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APH Field Services & Federal Quota Info

Instructions 2009 Federal Quota Registration of Blind Students

"As Of" Date: Monday, January 5, 2009.
Deadline for Completion of SRS Updates by Ex Officio Trustees or their assistants via the Web Interface each year: March 15th.

Contents

• Overview
• Eligibility for Federal Quota Registration
• Important Notes
• Methods of Reporting Registration to APH
• Instructions for Reporting on Disk
• Preliminary Student Registration Form
• Information to Be Reported
• Definitions of Required Information and Reporting Codes
  • Student Grade Placement
  • Measurement of Vision with Correction
  • Reading Media
• Directions for Submitting to APH

Overview

The Federal Quota Program was initiated in 1879 by the federal Act to Promote the Education of the Blind. This program is a means whereby a per capita amount of money is designated for the purchase of educational materials for each eligible student registered through an established Federal Quota account. These Federal Quota accounts are maintained and administered by the American Printing House for the Blind (APH) and its Ex Officio Trustees.

The Federal Quota Registration is the census that records students who are eligible to receive materials provided by the federal Act to Promote the Education of the Blind. This census is conducted through the Advisory Services portion of the Act. This booklet outlines the process of registering students for this program.

If you have questions about Federal Quota Registration or the Student Registration System (SRS) software, please contact Cindy Amback, Department of Field Services, camback@aph.org or 800-223-1839, ext. 257.

Eligibility for Federal Quota Registration

In order for students to be eligible for registration in the Federal Quota Program, they MUST meet the requirements as outlined in An Act to Promote the Education of the Blind. Students must:

• Meet the definition of blindness--"central visual acuity of 20/200 or less in the better eye with best correction; a peripheral field so contracted that the widest diameter of such field subtends an angular distance no greater than 20 degrees; or visual performance reduced by a brain injury or dysfunction when visual function meets the definition of blindness as determined by an eye care specialist or neurologist."
  
  
• Be enrolled in a formally organized public or private, nonprofit educational program of less than college level.
  
  
• Be enrolled with the registering school or agency on the first Monday in January.
  
  

The educational programs providing services to these students can include public, private, and parochial schools.

There is NO chronological age limit for eligibility. The federal law limits registration to persons working at less than college level, but places no restriction on the ages of eligible students.

Eligibility of Adults

The Board of Trustees of the American Printing House for the Blind, at its 1985 Annual Meeting, approved a resolution which requires that students in education programs--but not enrolled in grade 12 or below--MUST "have a written instruction plan and be enrolled in and attend, on a regular basis, an instructional program of at least 20 hours of instruction per week. Social and leisure programs do not qualify as instructional programs."

Eligibility of Infants, Preschool Children, and Homebound Students

Eligible infants, preschool children, and homebound students can be registered if they are enrolled in a formally organized, regularly scheduled educational or training program and have a written education plan.

Eligibility of Students Who Are Home Schooled

In order for blind students enrolled in home school programs to prove eligible for registration in the Federal Quota Program, the home school program should meet guidelines and/or procedures in effect within each individual state.

Important Notes

Definition of School Age

For the purposes of the Federal Quota Registration, school age is to be determined by the state law of each respective state.

Required Documentation

The following documents are not to be submitted to APH, but must be on file with the agency or school where students are attending in the event that an audit requires evidence of the student's educational program or visual acuity:

• Written education plan--for each student registered. This verification that the student is in a formally organized educational program may be an IEP, a 504, or any other written action plan.
  
  
• Current eye report--by an ophthalmologist or an optometrist must be on file for each eligible student. (A report from a neurologist is acceptable for students classified as 'Functions at the Definition of Blindness'.) The report must be current within three years. Exemption from the current eye report regulation: students with proven non-changing eye conditions, such as bilateral enucleations, anophthalmos, or other conditions determined immutable.
  
  

Duplicate Registration

Students cannot be registered by two accounts. If a student is attending two programs, the agencies involved must work together to determine which account will register the student. The agency providing the major portion of educational services is usually the account with which the student is registered.

Private Nonprofit Accounts--Attention: State Departments of Education

Students who are enrolled in nonpublic schools must, by law, be registered in a separate Private Nonprofit (PNP) account. This requires a separate account number and registration forms.

If students in nonpublic schools are to be registered by you and your agency does not have a separate PNP account, please contact APH in order to establish one.

For a student who moves from a public school to a private school as of January 5, 2009, it is necessary to delete the student record from the public listing and add it to the private school registration--or vice versa.

Effective Date for Eligibility

The "as of" date for registration in the Federal Quota Program is traditionally the first Monday in January. Students must be enrolled on this date. The first Monday in 2009 is January 5th.

Method of Reporting Registration to APH

The method for reporting the Federal Quota Registration to APH is data entry via the SRS Web interface into the SRS SQL database.

IMPORTANT: All agencies are requested to use the SRS Web interface to submit their updated Census information. Please contact the APH Census Support Specialist, Cindy Amback, if you are unable to use the Web interface for any reason.

Please note: Adobe Reader 5.0 or above is required for reports developed through the new SRS Web interface. Adobe Reader is available as a free download.

Phases of the Census

There are three phases of the Census each year. Phase one consists of updating the data in your account(s) and verifying that the data does not have duplicates or age/grade mismatches. After completing these tasks, you must notify the Support Specialist via email that you have completed phase one of the current Census for account(s) #_____. Phase one ends on March 15th of each year. Please note that in this phase you may update data, add new registrants, and mark for deletion those registrants who were not registered with you on the first Monday in January.

Phase two consists of APH staff review of all data submitted for possible duplicates across all accounts and electronic distribution of reports to each Ex Officio Trustee for clarification. Once those reports are returned to APH, your Support Specialist will update the data accordingly. Please note that in phase two you may request that a registrant be deleted, but no new students may be added.

Phase three consists of APH finalizing the data and updating online reports as needed. Certificates of Attendance are forwarded to Ex Officio Trustees electronically for their approval and original, signed copies must be mailed via the U.S. Mail to your Support Specialist. Instructions are then forwarded to EOTs and their assistants to save final reports as historical files. Once again, you must notify your Support Specialist via email that you have completed this task. Be sure to include your account number in the email.

Once the federal government approves the allocation amount for the year, the monies are divided per capita and Certificates of Allocation are created for the new year. These certificates are created and distributed to each Ex Officio Trustee via email. Certificates of Allocation are usually sent after the first of the year since that is the time when APH usually receives notification of allocation approval.

Instructions for Reporting

• APH provides you with:
  • Access to the SRS Software via a Web Interface.
  • Documentation for implementing and operating the SRS system
• Prior to the first Monday in January you may begin the process of collecting the data on students to be registered by your account(s) for 2009 and you may also begin entering this data using the SRS Software via the SRS Web interface.
  NOTE: This year APH will open the SRS Website for updates prior to the "as of" date, or first Monday in January. If you choose to update your data prior to the "as of" date, then you are responsible for verifying that the students registered in your account(s) meet the requirement of being registered on the first Monday in January.
• After you have added, modified, or deleted student records, and checked for duplications, you will notify APH that you have completed this phase of the process by contacting Cindy Amback via e-mail at camback@aph.org.
• Beginning on March 16th each year, no further changes will be allowed to the Census data by Ex Officio Trustees or their assistants. Registrants may, however, be marked for deletion in phase two by contacting your Support Specialist.

NEW: Please note that you may now upload your data to the SRS Website using the Upload Template provided by your Support Specialist. Once the clean data has been uploaded it is checked by the APH CTS staff for accuracy and viruses. If okay, it will be uploaded into SRS. You will still be required to verify your uploaded data by saving each registrant to the current Census year and by checking for possible duplicates and age/grade mismatches.

To upload your data, simply click on Upload File link on the yellow toolbar in SRS. Once there, use the Browse button to locate your spreadsheet and upload your data. Please notify your Support Specialist via email when this has been completed and be sure to include your account number(s) in the email.

The data to be reported and the reporting codes to be used are outlined later in this instruction booklet.

The Basic Process of Registration

• Updating the data for students who were registered the previous year
• Deleting the records of students who are no longer to be registered by your account
• Adding the data for new students

Updating the Data

For a Student to Be Registered in 2009

To update student information:
In order to edit a student's data or delete a students data, you must be logged in and execute a SEARCH. To edit or delete a record, select the DETAILS column of the desired record to bring up the edit screen. At this point, a record may be edited or deleted.

To Save Your Updates/Edits:
To save the results of any edits, the SAVE button must be clicked at the end each edit. At that time, various edit checks against the data will be performed and you will be notified of any fields in which an error occurred. THESE MUST BE CORRECTED before the data can be saved.

To Add a Student Not Enrolled the Previous Year:
Choose the "Add New Student" button on the Student Search Screen. Enter the student information and click the SAVE button..

For a Student No Longer Enrolled
To delete a student who was enrolled the previous year: Select the "Details" column for the record to be deleted and click the Mark for Deletion button. When a student's information is deleted through the Web interface it is only marked for deletion. Once marked for deletion, the information will not appear in standard reports and will not be completely deleted from the database until APH closes the Census for the year.

Students Moving from One Account to Another Administered by the Same Trustee
Trustees who administer more than one account may transfer a student's data from one account they administer to another by utilizing the account drop down list on the student's Details Screen. This eliminates the need to delete and re-enter the same data twice. You will still need to open that student's data in the new account, update the record (district, etc.), and save it.

Note: When entering visual acuities/reporting codes through the SRS Web interface into the SRS SQL database, a drop down list of available codes will be provided for your use. Any additional qualifying measurements/codes not listed in the drop down list may be added by Cindy Amback at APH. Submit your written requests to Cindy Amback at camback@aph.org. You may also contact Cindy at (800) 223-1839, extension 257, with any other questions regarding the Census.

Preliminary Student Registration Form

The preliminary student registration report is a tool used to gather your data before the actual Census begins in January and, can be generated by accessing the new SRS Web interface/Report Menu. The SRS program is available to Trustees and their assistants to make changes to their data once the previous Census has been completed in late November or early December.

Updating the Data on the Preliminary Student Registration Form

In addition to the master Preliminary Student Registration Report form, a blank preliminary student registration report form will be e-mailed to Ex Officio Trustees and their assistants prior to the first Monday in January each year. When gathering data on the Preliminary Student Registration Report form, the following steps are to be used for a Student to Be Registered in 2009:

To update student information:
Type or print clearly all corrections or changes on the white line underneath the previous year's data on the Preliminary Student Registration Form for each respective student.

To add a student not enrolled the previous year:
Type or print clearly the entire information for a new student on the white lines of the blank preliminary student registration form provided to you via email. List new students alphabetically to assist with later checking of data entered on the SRS website.

To delete a student who was enrolled the previous year:
Type or print clearly the word "DELETE" on the white line under the student's name.

NOTE: This report is for your use only in gathering new data each year and is not to be sent to APH for data entry.

Information to be Reported

For each eligible student, the following data must be reported:

• Last Name
• First Name
• Date of birth
• School district or agency enrolling the student
• Grade placement
• Visual acuity in right eye
• Visual acuity in left eye
• Primary reading medium(required)
• Secondary reading medium (required)
• Other (or third) reading medium (optional-defaults to N/A)
• Free form text (optional)*good place to cross-reference twins, etc.

Definitions of Required Information and Reporting Codes

Student ID numbers:
This number is for APH purposes. Click the SAVE button after updating the rest of the student's data and the year will be updated automatically.

Name of student:
Report each student's full name in this order: last name then first name (e.g., Doe John). Do NOT report a student's middle initial, submit a name with only the initial of the student's first name and Do NOT, under any circumstance, use punctuation marks when entering a student's name. Please DO type a registrant's first and last name in upper and lower case!

Date of birth:
Give the student's date of birth in numbers using this sequence: month, day, year (e.g., 06-03-1985).

Name of school district, system, agency, or district in which student is enrolled:
Select the school system, agency, or district from the drop down list of valid entities for your account. If you wish to add a new school system, agency, or district to your drop down list, please contact Cindy in writing by e-mail at camback@aph.org. Be sure to include the following information in your e-mail: account number, name of districts to be added, your name, and your phone number just in case there is a question about your information.

Student Grade Placement Categories and Reporting Codes

Please carefully review the following chart of student placement categories, being certain the placement reported accurately reflects each student's placement. Report the grade placement for each student using the appropriate code shown. Only these codes will be accepted.

Note: Students who exceed school age as determined by respective state law must be registered as Adult Students (Reporting Code "AD").

Adult Students

Includes all eligible participants over school age. Reporting Code: AD

Definition of Student Placement Category Adult Students: Adults above school age, as determined by state law, in educational programs of less than college level.

Note: For the purposes of Federal Quota Registration, school age is to be determined by the state law of each respective state.

Students in education or rehabilitation programs, but not enrolled in grade 12 or below, must "have a written instruction plan and be enrolled in and attend, on a regular basis, an instructional program of at least 20 hours of instruction per week. Social and leisure programs do not qualify as instructional programs."

Preschool and School Age Students

Does not include any eligible participants over school age.

Measurement of Vision with Correction

• Measurements of visual acuity performed by an ophthalmologist or an optometrist must be indicated for each student. (See below for exceptions.) These visual measurements are to be reported using only the codes listed below.
  
  
• Measurements of visual acuity must be current within three years. A reasonable exception will be made for persons who are totally blind or whose eyes have been enucleated or who have proven non-changing eye conditions.
  
  
• A separate measurement must be given for each eye.
  
  
• The actual eye report form is not to be submitted to APH, but must be on file where the student is enrolled in the event that an audit requires evidence of the student's visual measurement.
  
  
• Measurements should be stated in terms of distance on the Snellen Chart whenever possible. Diseases of the eye are NOT acceptable reporting codes.
  
  
• Functions at the Definition of Blindness (FDB) is a category indicating blindness due to brain injury or dysfunction. A student whose visual performance is reduced by a brain injury or dysfunction may be considered blind for educational purposes when visual function meets the definition of blindness as determined by an eye care specialist or neurologist. Students in this category manifest unique visual characteristics often found in conditions referred to as neurological, cortical, or cerebral visual impairment.
  
  
• Even in the case of a non-communicative or non-responsive student, there must be a verification that the student meets the definition of blindness as outlined in these instructions.
  
  

Vision Measurements and Reporting Codes

Reading Media

Primary Reading Media and Reporting Codes (required field)

The primary reading medium is to be reported for each student using the following reporting codes. Only these codes will be accepted.

Note: Infants and preschoolers identified as visual, braille, or auditory readers should be reported using the appropriate media codes.

Secondary Reading Medium and Reporting Codes (required field)

In addition to listing a primary reading medium, a secondary reading medium is also a required category/field. Only one medium can be chosen and entered in the secondary reading medium field to provide more accurate statistics.

Note: Please remember that you may not duplicate a reading medium in the primary and secondary reading media fields.

Other (or Third) Reading Medium and Reporting Codes (optional field)

An optional other (or third) reading medium field has been added for your convenience. This field is not required and defaults to NA, or not applicable. You may choose not to include an other (or third) reading medium.

Note: Please remember that you may not duplicate a reading medium in the second and third reading media fields with the exception of NA.

Directions for submitting to APH

When all of your data has been collected and recorded on the registration forms and all of the changes, additions, and deletions have been entered through the SRS Web interface, go to the Report Menu and run the Duplicate Student Report.

If the report opens empty, or with no students listed, then you do not have any duplicates within your own account. If names appear on this report, you have duplicate students within your account. You will need to adjust your data prior to submitting it to APH.

You should also open the Potential Age/Grade Mismatch Report at this time to check for possible age/grade errors in your account(s). If you find students listed on this report, please follow the instructions on the top of the report to assist in correcting any possible errors.

While in the Report Menu, open the Student Listing by Name Report, which provides a total count of your students and verify that the number corresponds with your records. Keep in mind that as you change your data, the data listed on the reports in the Report Menu changes as well.

Last, but not least, while still in the Report Menu, open the Deleted Students Report and verify that the students listed as marked for deletion are truly the students you wish to delete. These students will be deleted later in the census process.

Suggestion: After all of the updates for the current year have been made to your data in Phase One of the Census, print a copy of the Student Listings by Name Report (found on the Report Menu of the SRS Web interface) which lists all of your students, or save a copy to your hard drive for reference in Phase Two. If you choose to save the report to your computer, be sure to label it "2009 Census Data-Phase I (and your account number)" so it will not be confused with the reports you save at the end of the year for historical purposes.

You may also choose to download your data to a spreadsheet at the end of phase one. This is an elective step, not mandatory.

Notify Cindy by e-mail when you have completed each phase of the Census. This will allow her to track completion of each phase not only by account, but as a whole for the United States. Be sure to include your account number in all e-mails to Cindy in order to expedite service.

**Remember that at the end of Phase One you cannot add any additional students. At the end of Phase Two, you may not delete any students.

Questions regarding the Federal Quota Census should be directed to:

CINDY AMBACK, SUPPORT SPECIALIST
DEPARTMENT OF FIELD SERVICES
AMERICAN PRINTING HOUSE FOR THE BLIND
P.O. BOX 6085
LOUISVILLE, KENTUCKY 40206-0085

DEADLINE--Phase One: March 15, 2009

Registrations will not be accepted after March 15!

©2008, American Printing House for the Blind, Inc.