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Creating a Campus-wide Digital Accessibility Initiative

Handouts

Presented at 9:15am in Plaza Ballroom D on Wednesday, November 17, 2021.

#34519

Speaker(s)

  • Kate DeForest, Web/Digital Content Coordinator, State University of New York at Oswego

Session Details

  • Length of Session: 1-hr
  • Format: Lecture
  • Expertise Level: Beginner
  • Type of session: General Conference

Summary

Creating an accessible digital culture within a college campus requires collaboration and effort from multiple departments and constituencies. SUNY Oswego’s Digital Accessibility Analyst, Kate Percival, will discuss planting the seeds of institutional change, empowering others to do their part, developing a strong support network to keep the conversation going, and our revelation of how accessible the word “accessible” is.

Abstract

Creating an accessible digital culture within a college campus requires collaboration and effort from multiple departments and constituencies. At SUNY Oswego, we realized that pockets of proactivity were responding to various campus needs and that we needed to move towards a more coordinated model of accessibility. Those “pockets” were brought together to form groups and work towards creating an overall culture shift to better address accessibility needs on campus. We use the lessons learned on our roundabout journey to help others learn how to move forward more directly. Kate Percival, Oswego’s Digital Accessibility Analyst, will discuss planting the seeds of institutional change, empowering others to do their part, developing a strong support network to keep the conversation going, and our revelation of how accessible the word “accessible” is.

Keypoints

  1. Empower and engage others by changing the tone of the narrative that is being used
  2. Develop a supportive network of allies who will help keep accessibility at the forefront of the conversation
  3. Advocate for a broader understanding of the term “accessible,” as used in relation to equality and inclusion

Disability Areas

All Areas

Topic Areas

Uncategorized

Speaker Bio(s)

Kate DeForest

Kate DeForest is Web/Digital Content Coordinator for State University of New York at Oswego. She updates and maintains the university’s primary website and trains campus personnel on web and digital accessibility best practices. As a member and former chair of the Workgroup on Accessibility Practices, Kate has worked on a number of campus accessibility initiatives, including building Oswego’s Digital Accessibility website and launching multiple Campus Accessibility Challenges. Kate is a member of IAAP and a Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC). She has given accessibility-related presentations at numerous local, state, national, and international conferences, including Accessing Higher Ground, HighEdWeb, AHEAD, and Higher Education Connect.

Handout(s)