Ditching the guillotine: An education in accessibility

Last March I joined the Library of Congress as director of publishing. As home to the National Library Service for the Blind and Physically Handicapped — which provides free braille and talking books for people with visual impairments or physical disabilities — the Library stands alongside several other major institutions in championing literacy through accessibility. When I was asked to develop a comprehensive eBook publishing strategy for the Library shortly after arriving, I recognized that it was time to get serious about learning how to create accessible digital content.
My education began last June with a day-long seminar hosted by the Association of American University Presses. Entitled Accessibility is Accessible and organized by Bill Kasdorf of Apex CoVantage, the seminar focused on the convergence of “a new publishing paradigm” built on two fundamental principles: