By Rosemary Musachio, CPACC, Chief Accessibility Officer

Notice the acronym after my name. CPACC stands for Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies. I recently discovered that I had earned this title after I took the certification exam in January. I’m excited and honored to be among the few so far to be recognized as an expert in the accessibility industry. Currently, around 200 industry professionals have earned their CPACC. The International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP) offers the certification to qualified individuals who have worked in the accessibility industry for several years. CPACC candidates also must be proficient in English.

By being certified in accessibility, something that I’ve been doing for sixteen years, I will be seen as more credible. More people on social media networks, such as LinkedIn, are reaching out to me for advice and input. Not only does that strengthen my self-esteem, it also makes me feel that I’m making a difference in the business and education worlds.

Having a CPACC means companies will know you have fundamental knowledge about disabilities, accessibility and universal design, and laws and standards. With the prestigious credential following your name, business leaders will recognize your commitment to the accessibility field. They seek your advice and insights on accessibility issues regarding technology, architecture, commerce, and transportation. If an employer seeks applicants who have CPACC or require current employees to take it, the company realizes how important accessibility and inclusion are to its success. The certified accessibility professional ensures the office environment and technologies would be accommodating for employees with disabilities. For instance, someone who’s accredited in accessibility would be sure to know that buttons on a kiosk should be in different shapes or sizes for a blind person to use it, than someone who lacks the accreditation.

CPACC’s also are more competent in helping businesses reach out to customers with disabilities. For example, an accessibility accredited web developer ensures that they can use a website without difficulties based on laws and standards such as Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 508 Refresh, Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG 2.0). Consequently, the certified personnel are expected to know accessibility laws thoroughly so a business would avoid potential litigation.

CPACC also is beneficial because it gives credence to accessibility principles in college courses and job training. Right now 92% of federal websites don’t comply with accessibility standards. This is because many web developers don’t have instructors who were accredited in accessibility. Besides technology, other fields lack accessibility competence in educating their professionals. For instance, if pre-meds and

nursing students have courses who are taught by CPACC professors, they would treat patients with accessible attitudes, learning how to communicate better with them. Or if future teachers take courses in universal design for learning, which is part of CPACC, they would know to apply different learning and testing techniques based on students with

diverse abilities.

As more professionals become CPACC certified, persons with disabilities will start noticing the impact. Accessibility in every realm of life will become the norm, not the exception. The employment rate of individuals with disabilities will increase. Commercial and professional services will reap from our patronage. ADA and other disability-based lawsuits will dwindle, being replaced with appeals for more consumers to buy from businesses. Medical professionals who will receive CPACC-based training will communicate with patients with disabilities more effectively, and teachers will understand better the learning dynamics of students with diverse abilities. That’s what being certified in accessibility does.

For more information on becoming a Certified Professional in Accessibility Core Competencies, Please visit the CPACC’s FAQ Page.

“TAPPING INTO HIDDEN HUMAN CAPITAL,” A NEWLY RELEASED BOOK BY DEBRA RUH, DEMONSTRATES HOW LEADING GLOBAL COMPANIES IMPROVE THEIR BOTTOM LINE BY EMPLOYING PERSONS WITH DISABILITIES

Atlanta, GA. 07/18/2016 —

G3ict, the Global Initiative for Inclusive Information and Communication Technologies announced today the publication of a new book authored by Debra Ruh, G3ict’s EmployAbility Program Chair.

In this book, Tapping into Hidden Human Capital: How Leading Global Companies Improve their Bottom Line by Employing Persons with Disabilities,” Debra Ruh presents a new, game-changing perspective about the employment of persons with disabilities. By documenting existing practices of some of the largest companies in the world, the author shows that employees with disabilities are proactively recruited for their positive contributions to the competitiveness and financial performance of major businesses.

While Debra Ruh documents case studies that are eye-opening, her detailed analysis of the success factors in recruiting, hiring, and managing persons with disabilities are a must-read for any Human Resources professional and top executive of large organizations operating in highly competitive employment markets, such as those in the field of technology.

Debra Ruh’s book guides global corporations, as well as beginning entrepreneurs on how to integrate persons with disabilities in every aspect of the workforce. It takes the reader through each step, from recruiting and interviewing to employing and retaining persons with disabilities in the organization as vital employees. The book offers insights and strategies on how to accommodate employees with disabilities, how to fully leverage their skills and talents, and transform challenges into successes. Additionally, Debra Ruh includes personal accounts from global leaders about how persons with disabilities have enriched their businesses, increased productivity, and lowered turnover rates.

“This is an outstanding compendium of practical solutions for all employers. From large organizations with a global footprint to entrepreneurs with a few employees, attracting and retaining the right talent is the most critical success factor for their business. This book will definitely be looked upon as a milestone in how companies think about recruiting persons with disabilities,” commented Axel Leblois, G3ict President and Executive Director. “We are very pleased to publish Debra Ruh’s latest work and to make it available through all major book distribution channels worldwide.”

Tapping into Hidden Human Capital is available in paper back on the G3ict website.

Click this link to order – “Tapping into Human Capital”.

# # #

About the Author
Debra Ruh is a Global Disability Inclusion Strategist and serves as the EmployAbility Program Chair for G3ict, the Global Initiative for Inclusive ICTs. She is a seasoned entrepreneur having founded three firms including Ruh Global Communications, TecAccess and Strategic Performance Solutions. At TecAccess, more than two third of her employees were persons with disabilities, serving as a best practice for many employers. Her client-centric focus and ability to promote successful disability employment programs has created relationships with many multi-national firms including Accenture, AT&T, ATOS, Avanade, Best Buy, Bloomberg, Canon, Capital One, CSC, CVS, Disney, Dell, Deloitte, E&Y, El Al Israel Airlines, HP, IBM, McDonalds, MCI, Merck, Microsoft, TD Bank, Verizon Communications, Verizon Wireless, VMware, Walgreens, and Wells Fargo and many others including United Nations agencies, international governments, federal, state and local agencies.

About G3ict
G3ict – the Global Initiative for Inclusive Information and Communication Technologies – is an advocacy initiative launched in December 2006 in cooperation with the Secretariat for the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities at UN DESA. Its mission is to facilitate and support the implementation of the dispositions of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities on the accessibility of Information Communication Technologies (ICTs) and assistive technologies. G3ict relies on an international network of ICT accessibility experts to develop and promote good practices, technical resources and benchmarks for ICT accessibility advocates around the world. It is incorporated as a nonprofit organization in the State of Georgia, USA, and headquartered in Atlanta. Visit www.g3ict.org.

– See more at: http://g3ict.org/press/press_releases/press_release/p/id_98#sthash.AUP98R9o.dpuf

If you are like me, searching for good code examples when you try to find solutions to accessibility issues can make you pull out your hair.  You Google it and you get tons of results.  When you finally find something, you go to the site to realize it’s only a forum unanswered question.  Your excitement peaks again when you find a blog post that discusses the solution you’ve sought, but it doesn’t show the specific code example.  Conversely, the blog post may have the code example without showing the actual component.

To prevent you from going bald, I’d like to share a complied list of websites each month that offer good code examples and the finished products.  This month’s list is categorized into ARIA and Form Fields.

ARIA

Ajax Accessibility Examples – A great site for ARIA examples.   It  has a summary table of code examples  and their associated roles, properties, and states.  When you go to an example page, it has the actual component, a list of ARIA elements that are used, and the code example.  Besides the summary table, you can search for examples by the three ARIA categories mentioned above.

W3C’s Role Model – The site explains everything you wanted to know about ARIA Roles and more.  It describes each role in depth, including listing all the properties that are compatible with it.  Even though the site offers code examples, it should provide them for every role-property combination.  However, it is a must for anyone who wants to learn about ARIA.

Illinois Center for Information Technology and Web Accessibility ARIA Examples – The website has a table for concise searches concerning ARIA form control properties.  When you click a link in the table, you see the form control that uses ARIA and the code in HTML and CSS.

ARIA Landmarks in (X)HTML – The webpage describes ARIA landmarks and how to implement them.  The descriptions are straightforward.  Since the page itself uses landmarks, you can view the code to it.

Form Fields

Accessible Web Form – The page screams simplicity.  It is so easy to follow.  It shows a form with various types of fields, including field groups (i.e. fieldset).  After the form, it shows the code for it.  That’s it.

Jim Thatcher’s Accessible Forms – What’s a list of accessible form examples without the father of web accessibility, Jim Thatcher?  He explains accessible forms as clear as the mountain air.  He presents form elements, including edit fields in a table, and the codes.

Webaim’s Creating Accessible Forms – The webpage offers an organized description of each type of form field, visual examples, and codes.  It also describes different types of labeling, such as title attributes and aria-label.

Web Accessibility Tutorials – Form Concepts – The page offers links to different aspects of accessible forms, from firm labeling to custom controls.  When you click each link, it shows visual examples and code snippets.  W3C did a good job of making these pages concise, a pleasant turn from the norm.

Do you know other sites of great ARIA and Form Field examples?  If so, put them in comments for this post.  This is a great way to help each other out in making the Web more accessible.

Learn more about our work at www.RuhGlobal.com or follow us on Social Media @rosemusachio, @debraruh and @ruhglobal on most channels.

#AXSChat: Join Debra Ruh, Neil Milliken, and Antonio Santos for a weekly Twitter Chat on Disability Inclusion, ICT Accessibility, Built Environment, CRPD, Empowerment and Employment. Just search the hashtag #AXSChat at 3pmEST and join the conversation.  You can learn more about AXSChat at www.AXSChat.com.

http://connections.accessibilityassociation.org/blogs/rosemary-musachio/2016/08/07/dont-pull-your-hair-searching-for-code-examples-aria-and-form-fields

Author: Rosemary Musachio, Chief Accessibility Officer at Ruh Global Communications

Recently, Ruh Global Communications appointed me its Chief Accessibility Officer (CAO).  In my role, I will manage internal and external accessibility projects.  I will ensure that accessibility best practices will be followed within the company and help clients meet their accessibility needs, including website and product accessibility.  I will consult on accessibility and inclusion issues that clients face from the employee to the customer level.

Every business needs to include accessibility in its fabric to become stronger.  Otherwise, it will rip and create big gaps.  Making every aspect of a company accessible and inclusive increases productivity, embraces diversity with common goals, and promotes more of a positive image to the public.  According to Frances West, CAO of IBM, “Today, it affects everyone’s use of a product or service and helps deliver information in the most consumable way possible.  Organizations that have embraced and embedded accessibility throughout the enterprise are better connecting with customers, expanding their market reach and creating an inclusive workplace environment where everyone has the best chance of success.”

Since I have cerebral palsy, I bring a personal perspective to my role as CAO.  I know what a company needs to do for employees with disabilities to feel accepted and purposeful, and what a business must do to serve customers with disabilities with consideration and respect.  Other persons with disabilities have held CAO or similar positions.  For example, Microsoft recently hired Jenny Lay-Flurrie as its new Accessibility Director.  Becoming deaf from an ear infection during childhood, Jenny will integrate her personal experiences into her new position.  As it’s inferred in the article Talk to the Hand, Lay-Flurrie’s motto “You can do anything” is helping Microsoft execute programs to assist persons with disabilities with technologies.  For instance, she helped plan Ability Summit, a showcase of products and services to empower them for the future.

Another accessibility executive who has a disability is Jonathan Avila.  His vision impairment has brought a personal perspective to his job also.  Who else better than a person who cannot see can develop solutions and innovations for users with vision, as well as other, impairments?  Avila also serves on WCAG working group and mobility accessibility task force.

You can be skilled at accessibility testing and know all about best practices and guidelines.  But the first-hand experience of facing accessibility barriers gives a CAO an extra edge.  It brings empathy to the role, making the CAO passionate about helping businesses bulldoze those barriers that other persons with disabilities have encountered.

If a company even creates a COA or a Director of Accessibility position, it is taking a smart business move.  With 15% of the world’s population having a disability and $1 trillion in aggregated spending by consumers with disabilities, appointing a skilled COA will allow a business to be more profitable and reputable.  If the skilled COA has a disability, it makes the company more credible, sending a strong message to the public that it is serious about accessibility.

Learn more about our work at www.RuhGlobal.com or follow us on Social Media @rosemusachio, @debraruh and @ruhglobal on most channels.

Ruh Global Communications, an international leader in strategic disability inclusion and accessibly policies, programs and marketing, announced that it has named Rosemary Musachio as Chief Accessibility Officer (CAO).  With over fifteen years in the arena of electronic and Information technology (E&IT) accessibility, Miss Musachio will manage internal and external accessibility projects.  She will ensure that accessibility best practices will be followed within the company and help clients meet their accessibility needs, including website and product accessibility.  Additionally, she will consult on accessibility and inclusion issues that clients face from the employee to the customer level.  Prior to this new position, Miss Musachio was the company’s Chief Strategy Officer.

“Every business needs to include accessibility in its fabric to become stronger.  Otherwise, it will rip and create big gaps,” Miss Musachio explains.  “Making every aspect of a company accessible and inclusive increases productivity, embraces diversity with common goals, and promotes more of a positive image to the public.  Since I have cerebral palsy, I bring a personal perspective to my role as CAO.  I know what a company needs to do for employees with disabilities to feel accepted and purposeful, and what a business must do to serve customers with disabilities with consideration and respect.”

“Honored to promote Rosemary Musachio as our Chief Accessibility Officer (CAO). She has been in the ICT Accessibility field for over 16 years.  She has worked with national and multi-national corporations, non-profits, agencies and organizations all over the world,” says Debra Ruh, Ruh Global Communications, CEO.  “Rosemary represents everything we want to achieve in the field.  She is a talented technologist, college graduate, tester, user of Assistive Technology (AT), published author, poet, person with Cerebral Palsy (CP) and undisputed global expert in ICT accessibility.  This woman is changing the world with her talents and we are extremely proud of her.”

About Rosemary Musachio

Since 2001, Rosemary Musachio has been well versed in the accessibility realm.  She has been an accessibility analyst and training manager.  She has worked with a number of major cooperate clients on accessibility projects and has written numerous blogs on the topic.  Before Rosemary entered the accessibility industry, she was a local monthly columnist and freelance writer.  She also edited and published resource newsletters for persons with disabilities.

 About Ruh Global Communications:

Founded in March 2013, Ruh Global Communications is a strategic digital marketing firm that helps businesses and government entities include persons with disabilities within every level of an infrastructure, from interviewing and hiring to job training and retention.  We help countries implement of the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).  We also work with national and multi-national firms to help them include persons with disabilities in their workforce and developing accessibility and social media programs, providing outreach and training, and helping companies procure assistive technology.  Ruh Global has presented at conferences throughout the world about accessibility and disability inclusion.

For further information, please visit us at www.ruhglobal.com , and follow us on Twitter: @RuhGlobal  or @DebraRuh. or call: +1 (804) 986-4500

Press Contact:

Debra Ruh, CEO
Ruh Global Communications
18122 Vontay Rd.
Rockville, VA 23146, USA
(804) 986-4500
Debra@RuhGlobal.com
www.RuhGlobal.com

Rockville, VA.—Ruh Global Communications, an international leader in strategic disability inclusion and accessible policies, programs and marketing, has won the Acquisition International Business (AI) Excellence Awards for 2016 as the Strategic Digital Marketing Firm of the Year.  These awards recognize and honor outstanding achievements of companies and their executives through a variety of industries that have succeeded despite the high level of corporate competition.

Ruh Global is one of the award-winning companies that have consistently shown creativity, innovation, and perseverance in building a solid business even though recent economic times have been tough.

Recipients of the AI Business Awards were determined by the number of votes cast by AI subscription members, submission of supporting evidence, and AI in-house research.

“Ruh Global Communications is humbled to win this award.  Our global efforts teach countries, agencies, and corporations to include effectively, the community of persons with disabilities into the workforce and respective cultures.  As social entrepreneurs, we focus on our efforts to make a positive difference in the world.  We are honored to be acknowledged for our efforts,” says Debra Ruh – CEO at Ruh Global Communications.

About Ruh Global Communications

Founded in March 2013, Ruh Global Communications is a strategic digital marketing firm that helps businesses and government entities include persons with disabilities within every level of an infrastructure, from interviewing and hiring to job training and retention.  We help countries implement of the United Nations (UN) Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD).  We also work with national and multi-national firms to help them include persons with disabilities in their workforce and developing accessibility and social media programs, providing outreach and training, and helping companies procure assistive technology.  Ruh Global has presented at conferences throughout the world about accessibility and disability inclusion.  For further information, please visit us at RuhGlobal.com , and follow us on Twitter: @RuhGlobal  or @DebraRuh.

About Acquisition International

Founded in 2011, Acquisition International, Acquisition International (AI) is a publication that focuses on global corporate news, events, and opinion.  The world-known publication has 108,000 subscribers in over 70 companies.  AI also maintains an active website with the latest news in the global business world, including the Deal Diary that features 100 daily deals from companies of various industry sections.  For further information, visit Acquisition-intl.com.

Ruh Global Communications
Twitter: @Ruh Global and @DebraRuh

Press Contact:

Debra Ruh, CEO
Ruh Global Communications
18122 Vontay Rd.
Rockville, VA 23146, USA
(804) 986-4500
Debra@RuhGlobal.com
www.RuhGlobal.com

Published on The Huffington Post Blog

Universal accessibility in the Information, Communication and Technology (ICT) sector holds unparalleled promise and opportunity for people with disabilities never before seen in our history.

To understand the impact one has to look no further than the World Health Organization which indicates that people with disabilities are the world’s largest and fastest growing minority group. With the population of the United States aging and the likelihood of developing a disability or other mobility limitation increasing with age, the growth in the number of people with disabilities can be expected to rise dramatically. Also impacting this formula is the growing population of veterans with disabilities.

Photo: World Report on Disability – Click here to download a PDF of the World Report on Disability

Experts report that the most obvious and cost effective solutions are often ignored or overlooked, a mistake that organizations and governmental bodies can no longer make when serving all citizens in equal fashion. Making technology usable for all has become imperative for unleashing the potential of all persons and is critical for any public and private institution that hopes to fully participate and remain relevant in the 21st century.

It is important to note that this is not a USA phenomenon. Throughout the world all populations are seeing burgeoning numbers of “elders”, defined as persons aged 65 years and older. “In many countries, including Japan, the United States, Norway, Sweden and the United Kingdom, those aged over 65 are at, or approaching 15% of the population. People are living longer and are generally healthier at advanced ages than were previous cohorts, thus “old age” disabilities of the 20th century will be put off to older ages during the 21st century.”²
Here are a few recent reports about this trend.

Think about what you can do to better reach people with disabilities, and find creative ways to make it happen through accessible technology. Move beyond general steps to protect and promote the rights of people with disabilities, ensure that accessibility is addressed in all policies and programs, promote training on the human rights of persons with disabilities, stop any practice that breach the rights of people with disabilities, and involve people with disabilities in the development of legislation and policies.

 Follow Debra Ruh on Twitter!

I am often asked in my global travels, – “Why does the United States litigate so much?  Why do you always sue each other?”  Or I get comments that start like this: “You Americans..” That always make me smile and cringe because I figure the person is going to take a shot at my country.   I am proud to be an American, but I also believe that the United States can learn a lot from other countries on many subjects, especially on Disability Inclusion, ICT Accessibility and Accessibility of the Built Environment.  So why does the United States litigate so much?

Recently, an accessibility expert from Sweden asked me a question during #AXSChat, a tweet-chat held each Tuesday at 3pm on Twitter about #Disability Inclusion and Accessibility.  She said, “Debra, do you think the United States would have made as much progress without litigation?”  I have been asked that question many times in my travels.

I answered, “Unfortunately, I do not think we would have had the same progress.  Our reality is that in the US we create legislation and then pound out our laws by litigating with each other.  Then we refer to the legal cases to determine the best way to follow and strengthen our laws.”

Neil Milliken, Head of Accessibility and Digital Inclusion at Atos and co-founder of #AXSChat, sees litigation for accessibility as a possible solution elsewhere.

“In the UK disability legislation has since 2010 been part of the broader Equality Act (EQA2010). Whilst there have been a few cases they have predominantly focused on services and employment the law places a duty on organizations and people not to discriminate and to be proactive in doing so.

Although I am not a fan of the sometimes parasitic model of litigation that we see outlined by Debra in the US, I do feel that accessibility in the UK could benefit from a test case much like some of the early class action cases in the US so that case law can help define and refine the understanding of Digital Accessibility and companies can meet what are currently poorly understood and often ignored legal obligations.”

 

Although the process took many years to achieve, I will never forget the brave leaders who fought for our rights for so long.  Staging protests, rallying, speaking to the press, and organizing events all strongly affected the eventual passage of the ADA.  One protest stands out to me.  It became known as “the Capital Crawl”. Over 1,000 disability rights activists and protesters left their wheelchairs and mobility devices and crawled up the 83 steps of our Capital Building, simply asking for the same rights and equality any other American had.

These amazing leaders fought for the Civil Rights for Persons with Disabilities. As a result, the

American’s with Disabilities Act (ADA) was signed into law by President George Bush on July 26th, 1990. Our family applauded these leaders knowing that they were fighting for all of our rights, including those of our daughter, Sara Ruh who was born in 1987 with Down syndrome.

Would the United States have made as much progress without laws like the ADA or Rehabilitation Act of 1973, Section 508, 504 and 503?  I do not believe we would have made the progress.  I also believe that these leaders efforts encouraged other countries to fight and to continue to fight for their rights.  Now we have the United Nations Convention for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. (CRPD).  I am hopeful the United States will ratify that convention in 2016.

Could we have made as much progress without these laws and litigation?  I do not think we would have.  Why?  Organizations mean well, -but they have many competing interests.  For clarification, -I use the word “organizations” as a placeholder for corporations, nonprofits, universities, local, state and federal agencies.

Most organizations create an annual strategic plan and update it throughout the year.  The organization has to determine their strategic focus by considering many moving parts including changing laws, standards, industry changes, business climate, and risks.

Inclusion of individuals with disabilities has become more of a risk in the last few years.  A few years ago a colleague mentioned a conversation with a General Counsel of a Fortune 100 firm.  The General Counsel and Chief Compliance Officer noted that he had accessibility on his risk list for many years but it was way down on his list – maybe on the 15th page of things he was worried about. He noted that recently it has moved up to about page 3.  Still not the top three things that kept him up at night, but it had moved up significantly on the things that were adding risk to the firm.  What is keeping him up at night? These organizations have a lot of risk to worry about- such as privacy, security, globalization, branding, changing technology, and many other items.

For years, the United States has seen ADA complaints and lawsuits about disability discrimination and inaccessible websites.  Most of this litigation is settled out of court.  The most famous case was the complain against www.Target.com that turned into a class action lawsuit and was eventually settled out of court.  It is interesting to note that www.Target.com is now one of the most accessible websites.

There is a troubling trend happening in the United States with a significant uptick in legal complaints and filings.  Recently a law office sent a letter out to many major online retailers threatening them with lawsuits because their websites were not compliant or accessible.  The letter told the retailers not to reach out to accessibility consultants.  Instead, they were told to contact the law office and they would arrange to get them accessibility help with their websites.

Most of these attorneys are conscientious and want to assure that the websites are accessible to individuals with disabilities.  However, a growing group of lawyers seems to realize that they can make a lot of money filing complaints against businesses and universities.  Why?  Well, most websites are still inaccessible to persons with disabilities.  They understand that inaccessible websites can be a gold mine if lawsuits are won or settled on the behalf of the plaintiff.

Some lawyers actually do not care if the website is ever made accessible.  They work with clients with disabilities and go to different websites and see if they are accessible.  If they are not accessible, the lawyer files a case and hires an accessibility subject matter expert to validate that the site is not accessible.  Then the organization being litigated against agree to pay a settlement.  The attorney takes the lion share and then pays out the plaintiff.  Those law firms keep accessibility experts on retainers and some are getting a large lump sum for each case. Generally, these cases do not go to trial.  The problem is that the websites are not made accessible so individuals with disabilities lose.

This also happens with ADA complaints against small businesses because the business was not physically accessible.  I understand the ADA is over 25 years old and it is past time that the Built Environment and Internet, Communications and Technology should be accessible.  My complaint is directed to lawyers who make money via litigation but there are no expectations of access.

Universities are also being targeted because of inaccessible websites, student portals, eLearning and other accessibility issues with their ICT.  Individuals with disabilities are attending and graduating from universities in record numbers in the United States.  It is critical that all students have full access to every aspect of the educational process.

“It’s true that U.S. higher education institutions face liability for inaccessible web content and technologies much like they did in the 1990s with inaccessible buildings. In fact, at last count, we’ve had over 27 higher education accessibility lawsuits, complaints, and settlements in recent times. However, there is very limited advocacy coming from people with disabilities compared to the ‘Capital Crawl’ movement. The driving force for change has been the National Federation of the Blind and the U.S. Department of Labor and their federal agency counterparts.

What can Universities do to protect themselves from legal complaints while still meeting the needs of the students with disabilities? The first and primary step is to develop and implement an information and communication technology (ICT) accessibility institutional policy and procedure.

There are several resources and good examples to draw upon. One helpful resource is the summary web page that has been published by The University of Washington.  What we’ve seen is that ensuring compliance, securing the resources and maintaining procedures as technology shifts are usually the primary challenges institutions face.” -Dr. Christopher Lee, Department Head of AMAC Accessibility Solutions and Research Center  

Some lawyers are adding a lot of value to these conversations.  One of the best recognized attorneys in my opinion is Lainey Feingold.  Lainey has become a champion to many in the community of persons with disabilities.

I visited her website, and gathered this information.

Lainey Feingold is a disability rights lawyer who works primarily with the blind and visually impaired community on technology and information access issues. She is nationally recognized for negotiating landmark accessibility agreements and for pioneering the collaborative advocacy and dispute resolution method known as Structured Negotiations.

Structured Negotiation is a collaborative and solution-driven dispute resolution method conducted without litigation. The goal is to help the organization become accessible so that the community of persons with disabilities and many other parts of the population, including aging citizens and non-native speakers, can have access to the content of your website with no ulterior motive.

Structured Negotiation appears to be a win win for everyone because the goal is to reduce the digital divide and provide access to everyone.

What do you think?  Are we moving equal rights to technology, employment, transportation, housing and other parts of society forward by litigating in the US?

Join Neil Milliken, Antonio Santos and me on our weekly Twitter Chat. Just search the hashtag #AXSChat at 3pmEST and join the conversation. We chat about disability inclusion, empowerment, employability and accessibility.

#AXSChat has also featured Lainey Feingold as a guest. Check out her video interview

#AXSChat – “Inclusion Matters”

We watched the media surrounding the signing of the ADA on television 25 years ago. My husband and I had followed the efforts being made in Washington, D.C. with great interest as persons with disabilities championed for the passage of this important legislation. It had become personal to our family. Before it became personal we believed that all Americans should have equal rights, but we did not understand all the implications and nuances.

Our daughter Sara Ruh had been born a few years earlier with Down syndrome (DS). She was not diagnosed until she was four months old, which was unusual at the time. I was 28 years old when I got pregnant with Sara and so the doctors did not recommend prenatal testing because there was no history of disabilities in my family.

I do remember that right after Sara was born a strange thought floated through my mind that she looked like a baby with DS. I immediately dismissed this because I did not know what babies with DS looked like and I did not know anyone who had it. Plus I was on pain medication because of the difficult birth.

A few months later, following some tests, a doctor diagnosed Sara as having DS. The doctor called us into the office and gave us the news that changed our lives. He doctor told us that she would be easier to raise than a child with ADHD. He also noted that she might never learn to walk or talk. He sent us to a geneticist and we were told that she might get pregnant at 16 so be careful. These well-meaning doctors were not very helpful. We decided to not listen to their negative comments with information that seemed out of place.

As we sat in the meeting room, hearing the news that our daughter’s path was going to be much different than what we had anticipated, we did not realize that people all over the United States were fighting for the rights of persons with disabilities.

The 25th Anniversary of the ADA is powerful for our family and for people all over the world. The ADA was one of the most powerful civil rights legislations of our time. The United States has accomplished so much during the 25 years of the ADA. Our family is so thankful to the people that fought for Sara and other persons with disabilities.

Sara Ruh did not get pregnant at 16 and she learned to talk and walk. Today she is an artist, a thespian, a dancer, and a motivational speaker. She has spoken all over the world to audiences as large as 5,000 at a time. She has been employed with Nordstrom’s for the last 9 years.

Sara has a good life and she spends a lot of time volunteering and helping other people. Her life matters and she has more options because of the people that fought for her rights and got the ADA passed 25 years ago.

The United Nations promulgated the Convention on the Rights for Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), and unfortunately, the United States has yet to ratify it despite the fact that 150+ other countries have done so. There’s a perception that signing the CRPD is unnecessary as we have the ADA. However, in order to incorporate newer benchmarks of accessibility, we need to be part of a global mandate that fosters a culture of inclusion for all citizens, including senior citizens. Disability is not a narrowly defined concept, but a spectrum that is inclusive of all abilities.

Join G3ict and other leaders in helping assure that persons with disabilities have access to ICT, education, employment, and a host of services that go towards making life productive, successful and valuable.

To learn more about Debra Ruh please visit: www.RuhGlobal.com.

– See more at: http://g3ict.org/resource_center/newsletter/news/p/newsletterId_/id_534#sthash.qrCQAYZn.dpuf