2021-2022 Accessibility and Disability Inclusion Update

Introductions and Update Overview

Warm Greetings from the McMaster Accessibility Advisory Council (MAAC) and the Equity and Inclusion Office (EIO)

What is the Update?

To celebrate National Accessibility Week, the AccessMac Program in the Equity and Inclusion Office and the McMaster Accessibility Advisory Council, are proud to present the Accessibility and Disability Inclusion Update 2021-2022!

Summarizing the accomplishments and efforts of McMaster students, staff and faculty working to enhance and move forward accessibility and disability inclusion work at the University and in communities outside of the University, the 2021-2022 Update is inclusive of over 55 submissions we received from a cross-section of faculties, services, and individuals. Sincere thanks and appreciation to the campus community for your wonderful and thoughtful submissions – keep up the incredible work!

Celebrating McMaster Accessibility Champions

We’d like to take the opportunity to highlight the incredible contributions of two McMaster Accessibility champions and leaders in the 2021-2022 version of the Update. Tim Nolan, former Student Accessibility Services Director, and McMaster Community member for over 25 years, garnered two separate submissions this year, with the naming of the SAS Tim Nolan Testing Centre, which took place in late summer of 2022. Please find the submissions highlighting this McMaster-historic event and more information about Tim’s incredible contributions to McMaster’s Disability and Accessibility Communities in Spaces and Environments and Student Support and Service Delivery.

Anne Pottier, recently retired (spring 2023) Associate Librarian, has been the foundation and sustained support for the development of accessibility infrastructure and culture at McMaster for over 40 years. Anne’s contributions to an accessible McMaster are too numerous to articulate, but please do read “40+ years enhancing disabled student learning experiences at McMaster University: Reflections from an intergenerational web of accessibility workers” in the section on Accessibility and Disability Inclusion in Research, Instruction, and Course-Level Enhancements to learn more about how Anne has sustained commitments and efforts to accessibility and Disabled community members at McMaster spanning her entire career. We are so sad to have Anne retire from her Associate Librarian role in spring 2023 but were utterly delighted to learn that she immediately came out of retirement to carry two roles: (Acting) Director of Library Computing and Campus Technology in the Libraries and Senior Accessibility Advisor to the Provost for McMaster. We wish Anne the best in her retirement but are overwhelmingly relieved and thrilled that she isn’t quite gone yet!

Acknowledgements and Thank Yous

Sincere thanks to Nusrat Mir, Accessibility Program Assistant, for their compilation, graphic design, and editing efforts, and to the following persons for their historical and current contributions to the creation and support of the Update:

  • Dr. Alise de Bie, Postdoctoral Fellow (MacPherson Institute) and Co-founder/Editor of the Update

  • Anne Pottier, McMaster Accessibility Council Co-Chair

  • Devon Mordell, Accessibility Educational Developer, MacPherson Institute

  • Jennifer Faubert, Accessibility Educational Developer, MacPherson Institute

Sincerely,

Kate Brown, AccessMac Program Manager, Equity and Inclusion Office
Accessibility and Disability Inclusion Update Editor

 

A Deaf Black man wearing glasses looks neutrally at the camera while holding a hand lettered sign declaring “NOTHING about us without US.” The man wears denim overalls and has a black and white beard, septum piercing, and hair pulled back with a bandana. The background features a vibrant mural of a Black woman looking down.
A Deaf Black man wearing glasses looks neutrally at the camera while holding a hand lettered sign declaring “NOTHING about us without US.” The man wears denim overalls and has a black and white beard, septum piercing, and hair pulled back with a bandana. The background features a vibrant mural of a Black woman looking down. Published by Disabled And Here.

Sections

  1. Accessibility and Disability Inclusion in Research, Instruction, and Course-Level Enhancements
  2. Accessibility and Disability Inclusion in Instructional Support and Technology-Enabled Learning
  3. Accessibility Policies, Plans, and Committees
  4. Community Building and Engagement at McMaster
  5. Community Building and Engagement beyond McMaster
  6. Digital and Web Accessibility Initiatives
  7. Employment Accessibility
  8. Spaces and Environments
  9. Student Initiatives and Advocacy
  10. Student Support and Service Delivery Upgrades

License

The Annual Accessibility and Disability Inclusion Update Copyright © 2022 by McMaster University. All Rights Reserved.

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