Scheduled at 8:30 in Colorado G-H on Thursday, November 19.
#43011Speaker(s)
- Aaron Stickney, Accessible Media Technology Associate, University of Illinois
- Hannah Zercher, Accessible Media Technology Associate, University of Illinois
Session Details
- Length of Session: 1-hr
- Format: Interactive/Discussion
- Expertise Level: Beginner
- Type of session: General Conference
Summary
Accessible media is a requirement for a number of accommodations and institutions need to be ready to apply accommodations to a variety of unique teaching material. This interactive discussion will explore some real-world "unique" examples of content received at the University of Illinois that may have you questioning your policies and procedures for captioning and audio describing content.
Abstract
Video content is being used with increasing frequency in classrooms, in presentations, and in marketing. This has increased the demand for quality captioning and audio description. Institutions use a number of methods to meet the demand: Outside vendors, AI/auto-generated content, and/or internal production.
This interactive discussion session will explore real content submitted for these services that don't fit into many current production practices. By examining this media, the group will discuss varying approaches, each with their own merits, which will be used as a backdrop to establish, refine, and/or reevaluate policies regarding accessible content creation.
The content involved will focus on captioning and audio describing materials that are not sufficiently remedied with AI tools and have multiple possible acceptable end results. While there isn't always a "correct" answer, there are incorrect solutions that may be the default in your current production setup. We will also address situations that fall outside established rules (such as by the DCMP) and what to do when rules need to be broken.
Keypoints
- Some content used by educators is not well served with rigid production environments.
- Content does not need to be limited or dissuaded based on perceived difficulty/impossibility.
- By identifying the need and purpose of a piece of media, we can better serve its audience.
Disability Areas
Cognitive/Learning, Deaf/Hard of Hearing, Vision
Topic Areas
Accessible Course Design, Captioning/Transcription, Uncategorized
Speaker Bio(s)
Aaron Stickney
Aaron is an Accessible Media Associate at the University of Illinois and has a BS in Communications from Eastern Illinois University. With over five years of experience in accessible media production, he specializes in providing captioning and audio description for educational content.
Hannah Zercher
Hannah Zercher is an Accessible Media Technology Associate at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign, with four years of experience working in accessibility in higher education. She is also a recent graduate of UIUC, completing her Master's in Recreation, Sport, and Tourism in May 2025. Her interests include a combination of her current role and event planning, particularly with accessibility standards at temporary events such as fairs or festivals. In her free time, you can find Hannah at a music festival, playing with her two cats (Halen and Vedder), or playing video games with her fiancé, Nate.