Brief History of IDEAL Group and its Subsidiary Companies

 

 

In September, 1991, NCR Corporation was acquired by AT&T. NCR was renamed "AT&T Global Information Solutions." In December, 1993, a team of AT&T employees formed a New Jersey-based not-for-profit corporation called IDEAL at AT&T. IDEAL was an acronym that stood for Individuals with Disabilities Enabling Advocacy Link. The goal of IDEAL at AT&T was to work with AT&T management to make the right choices when implementing AT&T’s business principles based on corporate values known as "Our Common Bond." AT&T's Our Common Bond business principles were (are):

Steve Jacobs, who previously served as NCR Corporation's Accessibility Manager, became an active member of IDEAL at AT&T. In that same year, Steve assumed Chairmanship of AT&T Bell Labs "Project Freedom." Project Freedom's mission was to develop new and advanced Assistive Technology (AT) in support of individuals with disabilities. With the support of: 1) AT&T Electrical Engineers; and, members of AT&T's Consumer Advisory Panel on Disability Issues (CAPDI), Project Freedom pioneered the use of interactive video technology for sign-language communications over distances using dual ISDN networks. This was the first time advanced video technology was used to facilitate two-way "voice telephone" ASL conversations! Project Freedom's work was commemorated in a 1994 video. The ASL conversation took place between students and teachers from the Horace Mann Montessori School in Dayton, Ohio. The video also showcased historical footage of Alexander Graham Bell. Although a competitor, Sprint used AT&T Project Freedom's Vistium Video System hardware and infrastructure to conduct the world's first Video Relay Services (VRS) pilot test in Texas in 1995. Here's a 1994 photo of Reed Hundt, FCC Chairman (November 29, 1993 to November 3, 1997) and Steve Jacobs, AT&T Project Freedom Chairman, demonstrating VRS to FCC Commissioners.
 

In 1996, a restructuring of AT&T took place, leading to the re-establishment of NCR Corporation as a separate company. From January, 1997 through July, 1999, Jacobs carried on IDEAL at AT&T's, and AT&T Project Freedom's work, as president, under the name "IDEAL at NCR Corporation." At that time, IDEAL at NCR operated under IDEAL at AT&T's charter. On August 10, 1999 Steve incorporated IDEAL as an NCR not-for-profit corporation under the name "IDEAL at NCR." From 1999 -2002, IDEAL supported NCR's work to design, develop, and release financial/retail products and services that were as accessible as reasonably possible.

IDEAL at NCR's technical accomplishments were many. Here are a few examples of IDEAL at NCR's high-level projects:

Here are a few IDEAL at NCR trade show photos:

 

At the end of December, 2002, Jacobs retired from NCR Corporation and was granted permission to spin-off IDEAL at NCR into IDEAL Group, Inc. On June 4, 2003, IDEAL Group, Inc. was incorporated as a privately held, Ohio-Based, Social Entrepreneurship corporation. Since that time IDEAL Group has successfully managed and completed 140 development projects and established three subsidiary companies, all focused on accommodating the access needs of individuals with disabilities through the use of advanced technology. 

IDEAL Group's subsidiary companies are as follows: 

Today, IDEAL Group, along with its subsidiary companies, continue to enhance the independence, quality-of-life, employability, and quality-of-education of tens-of-millions of individuals with disabilities around the world.

For more information about IDEAL Group, or any of its subsidiaries, please contact:

 

Steve Jacobs

President and CEO

IDEAL Group, Inc.

10080 Gerich Lilly Rd.

West Jefferson, OH 43162

steve.jacobs@ideal-group.org

http://ideal-group.org

Cell: (614) 777-0660

Fax: (614) 522-1031

TTY: (800) 750-0750

Skype: stevenijacobs