Scheduled at 3:00 pm in Penrose 1 on Wednesday, November 13.
#39444Speaker(s)
- Jen Bethmann, Web Accessibility Coordinator, Illinois State University
- Tammie Keney, Director, Illinois State University
- Stacy Brown, Associate Director of Purchases, Illinois State University
Session Details
- Length of Session: 1-hr
- Format: Lecture
- Expertise Level: All Levels
- Type of session: General Conference
Summary
Join us in a conversation about how Illinois State University integrated accessibility reviews into our procurement process. Learn how our technology departments, accommodations office and procurement office collaborated to pro-actively review software and technology purchases. We will address the hurdles cleared and progress made. As well as sharing the current challenges and opportunities we face for continued growth.
Abstract
Many universities currently face a need to develop a way to incorporate accessibility into their software and technology procurement processes. With moves to online learning and changes in how technology is used in classrooms and campus activities, knowing the state of how accessibility impacts the university population and learning outcomes across campus.
In 2018, to follow state and federal laws, we at Illinois State University began forming strategic partnerships between our technology departments, accommodations office, OEOA, and the procurement office to proactively assess software and technology purchased or procured for the university. Follow our journey from first conversations, to getting buy-in from leadership, things we learned along the way and how we continue to improve the process. We will share our lessons learned from this journey, what barriers we overcame and where we hope to go with in our current process.
We will describe our process for both small and large-scale procurements, encompassing campus-wide initiatives. This includes discussing changes made to our RFP process, as well as detailing our accessibility review procedures including how we've modified our contract language. Additionally, we will explain how we formed a review committee to address potential risks to the university.
Keypoints
- Share key campus players in our procurement process and their roles.
- Demonstrate review procedures and contract language.
- Identifying the risks and ways to handle possible outcomes.
Disability Areas
All Areas
Topic Areas
Procurement, Uncategorized, Web/Media/App Access
Speaker Bio(s)
Jen Bethmann
Jen Bethmann is the Web Accessibility Coordinator for Illinois State University. She serves as a campus resource for web, application, and software accessibility and usability standards and best practices. She is certified as a Trusted Tester from the Office of Accessible Systems and Technology with the Department of Homeland Security, and Adobe's PDF Accessibility Train-the-Trainer. Her goal is to educate others to proactively consider universal and inclusive design principles when creating and procuring digital content and products to ensure all digital technology is accessible and usable. She believes technology and digital content should be created to be used by everyone regardless of their situation or ability and seeks to empower others with knowledge and tools to do so.
Tammie Keney
Tammie Keney, Director of Student Access and Accommodation Services at Illinois State University has worked with individuals with disabilities for the past 35 years, with 18 of those years in higher education disability support and ADA Coordinator roles. She is a strong advocate for natural supports through universal design and breaking down barriers that prevent others from enjoying their communities. She has a master's degree in Education. She serves on several committees to advance diversity, inclusion, and access initiatives; including ISU Diversity and Inclusion Advisory Council, Illinois Board of Higher Education Disability Advisory Council, ISU Space Planning Committee, McLean County IDDC Committee, ADA Committee, AHEAD, and NASPA. In her spare time, she enjoys activities in the outdoors including camping, hiking, kayaking, skiing, snowshoeing, and traveling the world.
Stacy Brown
With over twenty years of procurement experience, Stacy Brown has focused on developing integrated procurement processes for campus technology procurement. Since moving to Illinois State University from private procurement, Stacy has worked to create a transparent and inclusive process throughout campus that allows various stake holders the ability to review and address concerns specific to their area of focus. Her goal is to build strong trusting relationships and clear communication which will result in better experiences for not only the administrative teams but also the students using the technology.