0:00:01.048,0:00:05.026
(Michael Young) We are committed to the notion[br]that everyone should have an opportunity to

0:00:05.026,0:00:09.959
participate in higher education, whether it[br]be from the learning perspective, or the research

0:00:09.959,0:00:14.082
perspective, or an opportunity to work here[br]at this institution. We benefit from that

0:00:14.082,0:00:20.519
because we get to enjoy the talents and the[br]skills of those people who come in, and also

0:00:20.519,0:00:24.599
their perspective, which in many cases will[br]be different from the perspective of others

0:00:24.599,0:00:31.056
on campus. So accessibility becomes a very[br]important value at the university.

0:00:31.056,0:00:48.093
(Tracy Mitrano) We're a leading university[br]globally. We want the best talent in the world

0:00:48.093,0:00:54.008
for our students, our staff, and our faculty.[br]And we want to be sure if that talent has

0:00:54.008,0:00:57.879
a disability that they know that we are a[br]welcoming community.

0:00:57.879,0:01:03.076
(Pablo Molino) We're competing with other[br]prestigious and highly accomplished institutions.

0:01:03.076,0:01:10.091
We want to make sure that we can target the[br]right candidates to join our community regardless

0:01:10.091,0:01:13.075
of their disability status.[br](Pete Siegel) We want to do everything we

0:01:13.075,0:01:21.009
can to insure that they have the same access[br]to smart faculty, to fellow students, and

0:01:21.009,0:01:25.063
to the resources at UC Davis.[br](Ed Ray) In fact, we genuinely believe that

0:01:25.063,0:01:32.007
excellence is achieved through diversity and[br]that a commitment to equity and inclusion

0:01:32.007,0:01:38.004
really enriches each of our lives.[br](Linda Cahill) It would be inconceivable not

0:01:38.004,0:01:45.088
to have a social conscience, at least, and[br]be completely committed to making our resources

0:01:45.088,0:01:49.025
at Barry University accessible to all students.

0:01:49.025,0:01:55.075
(Ed Ray) We believe that the use of technology[br]can be very powerful. It connects people to

0:01:55.075,0:02:02.017
each other, but it also enhances their learning[br]capabilities; it increases what they can do

0:02:02.017,0:02:08.879
through their research and creative work;[br]it really makes it possible for them to have

0:02:08.879,0:02:15.043
a more powerful impact in the world and that's[br]basically what we're all about. And we want

0:02:15.043,0:02:23.489
that to be true for every member of our community[br]regardless of limitations, of physical, spacial,

0:02:23.489,0:02:30.659
time or other dimension.[br](Hernan Londono) As an IT professional, sometimes

0:02:30.659,0:02:37.239
some of us concentrate in the technical side[br]of the house only and we forget that finally

0:02:37.239,0:02:41.159
the technology is to serve the people.[br](Michael Young) What the university offers

0:02:41.159,0:02:46.039
and makes available has to be offered to everybody.[br]We can't afford to waste the talents or

0:02:46.039,0:02:52.014
the brilliance or the minds of anybody and[br]making things accessible allows everybody

0:02:52.014,0:02:57.219
to engage in the university. Equal opportunity[br]is a part of our value system, but it's

0:02:57.219,0:03:00.889
also required by law.[br](Pete Siegel) Compliance is extremely important.

0:03:00.889,0:03:06.959
And compliance is the law. But that isn't[br]the motivator for most of us at universities.

0:03:06.959,0:03:14.499
Our motivation has always been to provide[br]easily accessible tools, excellent experiences

0:03:14.499,0:03:19.189
for our students and really to give them the[br]sense that this is a place they want to be,

0:03:19.189,0:03:24.659
a place they want to learn, a place where[br]they can thrive.

0:03:24.659,0:03:34.379
(Michael Young) Universal design is a very[br]powerful concept because what it means is

0:03:34.379,0:03:40.439
we look at the issue of accessibility at the[br]outset rather than buying something or engaging

0:03:40.439,0:03:43.087
something, or developing something that we[br]have to retrofit. Which not only makes it

0:03:43.087,0:03:49.639
cheaper and more efficient, it likely makes[br]it much better in terms of both the quality

0:03:49.639,0:03:53.579
of the product and the accessibility to those[br]-- all the people that we want to be able

0:03:53.579,0:03:56.299
to use it.[br](Tracy Mitrano) I think the other direction

0:03:56.299,0:04:02.999
that colleges and universities could and should[br]take is to think about accommodation as really

0:04:02.999,0:04:08.359
the beginning of the conversation about disability[br]. It was the appropriate measure that was

0:04:08.359,0:04:13.939
taken in the Americans with Disabilities Act[br]that was passed in 1990 and that's well over

0:04:13.939,0:04:20.084
a generation ago. I think now we really have[br]to think less about how we're going to measure

0:04:20.084,0:04:27.009
specifically this accommodation or that accommodation[br]and recognize that we can make accessibility

0:04:27.009,0:04:32.007
open and available so that individual staff,[br]faculty or students do not have to go to get

0:04:32.007,0:04:38.004
an accommodation. It will be automatically[br]available in the webpage that they visit,

0:04:38.004,0:04:42.039
in the device that they use.[br](Brady Deaton) We envision a campus that has

0:04:42.039,0:04:48.014
a concept of universal design in all aspects[br]of information technology, that a student

0:04:48.014,0:04:52.091
is not impeded in any way, but in fact, that[br]technology is utilized not only directly by

0:04:52.091,0:04:59.095
those who benefit because of certain challenges[br]they may have, but also is illustrative to

0:04:59.095,0:05:05.009
the broader student body and to the faculty[br]and to alums about what an inclusive learning

0:05:05.009,0:05:08.027
environment is.[br](Pete Seigel) We have some things we have

0:05:08.027,0:05:13.074
to learn in order to move into accessibility[br]space, but the basic goals and the basic values

0:05:13.074,0:05:18.037
are things we already know and love. Then[br]we bring in things like universal design:

0:05:18.037,0:05:24.028
the notion that if we design things well right[br]from the start, they actually aren't more

0:05:24.028,0:05:31.093
expensive. This is something that we can fit[br]into even our very, very tight budgets.

0:05:31.093,0:05:43.096
(Eileen McDonough) We make a great effort[br]in our graduate and our undergraduate counsel

0:05:43.096,0:05:52.041
to make sure that faculty and deans are aware[br]that in program design, in offering a new

0:05:52.041,0:05:58.059
major, that they take into account that they[br]might have to have specialized software available,

0:05:58.059,0:06:06.025
and they have to build that into their program[br]development. And then to certainly just be

0:06:06.025,0:06:13.075
aware of all the different ways that students[br]can learn, to help faculty and deans understand

0:06:13.075,0:06:17.072
the concept of universal design.[br](Gerry Hanley) The first step really needs

0:06:17.072,0:06:26.008
to be an assessment of where we are, so we[br]can then inform our planning process, develop

0:06:26.008,0:06:31.019
plans, implement a project, and then really[br]assess the results of it.

0:06:31.019,0:06:36.041
(Pablo Molino) Key to our approach to making[br]sure that our campus and our technology is

0:06:36.041,0:06:41.074
accessible to people with disabilities, is[br]to ensure we do this by design. This is not

0:06:41.074,0:06:48.000
an afterthought that we do after we have implemented[br]a new classroom. Instead, this is something

0:06:48.000,0:06:54.002
that we do from the initial conception of[br]new project or idea. The same we would do

0:06:54.002,0:06:57.004
this for privacy and security, we do this[br]for accessibility.

0:06:57.004,0:07:02.095
(Bruce Maas) It is less costly, in the long[br]run, to be thinking through the issues of

0:07:02.095,0:07:09.057
accessibility comprehensively. Therefore,[br]having a plan for accessibility insures that

0:07:09.057,0:07:16.048
from the beginning we think through our issues[br]with regard to the delivery of our services.

0:07:16.048,0:07:23.001
Doing so in a strategic way means that we[br]can hold down costs over the long haul and

0:07:23.001,0:07:28.006
actually deliver better services in the bargain.[br](Brady Deaton) It is very important that a

0:07:28.006,0:07:36.024
university follows a policy and a process[br]that is a can-do kind of process. It assumes

0:07:36.024,0:07:40.002
that we are going to undertake the investments[br]that we need, we're going to demonstrate the

0:07:40.002,0:07:45.003
values that we need - that not only address[br]the needs of students who may be challenged

0:07:45.003,0:07:52.036
with vision or hearing or other disabilities,[br]but also draw on the technology that is not

0:07:52.036,0:07:56.059
only exciting for those people who are developing[br]the technology, it's intellectually exciting,

0:07:56.059,0:08:01.069
it provides new jobs for that matter and it[br]stimulates learning in so many parts of the

0:08:01.069,0:08:08.037
university. So that attitude of the university[br]administration, as well as faculty and staff

0:08:08.037,0:08:13.068
and students, becomes very, very important[br]because everyone gains from this. It's a win-win

0:08:13.068,0:08:16.041
situation.[br](Tracy Mitrano) A policy really is an important

0:08:16.041,0:08:22.027
way to go, because it will focus everyone's[br]attention. It's also probably the way that

0:08:22.027,0:08:27.081
you have to go now that there are legal pressures[br]on higher education in this area. The second

0:08:27.081,0:08:33.061
thing I would say about policy is there are[br]really two types in general. One is a policy

0:08:33.061,0:08:38.759
that you have because you have a law, for[br]example, the Family Education Rights Privacy

0:08:38.759,0:08:45.029
Act Policy, so you want to be clear and sure[br]that you're going to have compliance on your

0:08:45.029,0:08:49.899
campus. There's another kind of policy that[br]I would call aspirational policy and maybe

0:08:49.899,0:08:55.689
accessibility fits a little bit in both but[br]you most certainly can err on the aspirational

0:08:55.689,0:09:01.329
side. An aspirational policy is something[br]you establish for your institution as a path

0:09:01.329,0:09:06.004
moving towards something, moving forward.[br]It does not have to have one hundred percent

0:09:06.004,0:09:10.319
compliance because it's really a direction[br]that you're setting strategically for your

0:09:10.319,0:09:12.779
institution.[br](Gerry Hanley) I'd say another critical

0:09:12.779,0:09:25.098
aspect around our strategy is a shared governance[br]strategy. Because education is a shared responsibility

0:09:25.098,0:09:34.389
across faculty, staff, students, venders,[br]all of us working together have to share in

0:09:34.389,0:09:42.189
that responsibility. Now, a shared governance[br]process means if you are responsible in delivering

0:09:42.189,0:09:48.024
the service, then you have an opportunity[br]to share in governing how we're going to

0:09:48.024,0:09:52.629
manage the implementation of these services.[br](Brady Deaton) The administrators of the university

0:09:52.629,0:09:57.949
must reflect the values that demonstrate the[br]importance of this to the learning environment

0:09:57.949,0:10:00.779
and it has to be built in then to every aspect[br]of what we do.

0:10:00.779,0:10:04.139
(Michael Young) Right now we have a number[br]of projects and initiatives underway at the

0:10:04.139,0:10:09.269
UW in which we're testing new technologies.[br]Accessibility is an important consideration

0:10:09.269,0:10:13.079
in these evaluations. Many of the vendors[br]we work with have completed

0:10:13.079,0:10:18.569
Voluntary Product Accessibility Templates[br]or VPATs, which offer a checklist of accessibility

0:10:18.569,0:10:23.649
criteria and vendors' self-assessment as to[br]how well they meet those criteria. It's a

0:10:23.649,0:10:28.269
good starting point, but we go beyond that[br]to ask a vendor specific questions and to

0:10:28.269,0:10:33.569
test their products with respect to accessibility.[br](Gerry Hanley) We begin with our vendors saying

0:10:33.569,0:10:42.309
(a) this is not only important, that this[br]is required for working with the CSU. Every

0:10:42.309,0:10:48.099
student who comes into our institution, we[br]have to provide equally effective access to

0:10:48.099,0:10:55.086
those services and you are a partner in delivering[br]those services to us. So we will tell you

0:10:55.086,0:11:03.093
what we need and then we will help you inform[br]your staff, educate your staff, provide them

0:11:03.093,0:11:10.699
some consultation and guidance in partnership[br]with us, so you can deliver the successful

0:11:10.699,0:11:13.037
service for us.[br](Pat Burns) So we work with our vendors to

0:11:13.037,0:11:19.018
try to put pressure on them to make things[br]accessible. We actually have a purchasing

0:11:19.018,0:11:26.049
process where we work through and ask the[br]issues about accessibility for software and

0:11:26.049,0:11:31.529
hardware that we buy as well.[br](Bruce Maas) Individual efforts really need

0:11:31.529,0:11:37.879
to be able to scale well. If we go about things[br]in an ad hoc approach, one by one, we're not

0:11:37.879,0:11:43.091
likely to get the same results as if we work[br]together as a community in higher education,

0:11:43.091,0:11:48.099
to work with vendors to improve accessibility[br]for everyone with regard to the products that

0:11:48.099,0:11:55.269
are offered. That's a much more pragmatic[br]approach rather than institution by institution.

0:11:55.269,0:12:02.003
(Gerry Hanley) Making accessibility a priority[br]in their development roadmap is going to be

0:12:02.003,0:12:11.059
driven by the market demand. And if an institution[br]never says a word, the vendor isn't going

0:12:11.059,0:12:17.269
to do anything about it. So if we begin to[br]communicate our demands collectively, then

0:12:17.269,0:12:20.049
the vendor will recognize the market value[br]of accessibility.

0:12:20.049,0:12:26.067
(Joel Hartman) As we acquire IT resources,[br]we have to embed accessibility in our contracts.

0:12:26.067,0:12:31.019
As we develop resources, we have to employ[br]universal design in our thinking about how

0:12:31.019,0:12:35.093
to make these resources available and we have[br]to continue to monitor students to see if

0:12:35.093,0:12:43.309
we're really delivering to them the resources[br]in a form that they can actually use.

0:12:43.309,0:12:53.061
(Michael Young) Accessibility requires effort[br]on the part of everyone in the higher education

0:12:53.061,0:12:59.209
community - faculty, staff, technology vendors.[br]If we all do our part, our institutions can

0:12:59.209,0:13:04.529
provide everyone with an equal opportunity[br]to participate. And we all benefit from the

0:13:04.529,0:13:07.709
perspectives of a diverse group.[br](Hernan Londonono) Having that peace of mind

0:13:07.709,0:13:12.959
that we are doing all we can to provide an[br]accessible campus is -- gives us a lot of

0:13:12.959,0:13:17.067
pride and we feel very happy about what, what[br]we do.

0:13:17.067,0:13:22.199
(Linda Cahill) Why wouldn't we make our campus[br]accessible to students with disabilities and

0:13:22.199,0:13:27.439
why wouldn't we do everything we could to[br]see the technology is accessible to our students?

0:13:27.439,0:13:32.049
(Tracy Mitrano) The spirit of what has made[br]higher education the jewel in the crown of

0:13:32.049,0:13:36.939
American society is part and parcel of the[br]message of accessibility.

0:13:36.939,0:13:43.139
(Ed Ray) Every way in which we touch the lives[br]of others, whether it's in the classroom,

0:13:43.139,0:13:50.017
the laboratory, through live performances,[br]through events on campus, we want everyone

0:13:50.017,0:14:00.029
who comes here and creates those experiences[br]to be as fully engaged and as fully benefited

0:14:00.029,0:14:08.179
by the activity as possible. And that simply[br]can't be done if people have artificial challenges

0:14:08.179,0:14:09.889
or barriers to try to overcome.

0:14:09.889,0:14:16.319
(Ed Ray) I would say to those out there who[br]are just getting started or maybe struggling

0:14:16.319,0:14:23.629
to figure out how to use technology to advance[br]accessibility on their campuses that there's

0:14:23.629,9:59:59.000
no such thing as a bad time to start.