508 DIY:
Empowering Students to Understand Inclusivity and Create Accessible Documents
Lightning Talk | Tuesday, May 18, 2021 | 2:45 pm – 4:00pm EST
Often, the need to provide accessible websites is seen as a burden rather than an opportunity. As an institutional repository (IR) manager I have a responsibility to ensure 508 compliance. I encountered a culture that saw this as a reluctantly acknowledged legality, rather than a chance to empower our community. IRs provide a unique pedagogical window to teach the skills and purpose of creating a more accessible environment. I began a disability justice informed approach to accessibility, initially focused on the Student Research Center. The goal is to teach students how to create accessible documents, but also why accessibility is important. The focus is not just on the end-user, but also on improving students skills as scholars and community members in support of fostering a culture of accessibility on our campus. Working in an under-resourced M1 institution I believe these ideas are scalable to a variety of libraries.
Presenter: Daina Dickman
Daina Dickman, MA, MLIS, AHIP is the Scholarly Communication Librarian at Sacramento State University, where she also is the liaison to the ASL & Deaf Studies Department and the Juvenile Collections specialist. She has worked in medical, public, and school libraries in California, Oregon, and Germany.