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Press Release
RFB&D
Hosts National Record-A-Thon as part of
National Volunteer Week
Nonprofit's Nationwide Effort to
Expand Library of Digitally Recorded Textbooks for Students with
Visual Impairments or Learning Disabilities
Princeton, NJ (April 2, 2003) - Recording
for the Blind & Dyslexic® (RFB&D®), the nation's
leading producer of accessible textbooks, announced its eighth
annual National Record-A-Thon will kick off during National Volunteer
Week, April 27 and run through May 2, 2003.
Celebrity and
guest readers including Ed Asner, Betty White, Jasmine Guy, Betsy
Palmer, and a host of athletes, authors and local, state and national
officials will join RFB&D's family of more than 5,200 volunteers
in recording booths across the country to record a projected goal
of 225 textbooks and other educational materials for the 117,000
students of all ages who rely on RFB&D's unique library to
achieve educational and professional goals. The event is also
expected to raise $200,000 for RFB&D.
RFB&D, headquartered
in Princeton, NJ, maintains a collection of 93,000 titles on cassette
and CD in every subject area and grade level for students who
cannot read standard print effectively because of a disability
such as a visual impairment, a learning disability or another
physical disability. The collection includes titles in virtually
every field of study for students in kindergarten to graduate
school and beyond. RFB&D's books are recorded by volunteers
who are selected to read on the basis of their expertise in various
subject areas. Unlike commercially available audiobooks, RFB&D
textbooks include detailed descriptions of any photographs, maps,
charts, diagrams or illustration that appear as part of the content.
"Record-A-Thon
is a major event for RFB&D because it not only helps to increase
our library of recorded textbooks, but it is a significant awareness
builder for our organization," said Richard O. Scribner,
RFB&D's president and CEO. "The celebrities and newsmakers
who join our regular volunteer readers for this week of intensive
recording bring welcomed attention to our local recording studios.
That attention goes a long way to promote our nonprofit service
to families and educators who can benefit from the services RFB&D
provides."
The Record-A-Thon
will help increase its core collection of RFB&D's AudioPlus™
digitally recorded books, which offer significant advantages for
portability and navigation that are not available in the traditional
analog cassette format.
"We announced
the availability of RFB&D's AudioPlus collection of digitally
recorded texts in September 2002, and to date, we fulfilled 7,000
orders for titles in this new format," said Scribner. "Our
members are wildly enthusiastic about this revolution in accessible
recording technology and we are concentrating our resources on
enhancing the core collection of titles on CD."
For more information
about local Record-A-Thon activities and how you can support this
event with your time or a contribution, please go to the Nationwide
Locations pull-down menu select the location nearest you.
additional media inquiries:
RFB&D News Desk 1-800-803-7201
media e-mail inquiries
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