#43474
Speaker(s)
- Mark Miller, Founder, Inclusion Impact Accessibility
- Amy Furey-Ligan, Associate General Counsel, Northeast Ohio Medical University
Session Details
- Length of Session: 1-hr
- Format: Panel
- Expertise Level: All Levels
- Type of session: General Conference
Summary
NEOMED was working toward their accessibility goals when critical gaps were identified in their approach to ADA Title II and HHS Section 504 requirements. This sparked a cross-departmental task force bringing Legal, IT, HR, and Faculty together. Join Mark Miller for a discussion with NEOMED's Amy Furey-Ligan on the steps they took to triage the situation and ignite an accessibility initiative to address unique medical school challenges including the question, how do you make an X-ray accessible?
Abstract
Like every institution, Northeast Ohio Medical University (NEOMED) was diligently working towards improving accessibility across their courses and websites. Then in late-2025 a staff member attended a conference through the Inter-University Council of Ohio that shown a light on some of the gaps the staff had not considered with regards to ADA Title II or Health and Human Services (HHS) new requirements under Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act with regards to PDFs, medical specific course materials, and kiosks. This light became a beacon that brought together key stakeholders from Legal, IT, HR, Faculty, and the college administration into a small task force focused on quickly and efficiently addressing the missing accessibility gaps across their school.
During this presentation Mark Miller (Inclusion Impact Accessibility) will interview Amy Furey-Ligan, Associate General Counsel for NEOMED on how key staff members initially triaged the situation, took ownership where they could, and began to evangelize accessibility across the campus. The discussion will also highlight some of the interesting challenges a medical school has to overcome to provide an accessible education to everyone including the question, how do you make an X-ray accessible?
Keypoints
- It is easy to get started in accessibility, but you have to know when to ask for help.
- Having support from leadership is key to ensuring the initiative doesn't die in committee.
- Good procurement policies can help stop the flow of additional accessibility issues from entering your campus.
Disability Areas
Cognitive/Learning, Deaf/Hard of Hearing, Vision
Topic Areas
Accessibility and Accommodation in the Current Political/Legal Environment, Accessible Course Design, Campus & System-wide initiatives, Faculty Development & Support, Legal, Uncategorized
Speaker Bio(s)
Mark Miller
Mark is the founder of Inclusion Impact Accessibility, a full-service digital accessibility consultancy focused on the positive impact accessibility can have on business. Throughout his 13-year career, Mark has worked for both small consultancies and large enterprise accessibility firms. He has a passion for helping clients with organizational accessibility strategies and sustained conformance to requirements such as the ADA, Section 508, EAA, and the WCAG guidelines. He is an invited expert on the W3C Maturity Model Task Force of the APA WG, working on the Accessibility Maturity Model (AMM). As a thought leader, Mark is a prolific speaker on digital accessibility and maintains a robust speaking and podcasting schedule.
Amy Furey-Ligan
Amy Furey-Ligan served as the Associate General Counsel for Northeast Ohio Medical University, a health sciences university that offers graduate and professional degrees, for 15 years, and continues to serve as a consultant to the university on a variety of compliance matters, including accessibility. While there, Amy also served as a member of their University Student Accessibility Services Committee.