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| Members of ATI task force recently attended a CSU-wide conference on accessibility. |
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| Suzanne Donnelly of the bookstore and Catherine Schmitt Whitaker of the DRC, accept their award from Deborah Kaplan, director of the CSU's ATI. |
In an ongoing effort to make the campus more accessible for all people, members of the Accessible Technology Initiative task force, I&IT Division and the Disability Resource Center will continue offering workshops and other learning opportunities for students, faculty and staff throughout the coming months.
This initiative demonstrates the California State University system's commitment to provide access to information resources and technologies to individuals with disabilities. This program focuses on enhancing Web-accessibility, instructional materials accessibility and accessible electronic and information technology procurement.
Cal Poly Pomona was honored in March by the CSU for inroads in creating access to course materials for with disabilities. At the CSUN Technology and Persons with Disabilities International Conference, the Disability Resource Center and the Bronco Bookstore were recognized with the Best Practices in Accessible Instructional Materials Award. The bookstore and DRC were honored for their collaborative work to provide instructional materials in alternate formats for students with disabilities in a timely manner.
This partnership has engaged faculty in understanding that their efforts will benefit all students, not just students with disabilities, says Dr. Catherine Schmitt Whitaker, DRC director.
“People see the value of this initiative once they understand it,” Schmitt Whitaker says. “We have appreciated the opportunity to meet with the college councils to discuss how our divisions can effectively work together to meet our students' needs. Overall, people see the value of how their individual efforts, such as turning textbook requisitions in by the deadline, contributes to the students' ability to access material that meets their needs in a timely fashion so that they are in step with their classmates.”
Achieving accessibility of information technology and resources is a shared responsibility, requiring collaboration throughout the university. To further this philosophy, the campus' 10-member task force with representatives from all divisions of the university, will present numerous ATI workshops in the coming months.
Achieving accessibility of information technology and resources is a shared responsibility, requiring collaboration throughout the university. To further this philosophy, the campus' 10-member task force with representatives from all divisions of the university, will present numerous ATI workshops in the coming months .
Additionally, a new service is being offered to faculty. Professors seeking to enhance the accessibility of instructional materials may now take advantage of the ATI – FITS program. This service provides one-on-one training and/or support in creating accessible materials such as Web sites, Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, Excel spreadsheet, and PDF documents, as well as an accessibility review of existing materials.
For more details about the ATI at Cal Poly Pomona and details about the workshops and other services, visit https://www.cpp.edu/~accessibility/.