The Building an Accessible Future for the Humanities Project facilitated four two-day long workshops where humanists, librarians, information scientists, and cultural heritage professionals learned about technologies, design standards, and accessibility issues associated with the use of digital technologies. This important project was a partnership with the BrailleSC.org project, the Northeastern University Center for Digital Humanities, the Emory University Libraries Digital Commons (DiSC), the Center for Digital Research in the Humanities (CDRH) at the University of Nebraska (UNL), and the College of Information at the University of Texas at Austin (UT).
While scholars who offer courses have been able to turn to their University-level instructional technologies staff for accessibility, scholars who are designing, building, and implementing digital products outside of the classroom (as most humanities-research projects do) have been unable to get the help or guidance that they need. These types of research and the issues of accessibility that they raise with are not the same accessibility issues usually addressed by disability support services offices on university campuses. These campus resources generally concentrate on students and their engagement with course materials (exams and textbooks) or the physical environment (assistive devices). As a result, humanists, librarians, and others looking for assistance in building, designing, and implementing digital projects for assisted users have been largely ignored. Accessible Future will engage those working in digital humanities, information studies, librarianship, and cultural heritage work with resources, training, and a community of people that can assist them with accessibility issues in their own research, training, and teaching.
Workshop 1
Workshop 2
DAY 1
8:30 – 9:00 am
- Registration and Coffee
9:00 – 9:15 am
- Welcome
Session 1: Led by Dr. Tina Herzberg
9:15 – 9:45 am
- Philip M. Ferguson, Emily Nusbaum, “Disability Studies: What Is It?”, Research & Practice for Persons with Severe Disabilities (2012) Vol. 37, No. 2, 70-80.
- Jonathan Lazar, Paul Jaeger, “Reducing Barriers to Online Access for People with Disabilities,,” Issues in Science and Technology(Winter 2011), 69-82.
9:45 – 10:15 am
- Group Activity: Defining Accessibility for oneself. What is your personal definition?
10:15 – 10:30 am
- Discussion
10:30 – 10:45 am
- Break
10:45 – 11:30 am
- Kessler Foundation and National Organization on Disability, “The ADA 20 Years Later: An Executive Summary,” July 2010. Available here
- Demonstrating how blind and deaf users use digital resources.
- Demonstration of accessibility tools.
Session 2a: Led by Dr. George Williams
11:30 – 12:30ish pm
- George H. Williams, “Disability, Universal Design, and the Digital Humanities,” Debates in Digital Humanities. University of Minnesota Press. Available here
12:30 – 1:30 pm
- Lunch
Session 3: Led by Dr. George Williams
2:00 – 3:00 pm
- “How People with Disabilities Use the Web,” Web Accessibility Initiative. Available here
- “Considering the User Perspective: A Summary of Design Issues,” Web Accessibility InitiativeWebAIM
- Discussion of readings.
Session 4: Led by Dr. George Williams
3:00 – 4:00 pm
Either use the WAVE web page interface, or download and install the WAVE Toolbar for Firefox.
- The WAVE Firefox toolbar provides a mechanism for running WAVE accessibility reports directly within Firefox.
(See also “Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools: Overview.”)
Evaluation and discussion of a number of online resources, including the following:
- The Shakespeare Quartos Archive
- The William Blake Archive
- The Bracero History Archive
- Cornell University Library: Making of America
- Visualizing Emancipation
- Deaf Studies Digital Journal
- Nineteenth-Century Disability: A Digital Reader
- BrailleSC.org
4:00-4:15 pm
- Break
Session 6: Led by Dr. George Williams
4:15 – 5:00 pm
- Information density and non-visual issues in accessibility
Day 2
Registration and Coffee
8:30 – 9:00 am
Session 5: Jeremy Boggs (HTML/CSS)
9:00 – 11:30 am
- Peterson, “Accessibility in HTML5”
- HTML5 Accessibility
- Webplatform.org
Break
11:30 – 11:45 am
Session 6: Dr. George Williams (WordPress)
11:45 am – 12:45 pm
Lunch
12:45 – 2:00 pm
Session 7: Cory Bohon (Omeka)
2:00 – 2:45 pm
Break
2:45 – 3:15 pm
Session 8: Dr. Jennifer Guiliano
3:15 – 4:30 pm
Wrap Up
4:30 – 5:00 pm
Workshop 3
DAY 1
8:30 – 9:00 am
- Registration and Coffee
9:00 – 9:15 am
- Welcome
Session 1: Led by Dr. Tina Herzberg
9:15 – 9:45 am
- Philip M. Ferguson, Emily Nusbaum, “Disability Studies: What Is It?”, Research & Practice for Persons with Severe Disabilities (2012) Vol. 37, No. 2, 70-80.
- Jonathan Lazar, Paul Jaeger, “Reducing Barriers to Online Access for People with Disabilities,,” Issues in Science and Technology(Winter 2011), 69-82.
9:45 – 10:15 am
- Group Activity: Defining Accessibility for oneself. What is your personal definition?
10:15 – 10:30 am
- Discussion
10:30 – 10:45 am
- Break
10:45 – 11:30 am
- Kessler Foundation and National Organization on Disability, “The ADA 20 Years Later: An Executive Summary,” July 2010. Available here
- Demonstrating how blind and deaf users use digital resources.
- Demonstration of accessibility tools.
Session 2a: Led by Dr. George Williams
11:30 – 12:30ish pm
- George H. Williams, “Disability, Universal Design, and the Digital Humanities,” Debates in Digital Humanities. University of Minnesota Press. Available here
12:30 – 1:30 pm
- Lunch
Session 3: Led by Dr. George Williams
2:00 – 3:00 pm
- “How People with Disabilities Use the Web,” Web Accessibility Initiative. Available here
- “Considering the User Perspective: A Summary of Design Issues,” Web Accessibility InitiativeWebAIM
- Discussion of readings.
Session 4: Led by Dr. George Williams
3:00 – 4:00 pm
Either use the WAVE web page interface, or download and install the WAVE Toolbar for Firefox.
- The WAVE Firefox toolbar provides a mechanism for running WAVE accessibility reports directly within Firefox.
(See also “Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools: Overview.”)
Evaluation and discussion of a number of online resources, including the following:
- The Shakespeare Quartos Archive
- The William Blake Archive
- The Bracero History Archive
- Cornell University Library: Making of America
- Visualizing Emancipation
- Deaf Studies Digital Journal
- Nineteenth-Century Disability: A Digital Reader
- BrailleSC.org
4:00-4:15 pm
- Break
Session 6: Led by Dr. George Williams
4:15 – 5:00 pm
- Information density and non-visual issues in accessibility
Day 2
Registration and Coffee
8:30 – 9:00 am
Session 5: Jeremy Boggs (HTML/CSS)
9:00 – 11:30 am
- Peterson, “Accessibility in HTML5”
- HTML5 Accessibility
- Webplatform.org
Break
11:30 – 11:45 am
Session 6: Dr. George Williams (WordPress)
11:45 am – 12:45 pm
Lunch
12:45 – 2:00 pm
Session 7: Cory Bohon (Omeka)
2:00 – 2:45 pm
Break
2:45 – 3:15 pm
Session 8: Dr. Jennifer Guiliano
3:15 – 4:30 pm
Wrap Up
4:30 – 5:00 pm
Workshop 4
AF Emory Agenda (revised February 19)
Location: Jones Room, Woodruff Library
DAY 1
8:30 – 9:00 am
- Registration and Coffee
9:00 – 9:15 am
- Welcome
Session 1: Led by Dr. Tina Herzberg
9:15 – 9:45 am: Lecture
- Philip M. Ferguson, Emily Nusbaum, “Disability Studies: What Is It?”, Research & Practice for Persons with Severe Disabilities (2012) Vol. 37, No. 2, 70-80.
- Jonathan Lazar, Paul Jaeger, “Reducing Barriers to Online Access for People with Disabilities,,” Issues in Science and Technology(Winter 2011), 69-82.
9:45 – 10:15 am
- Group Activity: Defining Accessibility for oneself. What is your personal definition?
Session 2: Led by Dan Brown, Humanware
10:15 – Noon: Demonstration: Accessible Hardware for Disabled Users
- Kessler Foundation and National Organization on Disability, “The ADA 20 Years Later: An Executive Summary,” July 2010. Available here
Noon- 12:45 pm: Lunch
Session 3: Led by Dr. George Williams
12:45 – 1:45 pm: Lecture and Discussion
- George H. Williams, “Disability, Universal Design, and the Digital Humanities,” Debates in Digital Humanities. University of Minnesota Press. Available here
1:45-2 pm: Break
Session 4: Led by Dr. Jennifer Guiliano
2:00 – 2:30 pm: Cognitive Disabilities and the Web
- “Evaluating Cognitive Web Accessibility,” Web Accessibility Initative WebAIMhttp://webaim.org/articles/cognitive/cognitive_too_little/
The presentation on cognitive disabilities and the web is available in PDF form. Cognitive Lecture Accessible Future
2:30 – 3:00 pm: Deafness, deafness, and accessibility
- “Deafness and the User Experience,” by Lisa Herrodhttp://alistapart.com/article/deafnessandtheuserexperience
The presentation on Deafness, deafness, and accessibility is available in PDF form. Deafness and Accessibility
Session 5: Led by Dr. George Williams and Jeremy Boggs
3:00 – 4:30 pm: Evaluating Web Accessibility
- “How People with Disabilities Use the Web,” Web Accessibility Initiative. Available here
- “Considering the User Perspective: A Summary of Design Issues,” Web Accessibility InitiativeWebAIM
- http://www.456bereastreet.com/archive/200709/10_colour_contrast_checking_tools_to_improve_the_accessibility_of_your_design/
- Browser add ons to simulate color blindness types, e.g. https://addons.mozilla.org/eN-US/firefox/addon/colorblind-design/
- Google Chrome Accessibility Tools:https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/accessibility-developer-t/fpkknkljclfencbdbgkenhalefipecmb?hl=en
Either use the WAVE web page interface, or download and install the WAVE Toolbar for Firefox.
- The WAVE Firefox toolbar provides a mechanism for running WAVE accessibility reports directly within Firefox.
(See also “Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools: Overview.”)
Please also explore Pa11y, the automated accessibility testing system (http://pa11y.org/) and HTML_Codesniffer: http://squizlabs.github.io/HTML_CodeSniffer/
Small Group activity: Evaluation and discussion of a number of online resources, including the following:
- The Shakespeare Quartos Archive
- The William Blake Archive
- The Bracero History Archive
- Cornell University Library: Making of America
- Visualizing Emancipation
- Deaf Studies Digital Journal
- Nineteenth-Century Disability: A Digital Reader
- BrailleSC.org
Session 6: Led by Jeremy Boggs
4:30-5 pm: Integrating accessibility testing into the workflow of projects and workplaces
Day 2
Please note the doors to the library do not open until 9 am.
9:15-9:30 am Coffee
Session 7: Led by Jeremy Boggs
9:30-10:30 am: HTML and CSS Concepts
- Peterson, “Accessibility in HTML5”
- HTML5 Accessibility
- Webplatform.org
View the session information: http://clioweb.github.io/accessiblefuture/
Session 8: Led by Jeremy Boggs and James Smith
10:30-11:30 am: Hands On with HTML and CSS to Address Accessibility Issues
11:30-11:45 am: Break
12:50-1:30: Continuing with HTML and CSS this time talking about responsive design
Session 9: Led by James Smith
1:30-2:30 pm: WordPress
Session 10: Led by George Williams and Tina Herzberg
2:30-3:15 pm: Encouraging/soliciting feedback from users with accessibility concerns
3:15-3:30 pm break
Session 11: Led by Jennifer Guiliano
3:30- 4 pm: Advocating for Accessibility on your campus by creating an Accessibility Statement
Workshop 5
Accessible Future Los Angeles Agenda
Both days of this workshop will take place in the same location: Rolfe Hall, Center for Digital Humanities Learning Lab, Room 2118.
The closest parking structure to this location is Parking Structure 5, 302 Charles E. Young Drive, North 90095. This is a pay by space garage.
DAY 1
8:30 – 9:00 am
- Registration and Coffee/Continental Breakfast
9:00 – 9:15 am
- Welcome
Session 1: Led by Dr. Tina Herzberg
9:15 – 9:45 am: Lecture
- Philip M. Ferguson, Emily Nusbaum, “Disability Studies: What Is It?”, Research & Practice for Persons with Severe Disabilities (2012) Vol. 37, No. 2, 70-80.
- Jonathan Lazar, Paul Jaeger, “Reducing Barriers to Online Access for People with Disabilities,,” Issues in Science and Technology(Winter 2011), 69-82.
9:45 – 10:15 am
- Group Activity: Defining Accessibility for oneself. What is your personal definition?
Session 2: Demonstrations of Accessibility Hardware for Disabled Users led by Clay Jeffcoat
10:15 – 11 am: Demonstration: Accessible Hardware for Disabled Users
- Kessler Foundation and National Organization on Disability, “The ADA 20 Years Later: An Executive Summary,” July 2010.
Session 3: Led by Dr. George Williams
11- noon: Lecture and Discussion
- George H. Williams, “Disability, Universal Design, and the Digital Humanities,” Debates in Digital Humanities. University of Minnesota Press.
- Sara Hendren, “All Technology is Assistive.”
Noon- 12:45 pm: Lunch
Session 4:
12:45 – 1:30 pm: Cognitive Disabilities and the Web
- Suggested reading: “Evaluating Cognitive Web Accessibility,” Web Accessibility InitativeWebAIM http://webaim.org/articles/cognitive/cognitive_too_little/
- The presentation slide deck on cognitive disabilities and the web is available in PDF form.Cognitive Lecture Accessible Future
1:30-1:45 pm Break
1:45-2:30 pm: Deafness, deafness, and accessibility
- “Deafness and the User Experience,” by Lisa Herrodhttp://alistapart.com/article/deafnessandtheuserexperience
- The presentation slide deck on Deafness, deafness, and accessibility is available in PDF form.Deafness and Accessibility
2:30 – 4:00 pm: Session 5: Led by Dr. George Williams and Jeremy Boggs
Evaluating Web Accessibility
- “How People with Disabilities Use the Web,” Web Accessibility Initiative.
- “Considering the User Perspective: A Summary of Design Issues,” Web Accessibility InitiativeWebAIM
- http://www.456bereastreet.com/archive/200709/10_colour_contrast_checking_tools_to_improve_the_accessibility_of_your_design/
- Browser add ons to simulate color blindness types, e.g. https://addons.mozilla.org/eN-US/firefox/addon/colorblind-design/
- Google Chrome Accessibility Tools:https://chrome.google.com/webstore/detail/accessibility-developer-t/fpkknkljclfencbdbgkenhalefipecmb?hl=en
Either use the WAVE web page interface, or download and install the WAVE Toolbar for Firefox.
- The WAVE Firefox toolbar provides a mechanism for running WAVE accessibility reports directly within Firefox.
(See also “Web Accessibility Evaluation Tools: Overview.”)
Please also explore Pa11y, the automated accessibility testing system (http://pa11y.org/) and HTML_Codesniffer: http://squizlabs.github.io/HTML_CodeSniffer/
Small Group activity: Evaluation and discussion of a number of online resources, including the following:
- The Shakespeare Quartos Archive
- The William Blake Archive
- The Bracero History Archive
- Cornell University Library: Making of America
- Visualizing Emancipation
- Deaf Studies Digital Journal
- Nineteenth-Century Disability: A Digital Reader
- BrailleSC.org
Session 6: Led by Jeremy Boggs
4-4:30 pm: Integrating accessibility testing into the workflow of projects and workplaces
View the session information: http://clioweb.github.io/accessiblefuture/
Day 2
Workshop Location: Rolfe Hall, Center for Digital Humanities Learning Lab, Room 2118.
9:15-9:30 am Coffee
Session 7: Led by Jeremy Boggs
9:30-10:30 am: HTML and CSS Concepts
- Peterson, “Accessibility in HTML5”
- HTML5 Accessibility
- Webplatform.org
View the session information: http://clioweb.github.io/accessiblefuture/
Session 8: Led by Jeremy Boggs and James Smith
10:30-Noon am: Hands On with HTML and CSS to Address Accessibility Issues and Responsive Design
Noon- 12:45 pm: Lunch
Session 9: Led by James Smith
12:45-1:30 pm: WordPress
1:30-1:45 pm: Break
Session 10: Led by Jeremy Boggs
1:45-2:45 pm: Working with Omeka
Session 10: Led by George Williams and Tina Herzberg
2:45-3:30 pm: Encouraging/soliciting feedback from users with accessibility concerns
Session 11:
3:30- 4 pm: Advocating for Accessibility on your campus by creating an Accessibility Statement