Mason's Office for Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion

Digital Accessibility Updates

News you can use to make your digital resources, classrooms, and events more inclusive and accessible to the Mason community!

In This SPRING 2024 Newsletter

ICT Accessibility Training & Collaboration Opportunities
Spring 2024 Hands-On Accessibility Training Opportunities
Support Services Available to You
Coming Soon...

Training & collaboration Opportunities

SAVE THE DATE!

Spring 2024 Lunch & Learn Workshops, Jan. 16th - Jan 19th

During the week of Jan. 16th, ATI staff will be hosting lunch & learn workshops focused on ensuring commonly used digital resources are accessible to members of the Mason community. The following workshops will be available:

Lunch & Learn Workshops

Using Bookshare to Acquire Free and Accessible Copies of your Course Textbooks, Jan. 16th (12:00pm - 1:00pm)
Accessible Videos: Using CourseMedia (i.e., Machine vs. Pro), YouTube, and Vimeo, Jan. 17th (12:00pm - 1:00pm)
Making Zoom and MS Teams Sessions More Accessible and Inclusive, Jan. 18th (12:00pm - 1:00pm)
Accessible Email Communications, Jan. 19th (12:00pm - 1:00pm)

Assistive Technology Quick Talks with Jackie!

Starting January 23rd, ATI Assistive Technology Specialist, Jackie Servello, will be hosting 30-minute quick talk sessions highlighting useful assistive technology features/tools to assist you with accessing your information technology resources.

See below for the session schedule:

January Sessions

Built-In Free Dictation - Jan. 23rd
Using the Livescribe App for Notetaking - Jan. 30th
Getting the most of our Microsoft OneNote - Jan. 26th

February Sessions

Getting the most of our Microsoft OneNote - Feb. 6th
Read&Write App's Most Useful Features - Feb. 13th
Natural Reader on the Go - Feb. 20th
Built-In Free Dictation - Feb. 27th

March Sessions

Using the Livescribe App for Notetaking - March 5th
Getting the most of our Microsoft OneNote - March 12th
Natural Reader on the Go - March 19th

Join DEI's DAIC Group!

DEI's Digital Accessibility and Inclusion Community (DAIC) Group will hold it's next meeting on March 27th, 1:00pm - 2:30pm. Check your calendar for invites. Feel free to share with others you think would be interested in attending.

Spring 2024 Session Topic

UDL and Accessibility - What's the Difference?

DAIC Mission:

The DAIC's mission is to bring together community partners to share and learn about the digital accessibility solutions already in place to support access and inclusion at Mason. Sessions are open to all members of the Mason community.

Want to join? Send an email to ati@gmu.edu.

Hands-On Training Opportunities

Join OUR DAF or TTW COURSES!

Document Accessibility Fundamentals badge

Become a Mason Document Accessibility Pro!

The Document Accessibility Fundamentals (DAF) Course will be offered again this Spring beginning in March. The DAF course provides self-paced, hands-on instruction to Mason faculty and staff on how to create accessible Word, PowerPoint, and PDF documents. These are the most commonly used document formats in Mason classrooms. Educating faculty and staff on how to create accessible documents ensures our students are provided with equivalent access to instructional resources.

Cohort Length: Approximately 8 weeks. Length varies.
Compensation: In addition to earning the micro-credential, participants will also receive up to $250 for completing the training course.

For more details, visit the ATI's Document Accessibility Fundamentals page!

Interested in joining? You can enroll at anytime!

Contact Robert Starr, rstarr@gmu.edu.

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Become a Mason Trusted Tester!

The Trusted Tester for Web Fundamentals (TTW) Course will be offered again this Spring beginning in March. The TTW Course leverages DHS' Trusted Tester for Web Accessibility Certification Training course, training participants on how to identify and report web accessibility-related issues (e.g., color contrast, alternative text descriptions for images, inaccessible form fields, inaccessible audio/video, etc.). Participants will also be educated on how individuals with disabilities in the Mason community interact with the institution's public-facing web resources.

Cohort Length: Approximately 12 weeks. Length varies.
Compensation: In addition to earning the micro-credential, participants will also receive up to $250 for completing the training course.

For more details, visit Trusted Tester for Web Fundamentals page!

Interested in joining? You can enroll at anytime!

Contact Kristine Neuber, kneuber@gmu.edu.

Support services available to you

Need Help Making Your Course

Content accessible?!

Visit the ATI Website to Request Support Services!

We want to ensure your instructional and front-facing websites, videos, and documents are as accessible as possible to individuals with disabilities. The ATI provide document accessibility reviews, web accessibility consultations, and caption videos for faculty and staff who need support with this types of issues.

SOMETHING NEW TO NOTE! The ATI is now using the Guardian Database to more efficiently manage DEI-related service requests. Members of the Mason community will need to enter your username and password to access the online forms.

To learn more, select the link below.

REQUEST ATI SUPPORT SERVICES

Request ADA Accommodations

The university provides accommodations to individuals with disabilities in order to ensure equal access and opportunity to Mason employees. The employee accommodations process starts when an employee or a supervisor contacts the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Coordinator to discuss or request an accommodation.

Want to learn more? Visit...

REQUEST EMPLOYEE ACCOMMODATIONS

Having trouble? Report a barrier

Mason is committed to ensuring individuals with disabilities are afforded equivalent access to all of the university's programs and services. Any member of the Mason community encountering digital (e.g., websites that do not work with your assistive technology) and/or physical accessibility barriers (e.g., automatic doors not working, block walkways/doorways, etc.) can report the issue to the ATI.

To report an Access Barrier, select the link below.

REPORT AN ACCESS BARRIER

COMING SOON...

DAU NEWsletter Schedule

The Digital Accessibility Updates newsletter will be published at the beginning and end of the fall and spring semesters. The next issue will be distributed in May 2024.

Assistive Technology Initiative

Email: ati@gmu.edu | Phone: 703-993-4329 | Web: http://ati.gmu.edu

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