[AcadFac] Message from the Provost - accessibiltiy for students with disabilities

[AcadFac] MESSAGE FROM THE PROVOST – ACCESSIBILITY FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES

on behalf of

Miranda,Rick <Rick.Miranda@ColoState.EDU>

Mon 3/16/2020 4:22 PM

To: acadfac@lists.colostate.edu <acadfac@lists.colostate.edu>; adminpro@lists.colostate.edu <adminpro@lists.colostate.edu>;

nontenurefac@lists.colostate.edu <nontenurefac@lists.colostate.edu>; ddd@lists.colostate.edu <ddd@lists.colostate.edu>

MESSAGE FROM THE PROVOST – ACCESSIBILITY FOR STUDENTS WITH DISABILITIES Dear Colleagues:

These past few days of preparing for and responding to a COVID-19 pandemic has revealed the strength and dedica on of our incredible faculty and staff. It has shown how deeply commi ed you are to our students’ success and although we have asked so much of you, you con nue to step up to do what you can. We know this is a heavy li and that in addi on to preparing your classes for online instruc on, you also have your own self-care to do and family and friends who need you. Thank you for all you are doing to keep us moving forward with our mission of access and excellence amid this challenging event.

I would like to ask your help once again, this me to make sure everything is in place to support our students with disabili es. The Student Disability Center and the Assis ve Technology Resource Center offer the following recommenda ons as you redesign your face-to-face courses for online delivery. The focus is on accessibility, as well as accommoda on for individual needs. Building in accessibility at the start will enable all students to par cipate in your course on an equitable level (inclusive pedagogy), while certain accommoda ons will mi gate the effects of a student’s par cular disability.

· Design for asynchronous delivery. Students may be accessing your course from different me zones, while students with

disabili es may need to work around the effects of their disability.

· Record your lectures and have them available for a longer period of me (more than two weeks). Increased access to

lectures for all students gives them the opportunity to review points they may have missed when first presented. It also allows students to use other accommoda ons, such as sign language interpreters, more effec vely.

· Cap on and transcribe recorded lectures. Students have different strengths in how they learn. Cap ons and transcripts help

those who have stronger visual modes of learning. They are especially helpful for students with hearing disabili es.

· Be sure that all content is accessible. Not all PDF, power points, videos, etc. will be accessible, due either to format or to the

limits of specific technologies. Students may have different types of technology, some of which will make some content difficult to access. Some content (e.g., PDFs) may not be compa ble with assis ve technology, such as screen readers, unless the content has been reforma ed. A helpful guide: h ps://accessibility.colostate.edu/

· Provide access and accommoda on for exams. Many of the students with disabili es simply need extra me for exams due

to the effects of their disability. It’s easy to provide extra me for exams in Canvas.

· Be able to alert Proctor U of any accommoda ons needs. If using Proctor U, faculty will need to request the accommoda on

for any student, such as extra me, word banks, page of notes, etc. Please be sure that you are aware of the needs of your students with disabili es using the informa on provided to you through Accommoda on Le ers from SDC.

The SDC and the ARTC recognize that these recommenda ons may require a bit more thought and work as you move your face-to-face courses online. TILT, ACNS and CSU Online are working hard to assist you with these processes. The steps for building

accessibility will be made explicit on the “Keep Teaching” site. Links to more thorough and robust tutorials are available at

h ps://accessibility.colostate.edu/.

You can submit a cket for assistance with these aspects through the “Keep Teaching” site.

Following these recommenda ons will enable all students, and especially those with disabili es, to have the opportunity to be as successful as possible in your courses. Both the SDC and the ATRC are here to help you, and we encourage you to reach out if you have any concerns or ques ons as to how to provide access and accommoda on for your courses.

Students will also be encouraged to let us know if they encounter any unan cipated barriers to their par cipa on in your courses. If they do, you will be contacted by us to help find a way to resolve the barrier. These are challenging mes for all of us, but together we can enable successful learning for all students.

Please feel free visit these websites:

Student Disability Center: h ps://disabilitycenter.colostate.edu/

Assis ve Technology Resource Center: h ps://www.chhs.colostate.edu/atrc

Again, thank you for your dedica on. Don’t forget to take care of yourself – stay healthy (and stay tuned…). - Rick

Rick Miranda

Provost and Execu ve Vice President Colorado State University