Scheduled at 9:00am in Colorado G-H on Tuesday, November 12.
#39767Speaker(s)
- Christa Miller, Associate Director of Services for Students with Disabilities, Virginia Tech
- Dawn Hunziker, Associate Director, University of Arizona
Session Details
- Length of Session: 3-hr
- Format: Panel
- Expertise Level: Expert
- Type of session: Pre-conference
Summary
With the closure of Access Text Network (ATN), many seasoned professionals need to refresh their knowledge of applicable laws, best practices on creation, and methods of acquiring alternative format (alt format). This half-day pre-conference focuses on just-in-time information for offices looking for a rapid review of what to know about making and creating alt format.
Abstract
Many advancements in the law and technology have made it possible to streamline the creation and acquisition of alt formats for students with print disabilities. The loss of ATN as a consolidated resource for acquiring textbooks is forcing institutions to re-examine their processes. Despite this the community of experts continues to stand in the gap to minimize the impact to students with print disabilities. If your alt format process needs a refresh, this session is for you.
During this interactive discussion the presenters will showcase: 1) The historical/legal context of alt format, 2) Tools for manual creation of alt format (chop, scan, tag, and deliver), 3) Automated tools for alt format, 4) Preferred file format discussion (RTF, DOC, PDF, EPUB, BRF, etc), and 5) Best practices for working with publishers.
Attendees should plan for a lively discussion of the merits and drawbacks of various approaches to providing alt format.
Keypoints
- It's time to refresh our knowledge of go-to resources for acquiring alternative format.
- Taking advantage of the ATN service shut down can be an opportunity for innovation.
- Print-based disabilities are not going away and neither is alternative format.
Disability Areas
Cognitive/Learning, Vision
Topic Areas
Alternate Format, Uncategorized
Speaker Bio(s)
Christa Miller
Christa Miller is currently the Associate Director for Services for Students with Disabilities at Virginia Tech (VT). She has a BS Electrical Engineering (2008) and MS Industrial Systems Engineering (2012) both from VT. She started working in VT's Assistive Technologies group in 2006 as a student employee teaching students how to use assistive and accessible technologies. From 2010 to 2015, she transcribed STEM materials into Braille, and then transitioned into teaching instructors to create accessible educational materials by design.
For the last several years, she's helped VT grow their digital accessibility footprint by helping to establish the centralized captioning fund, building up the campus' Accessibility Network, creating training on PDF accessibility, and leading cohorts of individuals preparing for the IAAP CPACC Certification.
Christa is an active member of regional and national disability and accessibility organizations (AHEAD in VA, AHEAD, ATHEN, and Accessing Higher Ground). When she has the opportunity, her research interests include accessibility in STEM courses and Universal Design for Learning.
Dawn Hunziker
Dawn collaborates with Disability Resource Center staff and the UA campus community around physical, digital, and event access which also includes alternate format production (e-text and captioning), and communication access (ASL Interpreting and CART Real-Time Captioning services).