Mississippi § 37-23-201 - Advisory committee; composition; duties.

§ 37-23-201. Advisory committee; composition; duties.

Before December 1, 2008, the State Board of Education shall appoint an ongoing Advisory Committee to expedite the implementation of Sections 37-23-191 through 37-23-203. The Advisory Committee shall be composed of at least twelve (12) persons nominated by the State Superintendent of Public Education from within or outside of the state, including, but not limited to, representatives of the following groups: The National Federation of the Blind; The Mississippi Council of the Blind; A parent or guardian of a blind student; The Coalition for Citizens with Disabilities; Special education directors having one or more blind or visually impaired students in their respective school districts; Specialists in Braille education or deaf-blindness or certified teachers of the blind and visually impaired students, or both. Specialists in Braille shall be deemed competent in reading and writing Literary Braille and Nemeth Code as certified by successful passage of the Mississippi Praxis II Braille Competency Exam and/or certified under National Certification in Literary Braille; Employees of the State Department of Education; Consumers, or an advocate of consumers, of Braille materials; The Mississippi School for the Blind; The Mississippi Instructional Resource Center; and Individuals from higher education programs that address issues specific to visual impairment. The State Superintendent of Public Education shall appoint a chairperson from among the members of the Advisory Committee. The committee shall meet at least semiannually upon the call of the superintendent, and its functions shall be to perform the duties prescribed in subsection (3) of this section. Members of the committee shall receive no compensation or per diem, but each member shall be entitled to reimbursement for all actual and necessary expenses incurred by his participation in the committee’s activities. The committee shall perform the following duties: Provide expertise to maximize collaboration with the National Instructional Materials Access Center (NIMAC) at the American Printing House for the Blind and, when necessary, textbook publishers on the development of NIMAS and associated graphics files to be converted into accessible textbooks with translation software; Recommend potential authorized users for the NIMAS program to the State Director of Special Education to ensure that all accessible textbook needs are met within the state on a timely basis, being no later than such time that all other students receive their corresponding textbooks; Study any other issues that the committee determines are relevant and necessary to the implementation of this article and to the improvement of the education of students who are blind or visually impaired in Mississippi; and Assist the State Department of Education in promulgating regulations, policies and procedures in implementing Sections 37-23-191 through 37-23-203. The State Superintendent of Public Education shall respond to the recommendations of the Advisory Committee within sixty (60) days of the annually published report.