Notice of Interpretation Regarding Digital Instructional Materials

The following notice was published in the Federal Register on Tuesday, May 26, 2020:

OSERS/OSEP Assistance to States for the Education of Children With Disabilities–Final Notice of Interpretation.

SUMMARY: The Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA) established the National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC) in 2004 to assist State educational agencies (SEAs) and local educational agencies (LEAs) with producing accessible instructional materials for students with print disabilities. The U.S. Department of Education (Department) issues this final notice of interpretation to clarify that the definition of “print instructional materials” in IDEA includes digital instructional materials.The notice can be viewed at the following Federal Register website: Final Notice of Interpretation.

A Word document version of the Notice can be downloaded here: Final Notice – Word Doc.

Previously, the NIMAC was only able to accept for materials published and distributed to students in a hard copy print format. However, going forward, the repository can accept NIMAS files for instructional materials that are distributed to students only in a digital format, as long as these materials can be supplied in NIMAS format.

For more information, please review the NIMAC and Digital Materials: Frequently Asked Questions