May 14, 2026 | View in browser
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UVM Office of Accessibility Services Newsletter, Early May 2026
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Access & Achievement: Celebrating the Class of 2026 |
As the University of Vermont prepares to celebrate the achievements of the Class of 2026, the Office of Accessibility Services (OAS) proudly honors the graduates whose determination, talent, and resilience have shaped our campus community.
Commencement is a milestone moment—one that should be fully experienced by every graduate and every guest.
That is why accessibility is intentionally built into every ceremony.
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Creating an Inclusive Commencement for All |
Behind the scenes, OAS collaborates with campus partners for months to ensure that commencement reflects UVM’s shared commitment to equity, dignity, and belonging. This work allows graduates and their families to focus on celebration, knowing that access is in place.
For this year’s ceremonies, OAS is providing:
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- Communication Access Realtime Translation (CART) at all major ceremonies, ensuring real-time captioning for attendees who are deaf or hard of hearing
- ASL interpreters for university and college ceremonies
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Accessible seating for graduates and guests with disabilities
- Accessible parking and transportation coordination
- Clear wayfinding and mobility support
- Advance planning with event organizers to remove barriers before they arise
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These services are not add-ons—they are part of UVM’s commitment to creating an environment where every member of our community can fully participate.
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For many students connected with OAS, commencement represents more than the completion of a degree. It reflects years of perseverance, self-advocacy, and academic excellence.
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The student who used CART throughout their academic journey and now crosses the stage to begin a career in public service
The graduate who balanced disability-related impacts with research, internships, and leadership roles
The families and supporters who have been part of this journey
Your accomplishments embody the spirit of UVM.
Their success strengthens our entire university.
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Accessible commencement is the result of deep partnership across the university—from University Event Services and Facilities to Transportation and Parking, the Office of the President, Colleges and Schools, and dedicated volunteers.
This collaboration reflects UVM’s Our Common Ground values:
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- Respect for the dignity of every individual
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Responsibility to remove barriers
- Justice through equitable access
- Innovation in how we design inclusive experiences
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As we celebrate this year’s graduates, we also reaffirm our vision: a university where access is woven into every event, every classroom, and every digital experience.
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To the Class of 2026: Congratulations. |
Your achievements inspire us, and we are honored to have been part of your journey.
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| Sharon Mone
Director
UVM Office of Accessibility Services
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New: Basic Digital Accessibility summer course for UVM staff |
In this 10-week course, UVM staff will learn the fundamentals of digital accessibility, along with a firm grounding in disability justice. Course topics will include: web accessibility, document accessibility, multimedia accessibility, and language access.
Throughout the course, students will work towards a capstone project grounded in service learning and real-world accessibility improvements to put into action at the University of Vermont.
All class meetings will be asynchronous and online; non-traditional students and UVM staff are encouraged to enroll, on the understanding that this course will try to meet everyone's needs and schedules.
This course is free to attend.
Course begins May 31.
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Additional upcoming classes & events |
Every Tuesday @ 10 a.m. on Teams
Every Tuesday at 10am EST, join the Office of Accessibility Services (OAS) to talk about one particular part of digital accessibility, or bring any and all questions and examples, and get some advice on your work.
These are meant to be optional, low-stress, no-prep casual drop-ins for people who are interested in talking about digital accessibility.
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Thursday, July 16 @ 9:30 a.m., in person: Howe Library
Join the Office of Accessibility Services for this hands-on workshop that will step you through how to remediate a scanned .pdf so that it's fully accessible, using Adobe Acrobat Pro.
We'll be working in the Howe Media Lab, on the ground floor of the Howe Media Library. We'll take scanned .pdfs and learn how to tell if they are accessible, and when they're not, how to make them meet WCAG 2.1 AA-level accessibility standards.
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Other UVM Accessibility News: |
OAS Database Transition & Office Move, May 11 - 17 |
The week of May 11, the Clockwork and myACCESS portal will be unavailable as the Office of Accessibility Services transitions to a new database. We expect to resume operations next week.
Also, please be aware that the Office of Accessibility Services and the Exam Proctoring Center are relocating office locations in the Living/Learning A building as well as the database transition. As a result, response times may be slower than usual. We apologize for any inconvenience and appreciate your patience during this transition. We expect to return to normal operations and response times during the week of May 18.
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Annual Campus Maintenance Shutdown, May 17- 22 |
Each spring, the Physical Plant department performs an annual shutdown of the Main Campus District Energy Plant and satellite boilers to complete mandatory equipment and safety inspections and to perform critical maintenance repairs on the campus thermal energy distribution system.
The shutdown impacts the heating, cooling and hot water system in many campus buildings. The process typically begins immediately after the main Commencement Ceremony has ended and continues for several days.
A full schedule of which UVM buildings will be affected and when is available online.
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Planned Construction Projects, Summer 2026 |
There are currently seven campus construction projects planned for May - August 2026:
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- Paving on Colchester Avenue (now - May 18, minimum)
- Annual Maintenance Shutdown (May 17 - May 22)
- Davis Center door frames and glass replacements (May 18 - end of July 2026)
- Davis Center entry concrete replacement (May 18 - June 8)
- Davis Center power shutdown (May 19 - May 20)
- Davis Center annual sprinkler testing (May 21)
- Waterman elevator repairs (June 9 - August 3)
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Thank you, as always, for reading. |
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UVM Office of Accessibility Services
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Howe Library
538 Main Street
Burlington, VT 05405
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Phone: (802) 656-7753
E-mail: access@uvm.edu
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