New Computing Organization Supports People with Disabilities

The national Center for Minorities and People with Disabilities in Information Technology (CMD-IT) has been recently established to focus on the following under-represented groups: African Americans, Native Americans, Hispanics, Pacific Islanders, and people with disabilities. CMD-IT is comprised of corporations, academic institutions, government agencies, and non-profits. Its mission is to ensure that under-represented groups are fully engaged in computing and IT, and to promote innovation that enriches, enhances, and enables these communities.

Team Bio: Seth Roy

Image of Seth for Accesscomputing Team Bio Hi, my name is Seth Roy. When I was two years old, I was diagnosed with profound hearing loss in both of my ears. At present, I am a student at Marquette University (MU) in Milwaukee, Wisconsin. I am majoring in computational mathematics, which is a combination of mathematics, statistics, business, and computer science. My major is very similar to MU's actuarial science program.

My Computing Internship Experience

Hi, I'm Jason. Currently, I am pursuing my bachelor of science degree in information technology, with a concentration in web and database integration at Rochester Institute of Technology (RIT). As a part of my degree, I am required to complete three internships. Since I have accepted a fourth internship, I expect to graduate in spring 2011.

Acknowledgments

A student sitting in a wheelchair uses a computerAccessComputing Capacity Building activities are funded by the National Science Foundation (grant #CNS-1042260). They were coordinated by the Alliance for Access to Computing Careers, which is led by the Department of Computer Science and Engineering and DO-IT at the University of Washington.

AccessComputing Minigrants

For a limited time, AccessComputing will offer funding for minigrants to support training, experiential learning, and other computing and IT-related activities nationwide. The ultimate goal is to increase the number of people with disabilities, including post-September 11 veterans, successfully pursuing computing careers. An institution or other organization can seek funding to support:
  • an existing computing event in order to attract/involve students with disabilities.

Communities of Practice

A student using a laptop smilesAmong the strategies for meeting AccessComputing objectives are Communities of Practice for stakeholder groups. Communicating using email and other electronic tools, CoPs share perspectives and expertise and identify practices that promote the participation of people with disabilities in computing fields. The eight project CoPs are described below. Members in all CoPs:

CBI Participants

Stakeholder groups represented in the CBI included:A student sitting in a wheelchair uses a laptop

  • student services leaders and administrators
  • computing faculty
  • technology specialists
  • individuals working for veteran-serving organizations
  • individuals with disabilities

The following individuals participated in the CBI:

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