Our WORK

CURRENT PARTNERS

US DEPT OF EDUCATION

US DEPT OF EDUCATION

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DEFENSE HUMAN RESOURCES ACTIVITY

DEFENSE HUMAN RESOURCES ACTIVITY

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SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

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national industries for the blind

national industries for the blind

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DEFENSE HUMAN RESOURCE ACTIVITY

DEFENSE HUMAN RESOURCE ACTIVITY

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iCANCONNECT PROGRAM

iCANCONNECT PROGRAM

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MARYLAND DIVISION OF REHAB. SERVICES

MARYLAND DIVISION OF REHAB. SERVICES

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Health and Human Services

Health and Human Services

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General Services Administration

General Services Administration

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black and white photo of TCS team members standing in a group

Our Work

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At TCSA, all our work is underpinned by our core values. We will always raise the bar, challenge conventional thinking, celebrate differences, ask questions, approach our work together, not make assumptions and always do what is right.

For over 25 years, TCSA has continued to raise the bar in the delivery of innovative accessible solutions, providing consulting and advocacy support to disability centric organizations, as well as educating and supporting rehabilitation services, educational institutions, and government agencies in areas regarding accessibility and inclusion.

Our vision is for people of all abilities to have full access. This vision cannot be realized unless we approach all challenges together. We view our work as a partnership and as such we are in it together-your success is our success.

Federal

We work with Federal Agencies to navigate the reasonable accommodations processes for their organizations. We provide one on one and group Assistive Technology training, we test, integrate, and implement Assistive Technology within government sites and support Assistive Technology product procurement for federal employees. TCSA provides enterprise level (and nationwide) training and Assistive Technology support for several Federal Agencies.

State and Local

We partner with State and Local Department of Rehabilitation agencies to provide Assistive Technology assessments, Assistive Technology training, integration and support for citizens with disabilities with a vocational and educational goals. We work with local governments to support Accessibility and Assistive Technology initiatives through training, AT implementation, and workshops.

Education

We work with public and private educational institutions, elementary through post-secondary, to distribute and integrate Assistive Technology within the learning environment to support equal access to the curriculum for all students.

Commercial

We support commercial organizations in providing equal access for all their employees through navigating the reasonable accommodations processes for their organization. We recommend and implement an Assistive Technology and accommodations plan, assess and train employees on Assistive Technology within the workplace, and support the 508 and WCAG compliance requirements of their electronic media.

Non-Profit

We partner with non-profits organizations to identify and train individuals with disabilities in modern office technology with the goal of successfully attaining vocational outcomes.

International

We work with international disability organizations in creating efficient and effective service models to reach and better serve their citizens with disabilities. 

GENERAL SERVICES ADMINISTRATION:

TCS provides on-going highly technical reader services to the General Services Administration. TCS technical readers ensure blind and low vision employees can perform the essential functions of their positions, have equal access to documents and information in the work place and enjoy equal benefits of employment. In support of this requirement, TCS personnel must be proficient in Microsoft Office applications including, but not limited to (Word, Excel, Access, PowerPoint), web-based e-mail applications (i.e. Google mail) and the Google Suite. They support GSA employees with visual impairments through describing and explaining various materials such as charts, graphs, tables, financial statements, bar graphs and other documents in the contract file, in handwritten, digital and paper formats.

HEALTH AND HUMAN SERVICES:

TCS provides reasonable accommodation services to promote inclusion of employees with visual impairments with in the Administration for Community Living and Administration for Children and Families. These services are to ensure the accessibility and availability of the spoken and written word by those who are visually and/or hearing impaired. TCS provides reader services are provided through a regularly scheduled on-call Reader as well as on an as needed basis for the ACL locations in Washington DC and New York City. Additionally, TCS provides braille transliteration services and various 508 support services in support of the reasonable accommodations efforts of ACL’s blind and low vision employees.

MARYLAND DIVISION OF REHABILITATION SERVICES (DORS):

In conjunction with Métier Services, Inc., a local non-profit with a goal of preparing individuals who are blind or visually impaired for employment through intensive training programs, TCS supports the on-going training of DORS clients through the delivery of robust intensive six to eight-week training courses. The courses range from introductory and entry level courses in AT and keyboarding to more advanced levels of training, simulating computer-based office tasks. The courses start with sound fundamentals in keyboarding, computer terminology and an understanding of Assistive Technology (AT) capabilities, how to adjust basic AT settings and how to describe their AT and AT needs to a non-technical person. Each class incorporates instruction, hands-on exercises and lab time for supported study and independent practice.

As students progress through the course work they are provided intensive instruction in specific topics in the following Microsoft Office products (MS Word, MS Outlook and MS Excel), topics in the use and troubleshooting of their AT and computer system, Internet browsing and Windows concepts. TCS instructors employ a variety of teaching techniques to assist students in retaining the maximum amount of information from the course including: self-study, individual projects and instructor led lectures.

Exercises and projects are designed to simulate the pace and format of the modern office with an emphasis on speed of execution and accuracy. Each course builds on the one before it to reinforce concepts.

ICANCONNECT PROGRAM – SUBCONTRACTOR TO PERKINS SCHOOL FOR THE BLIND:

TCS supports the iCanConnect program in the Maryland, Virginia and West Virginia as a subcontractor to Perkins School for the Blind. iCanConnect is another name for the National Deaf-Blind Equipment Distribution Program (NDBEDP), designed to help the many thousands of Americans with combined vision and hearing loss to connect with family, friends and community.

It was established by the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) to comply with the 21st Century Video and Communications Accessibility Act, a federal law that requires people with disabilities to have access to modern communications technology that enables distance communication.

The goal of iCanConnect is to provide distance communications technology and training for people with combined hearing and vision disabilities, and to increase opportunities for independence for this underserved population to stay connected with family, friends, service providers, and their communities.

DEFENSE HUMAN RESOURCE ACTIVITY:

TCS provides Assistive Technology (AT) and Accommodation Services to Federal employees with disabilities and Wounded Service Members nationwide under a BPA to support product procurement and delivery of AT under the Defense Human Resource Activity’s (DHRA) Computer/Electronics Accommodations Program. These services include both equipment procurement and training/technical services to enable employees to perform the essential functions of their jobs. In providing these services, TCS works closely with the employees receiving AT, their supervisors to ensure all the contracted deliverables were provided in a timely, cost efficient, and effective manner. This contract supports the accommodations requirements of over 60 federal agencies located both in the United States and overseas.

TCS provides AT procurement, delivery, and user training to federal employees and wounded service members with: dexterity, vision, hearing, cognitive, and communication impairments.

NATIONAL INDUSTRIES FOR THE BLIND:

The purpose of this project was to address one of NIB’s key concerns; to ensure persons who are low vision or blind had the necessary computer and Assistive Technology (AT) skills to achieve gainful employment within the many contract positions they supported through the federally administered AbilityOne program. Both NIB and TCS Associates agreed a ground up approach was necessary. We have found that a novel intensive training program taught low vision and blind persons to handle the pacing and rigor of the modern office was necessary. The program was named Professional Mastery of Technology for Employment (ProMOTE) and its goals were to train students in the following on Windows computers and Microsoft Office applications (Outlook, Word, Excel and PowerPoint), Adobe PDF and Internet Explorer and Firefox browsers:

  • Production of visually pleasing, well-formatted documents with the same speed and efficiency as their sighted counterparts using AT and keystroke commands
  • Learning how to obtain independent assistance on mainstream application processes e.g. Microsoft Office through web searches and accessing in-application help utilities
  • Mastery of Computer, AT and Information Technology (IT) terminology
  • How to create accessible documents for themselves and others
  • How to explain their AT to technical and non-technical persons and why certain aspects of documents and applications may pose accessibility challenges to their AT

Procedures for installing and configuring their AT and troubleshooting techniques to address issues arise between AT and ITBased on the above program goals, TCS Associates created two separate curricula to teach four-week, five days per week, eight hours per day intensive training programs to eight students with low vision using ZoomText and eight students who were blind using JAWS. TCS delivered the training at the Carroll Center for the Blind in Boston and the Olmsted Center for Sight in Buffalo. Since graduating from the program, multiple students have obtained new employment and/or received a promotion.

SOCIAL SECURITY ADMINISTRATION

TCS supports the SSA’s requirement for computer-based AT training for all employees with disabilities who use AT in their jobs. The SSA’s goal is to provide employees with optimal accessibility to the various facets of their work environment, to maximize their overall job productivity and potential for career advancement. As the prime contractor, TCS ensures SSA meets this goal by providing expert instruction in the use of the computer-based AT that the SSA provides to its employees.

TCS’s AT Specialists provide one on one and group trainings for all hardware and software devices provided to support persons with disabilities at SSA. TCS Specialists tailor each training session optimally to address the individual AT needs of each student, regardless of the student’s prior experience with computer-based AT.

Our Instructors are well versed in the implementation of Assistive Technology in the workplace. Currently, TCS is supporting the requirement for over 1300 locations throughout the 50 United States and the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the Northern Mariana Islands, American Samoa, Guam, the U.S. Virgin Islands, and Wake Island.

DEFENSE HUMAN RESOURCE ACTIVITY:

TCS provides Assistive Technology (AT) and Accommodation Services to Federal employees with disabilities and Wounded Service Members nationwide under a BPA to support product procurement and delivery of AT under the Defense Human Resource Activity’s (DHRA) Computer/Electronics Accommodations Program. These services include both equipment procurement and training/technical services to enable employees to perform the essential functions of their jobs. In providing these services, TCS works closely with the employees receiving AT, their supervisors to ensure all the contracted deliverables were provided in a timely, cost efficient, and effective manner. This contract supports the accommodations requirements of over 60 federal agencies located both in the United States and overseas.

TCS provides AT procurement, delivery, and user training to federal employees and wounded service members with: dexterity, vision, hearing, cognitive, and communication impairments. TCS AT Specialists supporting this contract provide training and curriculum development for AT software such as: JAWS, Dragon, ZoomText, Kurzweil 1000& 3000, J-Say, Window Eyes, MAGic, Pearl, and OpenBook.

The TCS AT service delivery model is built upon our core principle employees with disabilities should be as competitive in their professional environment as their peers. To accomplish this, they must have the capability to navigate through the world of virtual and print media with the same level of ease as their co-workers. Therefore, TCS delivers customized AT training curriculum to facilitate the professional requirements of the disability community, ensuring they can thrive in the workplace.

US DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION – SUBCONTRACTOR:

Since 2007, TCS has provided Assistive Technology (AT) and Accommodation Services as a subcontractor to NTT Data, and in collaboration with the 508 and Assessment team at the Department of Education (DoED). TCS supports the AT requirements of employees with disabilities in 13 locations in the Washington, DC area as well as the regional office locations in: Boston, New York, Philadelphia, Atlanta, Chicago, Dallas, Kansas City, Denver, San Francisco and Seattle.

TCS provides AT procurement, delivery, maintenance support, and user training to federal employees with: dexterity, vision, hearing, and cognitive disabilities. TCS’s AT Specialists to provide on-site support and training of AT hardware and software applications, AT training curriculum for all COTS and DoED specific software application, as well as on-site and remote training support for all AT end users throughout the DoED. TCS works closely with the employees receiving AT, their supervisors, NTT Data leadership and the 508 and Assessment team to ensure all AT contracted deliverables were provided in a timely, cost efficient and effective manner.