[Trainer-Talk] The Bigger Picture Behind Maryland's Cuts

bboyer202 at gmail.com bboyer202 at gmail.com
Tue Jul 1 03:10:25 UTC 2025


Hi all,

By now, most of you have seen the messages from Chris Nusbaum and Curtis
Chong about what's happening in Maryland. Contracts with blind access tech
trainers are being abruptly canceled, replaced with a plan to hire one
part-time employee to cover the whole state. It's frustrating, it's
short-sighted, and it's not the first time something like this has happened.

Folks, this isn't just Maryland's problem. This is what it looks like when
blind people aren't seen as essential to the delivery of blind services.
When administrators confuse efficiency with equity. When structured
discovery gets reduced to step-by-step scripts, and lived experience is
treated like a nice bonus instead of the baseline for real instruction.

This moment is exactly why we have a division. Not just to swap tech tips or
vent, but to define a culture. To push back on policies that leave blind
people behind. To set the bar for what blind-led, confidence-based training
really looks like. At our convention meeting, we'll talk more about how this
division moves with purpose-not just in reaction, but with vision.
Maryland's situation makes it clear: the stakes are real, and our role
matters.

In the meantime, I'm here and paying attention. If your state has dealt with
similar shifts-or if you've found strategies that work, we want to hear
them. Let's keep building this together.

In solidarity,

Brett Boyer

President, Access Technology Trainers Division

National Federation of the Blind


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