Techquity: Bring Access and Inclusion to All Students on Your Campus

Handouts

Presented at 8:00am in Governors Square 12 on Wednesday, November 17, 2021.

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Speaker(s)

  • Rachel Kruzel, Higher Education Specialist, Texthelp
  • Katherine Hamilton, Brand Manager, Sonocent Ldt.

Session Details

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

Summary

Techquity, or the intersectionality of technology and equity applies to our work given the changing landscape of education and our world. In this session, we’ll explore the concept of techquity and how you can use it to bring new levels of access and inclusion to all students supported by campuswide DEI initiatives, including disability and race.

Abstract

Techquity is the intersectionality between the use of technology and ensuring equitable learning environments. Never before has education been more focused on equitable learning. Race, gender, ethnicity, socioeconomic status, and disability all impact how students reach course curriculum and content. But, strategically implemented technology has the power to address and mitigate the barriers these students face, all while supporting Equity initiatives on your campus.

In this session, we’ll discuss techquity and how campuses can use this as a framework for thinking about student support and accessibility. By thinking about technological adoption and the skills needed to access and process information in a new way, we can take the tools traditionally thought of as assistive technology and provide wider support, accessibility and inclusion to all learners. This thought leadership session will get you thinking about the direction of technology and education in a whole new way.

Keypoints

  1. Technquity or the intersection of technology and equity is a concept becoming more popular in education.
  2. Strategic implementation of technology can help support all students including those with disabilities.
  3. Through collaboration and partnership with key initiatives such as DEI, wider student support can be achieved.

Disability Areas

All Areas

Topic Areas

Assistive Technology, Uncategorized

Speaker Bio(s)

Rachel Kruzel

Rachel Kruzel, ATP, is the Higher Education Specialist for Texthelp where she supports higher education institutions across the United States and Canada as they explore, adopt, and implement technology based literacy, STEM, and accessibility based solutions to help create more inclusive, equitable, and accessible campuses and learning spaces for all students and campus members. She is a RESNA Certified Assistive Technology Professional and spent over ten years working as an Assistive Technology and Accommodations Specialist in Disability Resource Offices prior to coming to Texthelp. During her time in higher ed, she built and developed assistive technology programs at both schools she worked at, as well as coordinated the provision of accommodations. Rachel is a national expert in the areas of assistive technology, digital accessibility, accessible course materials, and accommodation provision around testing and notetaking. Rachel presents both regionally and nationally on these topics and others, as well as consults with students, parents, schools, and organizations.

Katherine Hamilton

Katherine is Glean’s Brand Manager, focusing on how we can help every learner to have the confidence and ability to build useful knowledge in an age of information overload. Glean (formerly Sonocent) creates inclusive note taking solutions that empower 100,000+ users across 500 institutions to reach their potential in and out of the classroom. Katherine’s vision is to shape Glean as more than just a technology company but instead a driver of real social change in diverse learning environments. Katherine has previously spoken at COE, AHEAD, ATIA, AHG, and CSUN conferences about improving equity and the relationship between note taking and learning.

Handout(s)

TechquityBringAccess&InclusiontoAllStudentsOnYourCampus_AHG2021_nonotes