TO: Members of AER FROM: Mary Nelle McLennan, AER Rep to Braille Authority of North America (BANA) BANA Actions at Spring Meeting 2018 BANA’s spring 2018 meeting was hosted by the Alternate Text Production Center of the California Community Colleges (ATPC) and was held in Los Angeles immediately before the annual conference of the California Transcribers and Educators for the Blind and Visually Impaired (CTEBVI). Our agenda was extremely full and included consideration of progress reported by each of BANA’s technical and general committees. We also devoted time to further development of BANA’s real-time strategic plan. The Board approved two guidance documents that were developed by BANA committees and had been reviewed for technical accuracy. These guidance documents are: A revision of Guidance for Transcription Using the Nemeth Code within UEB Contexts, which will be released in the near future and will be available on the BANA website. A brand new document titled Graphing Calculator Guidelines, which is now being prepared for publication in accessible formats. The Board elected Jessica (Jessi) Rivera, representing Associated Services for the Blind, to the office of BANA treasurer. Jessi replaces Jaclyn (Jackie) Sheridan, who for personal reasons cannot complete her term of office. BANA welcomed two new Board members—Whitney Gregory from Braille Solutions, Region 4 Educational Service Center and Tina Seger from Clovernook Center for the Blind and Visually Impaired. Horizons for the Blind has also appointed a new Board member, Cynthia (Cindy) Skandera. Chemistry Guidance Now Available on BANA Website The new publication Provisional Guidance for Transcription Using the Chemistry Code within UEB Contexts is now available in print and BRF versions on the BANA website at http://www.brailleauthority.org/mathscience/math-science.html <http://www.brailleauthority.org/mathscience/math-science.html>. This website posting also includes a link through which comments can be addressed to the authoring committee. Your Opportunity to Provide Feedback about Revision of Tactile Graphics Guidelines BANA’s Tactile Graphics Technical Committee is currently revising the 2010 publication Guidelines and Standards for Tactile Graphics to align the guidelines with UEB. The new revision will provide examples for graphics using both UEB and Nemeth. The members of the Tactile Graphics Technical Committee are eager to hear your thoughts and experiences with these guidelines. Be on the lookout for an email containing a link to an input survey that will offer AER members an opportunity to provide feedback directly to BANA’s Tactile Graphics Technical Committee. For reference, the publication Guidelines and Standards for Tactile Graphics, 2010 can be found on the BANA website at http://www.brailleauthority.org/tg/index.html <http://www.brailleauthority.org/tg/index.html> BANA Press Release A new press release that capsules the actions taken at BANA’s spring meeting is posted at http://www.brailleauthority.org/pressreleases/pr-2018-06.html <http://www.brailleauthority.org/pressreleases/pr-2018-06.html>. Please feel free to give me a call or send a message if you have questions or need more information. Take care, Mary Nelle Mary Nelle McLennan, MA AER Representative to the Braille Authority of North America Chair, BANA Publications Committee 1536 Broad Hill Drive Pittsburgh, PA 15237 Land Line: 412-367-9085 Cell: 412-559-7782