Press Release

CONNECTICUT UNIT OF RECORDING FOR THE BLIND & DYSLEXIC® HOLDS OPEN HOUSE TO INCREASE AWARENESS OF RECORDED TEXTBOOKS FOR PEOPLE WITH PRINT DISABILITIES

March 21, 2005 (New Haven, CT) - The Connecticut Unit of Recording for the Blind & Dyslexic (RFB&D®) held an open house during which students, parents, teachers, lawmakers and other education officials learned more about recorded textbooks - including the latest technological advances in RFB&D's AudioPlus® digitally recorded textbooks - for students with visual impairment, dyslexia or other physical disabilities. The open house was held today at RFB&D's Connecticut Unit at 209 Orange Street in New Haven.

The studio of the Connecticut Unit of RFB&D contains seven digital recording booths that allow the human voice to be captured directly onto the hard drives of networked computers. In 2002, RFB&D introduced its inaugural collection of digitally recorded books on CD called RFB&D's AudioPlus® textbooks. The content of a standard textbook now fits on a single CD, eliminating the need for students to sort through a series of cassettes to find the page, chapter or section they might need at any given time. In addition to convenience and portability, RFB&D's AudioPlus® books provide unprecedented navigation features that allow students to jump from page to page or chapter to chapter with the touch of a button. RFB&D's AudioPlus® textbooks can be accessed on specialized CD players, or with specialized software on standard multimedia PCs.

Founded in 1959, the Connecticut Unit serves more than 2,500 people and institutions, primarily students and schools throughout the state. The studio draws on the extensive knowledge and recording skills of about 175 volunteers who contribute more than 15,000 hours of their time each year. A primary strength of the Connecticut Unit is its capability to record advanced mathematics and science books, although it also produces recordings of books on psychology, political science, sociology, literature and a wide range of other subjects.

Since the studio began operations, it has been supported by Connecticut foundations, corporations and individuals; it welcomes gifts of stock or real estate, planned gifts and gifts-in-kind. The studio also holds an annual Record-A-Thon to raise funds and increase awareness of its charitable activities. Past events have drawn the participation of well-known dignitaries such as actor Ed Asner, playwright Arthur Miller, author Annie Dillard and Congresswoman Rosa DeLauro. The Connecticut Unit also operates an Educational Outreach Program aimed at increasing awareness of the benefits of recordings for educators and their students.

RFB&D, a nonprofit organization, is the nation's educational library of recorded textbooks for students with visual impairment, dyslexia or other physical disabilities that make reading standard textbooks difficult or impossible. RFB&D serves more than 137,000 students from kindergarten through graduate school and beyond with its one-of-a-kind collection of 100,000 educational titles on CD or four-track cassette. Students rely on RFB&D's unique accommodation to access the printed page and to achieve educational success.

All of RFB&D's accessible titles are recorded by volunteers working in 29 RFB&D recording studios nationwide, including the facility in New Haven, CT.

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