^TM Video Magnifier.
9. All Project Team Leaders prepare one page written answers to the EPAC Protocol Questions prior to next year's EPAC visit, so EPAC members can focus on high priority issues in discussions with Project Team Leaders.
10. Voting on Quota item approval is done only after the EPAC has had an opportunity to interview all Project Team Leaders and related staff members.
11. APH research and analyze national job trends and solicit additional input from the field to increase the number and relevancy of the Career and Transition area products.

Respectfully Submitted,

Joseph Catavero, Chair, Educational Products Advisory Committee

ADDENDUM TO THE ADVISORY COMMITTEE REPORTS, PROVIDED BY APH:

APH PRODUCTS APPROVED FOR PURCHASE WITH FEDERAL QUOTA FUNDS, FY2007

APH Homegrown Videos (generic approval)
Azer's Interactive Periodic Table Study Set
Braille/Print Yardstick
Braille+^TM Mobile Manager
Braille+ Docking Stations: Braille & Qwerty
EZ Battery Tester
Expandable Calendars Boxes
Functional Vision/Learning Media Assessment Kit: Guidebook Print & Braille, Print Forms
Jumbo Work & Play Tray
Lots of Dots: Counting 123
MathBuilders Unit 1 Print & Braille Kits
MathBuilders Unit 6
MaximEyes^TM Video Magnifier
PATTER: Preschool Attainment Through Typical Everyday Routines
PermaBraille Sheets
Picture Maker Storage Panel
Picture Maker Textured Strips
Portable Sound Source: Sport Edition KIT
Scattered Crowns
StackUps
Tools for Assessment and Development of Visual Skills (ToAD)
Transparent CCTV Ruler
Verbal View^TM of Windows^® Vista^® & Office^® 2007
Vivid Vision Lamp
Walk/Run for Fitness Kit
Wilson Reading System^®

DISTRIBUTION OF ELIGIBLE STUDENTS

Based on the Federal Quota Census of January 2, 2006 (FY2007)

AGENCIES RECEIVING FEDERAL QUOTA FUNDS

Agencies for the Education of the Visually Impaired in the United States Receiving Federal Quota Funds Due Under an Act to Promote the Education of the Blind, Fiscal Year 2007

Note: The agencies in this section are in the following order within each state: State Departments of Education, Schools for the Blind, Rehabilitation Programs, Programs for Students with Multiple Disabilities.

*Note: The abbreviation "PNP" means "Private, Non-profit."

DEPARTMENT OF DEVELOPMENT

Department of Development and Magazine Services

Reader's Digest^® in Braille provides vital information to readers. Your kid gift will help thousands of children and adults who are blind or visually impaired. For more information, please call us toll free, 1-888-295-2405, or visit our website, www.aph.org, click "Donor Support."

OUR GENEROUS FRIENDS

Across the nation, people who are blind or visually impaired receive free-of-charge accessible magazines from the American Printing House for the Blind (APH). This is possible because of the generous support of family, friends, and others from all walks of life. Their contributions assure that APH programs and services continue to be available to Americans everywhere.

ACCESSIBLE MAGAZINES OFFERED BY APH

Braille Reader's Digest^®. For decades, Reader's Digest^® has been one of the most popular magazines available. Since 1928, our nation's blind citizens have been able to receive Reader's Digest^® in braille from APH.

Recorded Reader's Digest^®. Reader's Digest^® in recorded form has been offered by APH since 1939. Like the braille edition, the recorded Reader's Digest^® is available free to eligible readers.

Newsweek^® Talking Magazine. Newsweek^® on cassette has been offered by APH since 1959. Newsweek^® listeners can rely on their weekly tape from APH.

Weekly Reader^® Series. Weekly Reader^® in both Braille and large print started in 1946 and is mailed each week to thousands of students. As the regular print version reaches schools nation-wide, the braille and large print editions from APH are also available.

Accessible magazines are only a phone call away, 1-888-295-2405.

FINANCIAL SUPPORT FROM GENEROUS DONORS

Gifts of cash: Generous donors remember our programs through direct-mail gifts of cash, checks, and money orders.

Stocks and bonds are excellent ways to accomplish charitable intent while the donor benefits from favorable personal or estate tax treatment.

Life insurance giving is a creative estate-planning tool.

Gifts that remember a special occasion, memorialize an event, or honor a loved one play a major role in the gift plans of many of our supporters.

Matching gifts from corporations can greatly extend a monetary gift.

Corporations frequently share their wealth by means of one-time, specific grants.

Charitable foundations focus on financial needs, operations, and services.

PLANNING WITH GIFT ANNUITIES

Caring individuals use Charitable Gift Annuities (CGA) to provide major financial support to APH.

The Charitable Gift Annuity is a popular estate planning tool that provides income for life and very favorable tax results. Other features of a Charitable Gift Annuity include:

• The amount of annual income is based on the age of the donor at the time of the gift.
• A portion of the amount transferred to our CGA program is deductible as a charitable contribution on your federal tax return.
• The annuity payment is fixed at the time the gift is made and will not change.
• The donor receives the satisfaction of knowing that their significant gift helped our nation's children and adults who are blind.

HOW TO RECEIVE MORE INFORMATION

If you would like to receive further details, or an obligation-free proposal on APH's Charitable Gift Annuity program or learn more about Wills and Estate Planning, please contact the APH Development Department at 1-888-295-2405.

Wills: Remembering APH in your Will provides a legacy toward our mission of helping those who are blind and visually impaired.

If you wish to make the American Printing House for the Blind the recipient of a personal bequest, one of the following forms may be used:

"I hereby give, devise, and bequeath to the American Printing House for the Blind, Inc., Louisville, Kentucky, my entire estate."

OR

"I hereby give, devise, and bequeath to the American Printing House for the Blind, Inc., Louisville, Kentucky, the sum of _____________ dollars ($_______________)."

OR

"I give, devise, and bequeath to the American Printing House for the Blind, Inc., Louisville, Kentucky, (state a fraction or a percentage) of the rest, residue, or remainder of my estate, whether real or personal."

Always consult your lawyer before making or changing your Will.

The American Printing House for the Blind, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Gifts are tax-deductible.

^®Registered trademarks of The Reader's Digest Association, Inc.; Newsweek, Inc.; and Weekly Reader Corp.

Financial Section

• Revenue Statement
• Statements of Financial Position
• Statements of Activities and Changes in Net Assets
• Statements of Cash Flows
• Schedules of Costs of Products Distributed, General and Administrative, Program Support, and Fund-raising and Developmental Functional Expenses