AccessComputing News

For a person with a visual impairment, a computer can initially present some accessibility challenges. However, there are a wide variety of software products available to help people of all abilities access and use a computer. One of the more popular products for people with visual impairments is a screen reader that uses a digital voice to read aloud text that appears on a computer screen. While a very helpful tool in making a specific computer accessible, screen readers are not always installed on public computers in libraries and Internet cafés.

Five deaf and hard-of-hearing students from California, Iowa, Minnesota, Pennsylvania, and Washington attended a one-week Summer Computing Experience at the University of Washington. This was an opportunity for high school students to experience what computing is all about. They went on field trips to Adobe, Google, Valve, and Microsoft's Home of the Future and had fun learning about Seattle on the famous Ride the Ducks tour.

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This fall, I spoke about accessible technology in my "New Directions in Accessible Computing" lecture at North Carolina State University (NCSU). My talk was part of the Triangle Computer Science Distinguished Lecturer Series. It was telecast to Duke University and the University of North Carolina.

In my talk, I described ways that people with disabilities can use technology to create or configure their own accessibility solutions. This non-paternalistic approach respects the ability of persons with disabilities to determine their own destinies.

Administrators at Purdue University are working to raise awareness of web accessibility issues and educate employees on how to create websites that are accessible to individuals with a broad range of disabilities. The campus-wide Web Accessibility Committee (WAC) drafted a campus Web Accessibility Policy, created and maintained a website containing web accessibility information and resources, and developed and delivered Accessible Web Design training sessions.

Led by the Department of Computer Science & Engineering and DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology) at the University of Washington, AccessComputing is supported by the National Science Foundation (grant #CNS-0540615, CNS-0837508, and CNS-1042260). Any opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this material are those of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the views of the National Science Foundation.

Thirteen students attended the 2012 Summer Academy for Advancing Deaf and Hard of Hearing in Computing; 64 students have completed the Summer Academy during since its inception in 2007. The Summer Academy is an academically challenging program designed for students who are deaf and hard of hearing with skills in math and/or science who may be considering computing as a career. Students obtain college credits for attending a programming course and visiting tech companies in the Seattle area, including Adobe, Isilon, Google, Microsoft and Valve.