[Athen] Re: ALEKS

Jean M Salzer jeano at uwm.edu
Fri Apr 5 11:23:13 PDT 2013


Hi Cathy,

I've met with several people in McGraw Hill Connect territory (in person with math department faculty) as well as the Aleks accessibility dude/lawyer (via phone). They are planning on beta testing the javascript version of Aleks this summer and I've persuaded them to pay actual consumers to test things out on their own and provide feedback.

The concern I still have is this: the accessibility dude/lawyer is reading the ADA as if he were teaching a course and trying to use the 'fundamental alterations to the course content' argument about Aleks. I did tell him that was an inappropriate excuse coming from him as vendor, that the only people who could make those statements were individual faculty related to specific curricular changes. He chose not to argue with me, but beware that's what they're saying.

Here is a copy of their statement on Aleks and accessibility:

Date: September 25, 2012

Re: Accessibility of ALEKS Course Products



ALEKS is sensitive to the fact that educational institutions are required to comply with Sections 504 and 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990. To facilitate such compliance, ALEKS strives to be inclusive in all our product offerings to the fullest extent possible and is committed to providing all students with the benefits of a complete ALEKS experience. We are continuing to evaluate accessibility technology to determine how it can be used to improve the ALEKS experience for disabled students.

ALEKS is accessible to many segments of the disabled population. Because there is no audio associated with the core ALEKS content, ALEKS is fully accessible to those who are partially or profoundly deaf. ALEKS does not rely exclusively on color to convey critical information so it is fully accessible to those that are color blind. Many students who have low vision or are otherwise visually impaired can use products such as Microsoft Magnifier to fully access ALEKS. Students who are incapable of using both a keyboard and a mouse simultaneously due to physical disabilities similarly have no limitations while using ALEKS. Profoundly blind students can access certain areas of ALEKS through the use of screen reader technology. However, as more fully discussed below, such technology is incapable of functioning with ALEKS artificial intelligence, open response questions and certain highly visual content.

ALEKS Corporation is currently reprograming all ALEKS courses from Java to JavaScript to make them more compatible with screen reader technology. In this regard, is now testing content in Basic Math, Beginning Algebra and Intermediate Algebra which is programmed in JavaScript. As we pursue the long and complex reprogramming process, we hope that screen reader technology continues to improve. The resulting convergence should result in greater usability of ALEKS by profoundly blind students.

ALEKS has established a collaboration with the Accessible Technology Initiative at The California State University to assist in design in accordance with W3C and WCAG 2.0 guidelines. The early releases of the accessible Math content will be also the subject of testing and review at selected colleges and/or universities. Our JavaScript programming strategy incorporates WAI-ARIA to allow dynamic content and advanced user interface controls developed in JavaScript to interact more readily with screen readers.

Our goal is to develop ALEKS math courses that are in “compliance” from the perspective of Sections 504 or 508 of the Rehabilitation Act and Titles II and III of the Americans with Disabilities Act. We are also striving to achieve a level of “best practices” technical accessibility in accordance with W3C and WCAG 2.0 standards as well as overall usability for disabled students. With respect to accessibility for profoundly blind students, ALEKS plans to release ADA compliant content for ALEKS course products by Fall, 2013.




Page 2 of 3


With regard to the current Java version of ALEKS, the limitations imposed by Java and the complexity of the programming, the course content, and student “free response” input combine to make current assistive technology ineffective. Because it is not possible to modify this version of ALEKS without altering its fundamental functionality, we believe that the “fundamental alteration” exception applies to the Java version of ALEKS.

The uniqueness of ALEKS is based upon the individualized assessment and learning processes that are achieved through the use of artificial intelligence, which makes assessment much more accurate and significantly improves student learning efficiency and student learning outcomes. This process, which relies upon “open ended” as opposed to multiple choice responses, instantly formulates algorithmically generated problems chosen to reflect the level of understanding reflected in the student’s responses to prior questions.

Open ended responses in most mathematical subjects require the student to use input tools that interact with visually complex materials, such as Cartesian coordinate graphs, that are not currently usable by the profoundly blind. Technologies to effectively make such visually demanding input tools in ALEKS usable by the profoundly blind may become available as the technology in this area continues to evolve. However, making major changes to the current Java version of ALEKS would fundamentally alter its nature and functionality.

On the other hand, were ALEKS to be reprogrammed to employ multiple choice questions for visually demanding material, the adverse impact on pedagogical methodology and learning outcomes would significantly reduce the effectiveness of ALEKS. Multiple-choice questions are poor tools for measuring the ability to solve quantitative problems, or to synthesize and evaluate information or apply knowledge to complex constructs. Quantitative problem-solving and higher-order reasoning skills are far better assessed through free response tests, which evaluate the student’s actual mastery of the question and eliminate statistical “noise” from assessments of knowledge.

In attempting to address the needs of students with limited vision and the needs of profoundly blind students, we have evaluated current screen reader technology and have determined it to be unsatisfactory in Math with regard to problems which are visually demanding (as is the case in a number of topics in Beginning and Intermediate Algebra). Within the JavaScript version of ALEKS Math content, we believe that input tools will be fully accessible. However, as we move toward greater accessibility in more advanced courses, we recognize the need to research, develop and implement accessible input tools in regard to open-ended Math problems for which answers can be entered in free response form while reducing the extent to which such input tools are visually demanding.

As noted above, ALEKS Corporation has established a research collaboration with the California State University to develop ALEKS course products in JavaScript that retain the core nature and functionality of ALEKS artificial intelligence and learning outcomes and are accessible to blind or extremely visually impaired students.



Page 3 of 3


Mathematics as early as Pre-Algebra is highly visual. Math textbooks and software naturally contain vast amounts of mathematical notation, graphs, and other forms of diagrams and pictures that are visual in nature. For many mathematical topics, the understanding derived through visualizing the mathematical concepts involved cannot be replicated easily, if at all, by available screen reader technology. This problem is inherent in Math and is faced by all providers of online Math content. Those that claim that all of their online Math content is fully compliant with the ADA, Section 504 or Section 508 are likely exaggerating their capabilities in this regard. The validity of such claims, therefore, should be thoroughly tested.

To assist a profoundly blind student, it is most effective to convert these images into a raised form – a tactile diagram – that can be interpreted by touch. Using Alt Tags to describe complex graphs is a poor substitute for visualization or tactile diagrams. Even a highly detailed verbal description of a complex graph without tactile supplementation is unlikely to achieve the intended learning goal. Modification of math courses to eliminate complex graphing elements would adversely impact the intended learning outcomes of the course. As a result, ALEKS believes that such a modification would fundamentally alter the core functionality of these courses.

Given the current state of assistive technology, many colleges and universities that have addressed the issue of teaching mathematics to profoundly blind students have determined that an “alternative accessible arrangement” in the form of human assistance (qualified readers or transcribers to record answers) is the best accommodation for those students as they work through either a traditional math curriculum and textbook or as they work with ALEKS. This approach is also consistent with their approach to other visually demanding course work.

We recognize that educational institutions must provide accommodations or modifications that would permit disabled students to receive all the educational benefits provided by the ALEKS technology in an equally effective and equally integrated manner. We are committed to broadening the accessibility of ALEKS and continuing to evaluate accessibility technology to determine how it can be used to improve the ALEKS experience for disabled students.

We look forward to keeping you informed about our progress as we pursue our goal of creating courses that present advanced and visually demanding concepts such as graphing in a manner that is accessible and beneficial to blind and extremely visually impaired students.

Very truly yours,



Michael J. Rizzo
General Counsel and
Chief Operating Officer



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Today's Topics:

1. Accessibility Statements (Ron Stewart)
2. Re: Accessibility Statements (Dan Comden)
3. Re: Re: WCAG2 for e-texts (Greg Kraus)
4. Re: Accessibility Statements (Heidi Scher)
5. RE: Accessibility Statements (foreigntype)
6. RE: Accessibility Statements (Humbert, Joseph A)


----------------------------------------------------------------------

Message: 1
Date: Wed, 20 Mar 2013 14:39:27 -0500
From: "Ron Stewart" <ron at ahead.org>
Subject: [Athen] Accessibility Statements
To: "Access Technology Higher Education Network"
<athen-list at u.washington.edu>
Message-ID: <013201ce25a2$a25a9c60$e70fd520$@ahead.org>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Good afternoon all, had an interesting request. If you could set the
accessibility mission statement for a company what would you say?



Ron



*************************************************************************

Ron Stewart MS

Technology Advisor

Association on Higher Education and Disabilities

Chair, Technology Standing Committee

Lead Chair, AHEAD Standing Committees



8300 West Weller St

Yorktown, IN 47396

Mobile: 609 213-2190

Fax: 765 405-1484



<mailto:ron at ahead.org> ron at ahead.org

<http://www.ahead.org/> http://www.ahead.org

When you are having a reallly tough day, take a time out and think about
what you have contributed to the lives of those that you have worked with.
Many times it is just a baby step forward, but even that is progress!



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Message: 2
Date: Wed, 20 Mar 2013 17:17:49 -0700
From: Dan Comden <danc at uw.edu>
Subject: Re: [Athen] Accessibility Statements
To: Access Technology Higher Education Network
<athen-list at u.washington.edu>
Message-ID:
<CAFUsdKRf5YduqV1T_p_Aq7kiUSuWozJn5Kvp4zHQju8wqpJFcQ at mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

Here's one. Yes, I'm a dreamer:

"We try to be accessible in our products and services. We understand that
accessibility is a process, not an end product. This means that we adhere
to current standards toward this goal and where we fall short, we respond
to customer concerns and complaints in a timely fashion. We won't treat
accessibility as a single disability issue. We consider accessibility a
core component of usability and will include testing for it as a primary
step of our product development cycle. We don't want our employees to make
false statements about the accessibility of our products and services, and
if they are caught fudging, fibbing, or flat out lying about accessibility,
we promise to publicly mock them before cutting them loose. We are just as
cynical about VPATs as you are and because of this, we promise to use them
as little as possible and instead refer to this mission statement. We'll
include language that addresses accessibility in all our contracts with
customers. We will steal the mice from our developers on a regular and
random basis."



On Wed, Mar 20, 2013 at 12:39 PM, Ron Stewart <ron at ahead.org> wrote:


> Good afternoon all, had an interesting request. If you could set the

> accessibility mission statement for a company what would you say?****

>

> ** **

>

> Ron ****

>

> ** **

> --

>

-*- Dan Comden danc at uw.edu <danc at washington.edu>
Access Technology Center www.uw.edu/itconnect/accessibility/atl/
University of Washington UW Information Technology
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Message: 3
Date: Wed, 20 Mar 2013 22:25:40 -0400
From: Greg Kraus <greg_kraus at ncsu.edu>
Subject: Re: [Athen] Re: WCAG2 for e-texts
To: Access Technology Higher Education Network
<athen-list at u.washington.edu>
Message-ID:
<CAJL_eQBD8MpE_yBEF_T7Qd_VzAYAu_zh97=L_FbB2jaTR_M+cg at mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset=ISO-8859-1

Thanks all.

Greg

On Mon, Mar 18, 2013 at 11:54 AM, Pielaet, Jon <JPielaet at clark.edu> wrote:

> Greg,

>

> The WCAG 2.0 standards were designed for web content so their strength is in bringing accessibility to web technologies like HTML\CSS Javascript and a like. Most institutions are creating e-texts that use other technologies so applying WCAG standards doesn't make much sense.

> That being said, the developing ePUB standard does make use of these web technologies. As ePub brings rich web-like content to electronic books, the WCAG may become more relevant to alternate format production.

>

> Jennifer shared some great resources for learning about ePub and the merging of these technologies if you are interested in learning more.

>

> I think the core of your question has to do with setting a standard to ensure some level of accessibility for your in-house production. If this is true, and as Jennifer also suggested, the answer would depend on what formats you are producing.

>

> The core principles of WCAG can always be applied however. Your e-texts should be POUR:

>

> Perceivable

> Operable

> Understandable

> Robust

>

>

> Jon

>

>

> Jon Pielaet

>

> Clark College

> Disability Support Services

> Assistive Technology and IT Accessibility Specialist

> 1933 Fort Vancouver Way

> Vancouver, WA 98663-3598

> (360) 992-2314

> (360) 992-2879 Fax

> (360) 991-0901 Video Phone

> jpielaet at clark.edu

> http://www.clark.edu/dss

>

> -----Original Message-----

> From: athen-list-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu [mailto:athen-list-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu] On Behalf Of athen-list-request at mailman1.u.washington.edu

> Sent: Sunday, March 17, 2013 12:03 PM

> To: athen-list at u.washington.edu

> Subject: athen-list Digest, Vol 86, Issue 13

>

> Send athen-list mailing list submissions to

> athen-list at u.washington.edu

>

> To subscribe or unsubscribe via the World Wide Web, visit

> http://mailman1.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/athen-list

> or, via email, send a message with subject or body 'help' to

> athen-list-request at mailman1.u.washington.edu

>

> You can reach the person managing the list at

> athen-list-owner at mailman1.u.washington.edu

>

> When replying, please edit your Subject line so it is more specific than "Re: Contents of athen-list digest..."

>

>

> Today's Topics:

>

> 1. Re: RE: ALEKS (Ken Petri)

> 2. Re: WCAG2 for e-texts (Jennifer Sutton)

>

>

> ----------------------------------------------------------------------

>

> Message: 1

> Date: Sat, 16 Mar 2013 17:00:39 -0400

> From: Ken Petri <petri.1 at osu.edu>

> Subject: Re: [Athen] RE: ALEKS

> To: Access Technology Higher Education Network

> <athen-list at u.washington.edu>

> Message-ID:

> <CAM_wjaq2K17JLeYw1gG92_AJxU-MAOZjLeTMnJm-qV25gOFq6w at mail.gmail.com>

> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

>

> Hi Catherine,

>

> For clarification, there is/was interest in ALEKS at OSU but I have never met with them to discuss it.

>

> As for the MathML not supported in browsers argument, I don't find that valid. With MathJax I just don't think you can argue that MathML can't be rendered. You can argue it can't be read in many screen reader/browser combinations, and you'd be correct, but MathJax will render math visually in all browsers that have JavaScript enabled -- which means pretty much all browsers can render MathML, with some assistance from MathJax.

>

> And if you're using MathPlayer in IE, all of the major Windows screen readers will read the MathML pretty effectively. If the system were producing both the rendered MathML and a LaTex fall-back, seems to me most situations would be covered. (It is possible to get MathJax to show the TeX version of equations and it can "hint" the MathML islands with TeX equations, but I'm not sure how well this will work with a screen reader).

> Oh, and MathPlayer does not seem to work at all in IE 10. So, some problems, but not enough to "wait" until there is better browser support, IMO.

>

> ken

>

>

> [image: The Ohio State University]

> Ken Petri, Program Director

> Web Accessibility Center, ADA Coordinator's Office and Office for Disability Services 102D Pomerene Hall | 1760 Neil Ave. Columbus, OH 43210

> 614-292-1760 Office | 614-218-1499 Mobile | 614-292-4190 Fax petri.1 at osu.edu wac.osu.edu

>

>

> On Fri, Mar 15, 2013 at 11:02 PM, Rangin, Hadi Bargi <hadi at illinois.edu>wrote:

>

>> **

>> Hi Cath,

>>

>> I love your idea and motivation for collaboration. It is definitely

>> the right way to go.

>>

>> I know Ken was interested in accessibility of Aleks some time ago and

>> he even initiated a kind of meeting with them. I was invited to the

>> meeting but I don't exactly recall what has been decided for.

>>

>> I guess we are not using it here in our campus but I would be glad to

>> collaborate and help in any way and shape I can.

>>

>> Thanks,

>> Hadi

>>

>>

>> ------------------------------

>> *From:* athen-list-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu [mailto:

>> athen-list-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu] *On Behalf Of *Catherine M.

>> Stager Kilcommons

>> *Sent:* Friday, March 15, 2013 6:33 PM

>> *To:* athen-list at u.washington.edu

>> *Subject:* [Athen] ALEKS

>>

>> Hello All,

>> Yes, once again the ALEKS accessibility issues are coming under

>> scrutiny here on campus.

>> At this point we are curious if other institutions have been putting

>> pressure on McGraw-Hill to make the exam more accessible.

>>

>> Would other folks be interested in collaborating on a multi university

>> campaign of concern, not unlike what we did with Blackboard?

>>

>> With the support of tools such as Poet and DIAGRAM, is there validity

>> in their argument of saying that they need to wait for MathML to have more

>> browser support and adoption? Should that be the only solution for making

>> this assessment platform accessible?

>>

>> Thanks for any and all comments,

>>

>> Cath Stager-Kilcommons

>> Assistive Technology Lab Coordinator

>> Disability Services / Office of Diversity, Equity, and Community

>> Engagement

>> N234 Center for Community

>> University of Colorado Boulder

>> 303-492-4049

>> *http://DisabilityServices.Colorado.edu*<http://DisabilityServices.Col

>> orado.edu>

>>

>>

>>

>>

>> _______________________________________________

>> athen-list mailing list

>> athen-list at mailman1.u.washington.edu

>> http://mailman1.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/athen-list

>>

>>

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> ------------------------------

>

> Message: 2

> Date: Sat, 16 Mar 2013 15:22:13 -0700

> From: Jennifer Sutton <jsuttondc at gmail.com>

> Subject: Re: [Athen] WCAG2 for e-texts

> To: Access Technology Higher Education Network

> <athen-list at u.washington.edu>

> Message-ID: <7.0.1.0.2.20130316145802.05dd56f8 at gmail.com>

> Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"; format=flowed

>

> Dear Greg and other Athenites:

>

> I'm not sure I entirely understand your question. I see nothing but strengths regarding the idea of considering ebooks in light of WCAG 2. That being said, I see the term "etext" being used on this list to mean all kinds of electronic content. So perhaps I should clarify that I'd be thinking of ePub, DAISY content, and even, yes, PDF. I imagine there are portions of WCAG 2 that also apply to Word documents.

>

> Since I believe that the DAISY consortium, the IDPF, and the W3C seek to foster standards harmonization, I think all three seek to take each others' needs into account.

>

> Since I recently posted many links on this subject to the WebAIM list, I'll repost them all below my name, in case the collection may prove helpful to those on this list, too. At the top of the list, I'll add a few more related to PDF.

>

> Best,

> Jennifer

>

>

> PDF Techniques | Techniques for WCAG 2.0 http://www.w3.org/WAI/GL/WCAG20-TECHS/pdf.html

>

> The official PDF/UA Technical Implementation Guide is here!

> http://www.stumbleupon.com/su/2rUuvX/duff-johnson.com/2013/03/05/the-pdfua-technical-implementation-guide-arriveth/

>

> A new tool that I just saw, but I don't know anything about:

> pdfGoHTML: PDF Reflow Done Right | Duff Johnson Strategy and Communications <http://duff-johnson.com/2013/01/21/pdfgohtml-pdf-reflow-done-right/>http://duff-johnson.com/2013/01/21/pdfgohtml-pdf-reflow-done-right/

>

>

> A link to the Web AIM thread, in which there are six posts. Two of them are mine, below:

> http://webaim.org/discussion/mail_thread?thread=5765

>

>

> *** WebAIM Post 1:

>>Date: Sun, 03 Mar 2013 20:29:32 -0800

>>To: WebAIM Discussion List <webaim-forum at list.webaim.org>

>>

>>Subject: Re: [WebAIM] Q: accessibility for ebooks, epubs, kindles, etc.

>>

>>

>>Greetings, WebAIM:

>>

>>I spent about 15 minutes with Google in order to pull together the

>>following resource set about EPub 3. It's less "Benetech-centric"

>>than what has been posted so far. I'm a fan of standards, not a

>>specific organizational approach, so that's where I always start.

>>

>>I hope many will find this collection useful.

>>

>>Links are below my name. Numbering is for tracking, rather than to

>>denote prioritization.

>>

>>If I've missed anything, I hope others will contribute.

>>

>>Jennifer

>>

>>

>>1. Book by Matt Garrish from O'Reilly Media:

>>http://shop.oreilly.com/product/0636920025283.do

>>

>>2. Visit the site of the International Digital Publishing Forum

>>(IDPF) which is the standards-making body for ePub:

>>http://www.idpf.org

>>

>>3. Forums on the IDPF site:

>>http://idpf.org/forums

>>

>>4. EPUB 3 Accessibility Guidelines

>>http://idpf.org/accessibility/guidelines/

>>

>>5. EPub Check, for validation:

>>http://code.google.com/p/epubcheck/

>>

>>6. A recent thread on the Access Technology in Higher Education

>>email list about accessible ePub production:

>>http://mailman1.u.washington.edu/pipermail/athen-list/2013-February/007170.html

>>

>>7. Creating accessible eBooks - RNIB:

>>http://www.rnib.org.uk/professionals/solutionsforbusiness/publishing/publishertechnical/ebooksaccessible/Pages/accessible_ebook_creation.aspx

>>

>>Shortened:

>>http://bit.ly/12zfaPG

>>

>>

>>8. Content on SlideShare, related to the DAISY Consortium and some

>>is ePub3, as well:

>>http://www.slideshare.net/daisyconsortium

>

>

>

> *** WebAIM post 2:

>

>>Date: Wed, 06 Mar 2013 09:44:14 -0800

>>To: WebAIM Discussion List <webaim-forum at list.webaim.org>

>>

>>Subject: Re: [WebAIM] Q: accessibility for ebooks, epubs, kindles, etc.

>

>

>

>

>>Greetings, WebAIM:

>>

>>I thought I'd post four more items on this subject of ebooks/ePub,

>>and then, I'll stop.

>>

>>But I think these are valuable additions to what I posted the other day.

>>

>>I hope those working on HTML5, CSS, etc. will especially take note

>>of the summary of the recent W3C workshop and help to foster

>>standards harmonization.

>>

>>Links below my name.

>>

>>Best,

>>Jennifer

>>

>>

>>eBooks: Great Expectations - A W3C Workshop on Electronic Books and

>>Open Web Platform - 11-12 February 2013

>>http://www.w3.org/2012/08/electronic-books/rapportebook.html

>>

>>Rich multi-media and a web of devices is driving us to a world of

>>standards - Tools of Change for Publishing

>>http://toc.oreilly.com/2013/02/rich-multi-media-and-a-web-of-devices-is-driving-us-to-a-world-of-standards.html

>>

>>EPUB 3 demo/sample files wanted:

>>http://t.co/mg4VgsyVUj

>>

>>This article focuses on a conference held in the UK

>>ebooks and accessibility; "readable with eyes, ears and fingers" |

>>atis4all | Scoop.it

>>http://ebookscambridge.wordpress.com/2013/02/21/ebooks-and-accessibility-readable-with-eyes-ears-and-fingers/

>

>

> At 04:25 AM 3/16/2013, Greg Kraus wrote:

>>I've been asked recently about the appropriateness of applying WCAG2

>>to e-texts. I would appreciate any input people have on this who are

>>more intimately involved with e-text production than I am. What are

>>the strengths and weaknesses of it?

>>

>>Thanks.

>>

>>Greg

>>

>>--

>>Greg Kraus

>>University IT Accessibility Coordinator

>>NC State University

>>919.513.4087

>>greg_kraus at ncsu.edu

>

>

>

> ------------------------------

>

> _______________________________________________

> athen-list mailing list

> athen-list at mailman1.u.washington.edu

> http://mailman1.u.washington.edu/mailman/listinfo/athen-list

>

>

> End of athen-list Digest, Vol 86, Issue 13

> ******************************************

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------------------------------

Message: 4
Date: Thu, 21 Mar 2013 09:04:30 -0500
From: Heidi Scher <hascherdss at gmail.com>
Subject: Re: [Athen] Accessibility Statements
To: Access Technology Higher Education Network
<athen-list at u.washington.edu>
Message-ID:
<CANtDBU8F_E=RNxMGZJnH1vsUEikemD86yr5HWU-j4n5uLjha4Q at mail.gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="iso-8859-1"

Love that last line, Dan!!! ;-)

Have a good one!

Heidi

+++++++++++++++
Heidi Scher, M.S., CRC
Associate Director
Center for Educational Access
University of Arkansas
ARKU 104
Fayetteville, AR 72701
479.575.3104
479.575.7445 fax
479.575.3646 tdd
+++++++++++++++


On Wed, Mar 20, 2013 at 7:17 PM, Dan Comden <danc at uw.edu> wrote:


> Here's one. Yes, I'm a dreamer:

>

> "We try to be accessible in our products and services. We understand that

> accessibility is a process, not an end product. This means that we adhere

> to current standards toward this goal and where we fall short, we respond

> to customer concerns and complaints in a timely fashion. We won't treat

> accessibility as a single disability issue. We consider accessibility a

> core component of usability and will include testing for it as a primary

> step of our product development cycle. We don't want our employees to make

> false statements about the accessibility of our products and services, and

> if they are caught fudging, fibbing, or flat out lying about accessibility,

> we promise to publicly mock them before cutting them loose. We are just as

> cynical about VPATs as you are and because of this, we promise to use them

> as little as possible and instead refer to this mission statement. We'll

> include language that addresses accessibility in all our contracts with

> customers. We will steal the mice from our developers on a regular and

> random basis."

>

>

>

> On Wed, Mar 20, 2013 at 12:39 PM, Ron Stewart <ron at ahead.org> wrote:

>

>> Good afternoon all, had an interesting request. If you could set the

>> accessibility mission statement for a company what would you say?****

>>

>> ** **

>>

>> Ron ****

>>

>> ** **

>> --

>>

> -*- Dan Comden danc at uw.edu <danc at washington.edu>

> Access Technology Center www.uw.edu/itconnect/accessibility/atl/

> University of Washington UW Information Technology

>

>

> _______________________________________________

> athen-list mailing list

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>

>

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Message: 5
Date: Thu, 21 Mar 2013 10:45:17 -0700
From: "foreigntype" <foreigntype at gmail.com>
Subject: RE: [Athen] Accessibility Statements
To: "'Access Technology Higher Education Network'"
<athen-list at u.washington.edu>
Message-ID: <008701ce265b$da21a300$8e64e900$@gmail.com>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

Great statement! Made me laugh out loud, and in deep appreciation because I
know you stand behind your words, Dan.



Wink Harner



Accessibility Consultant & Multi-Language Alt-Media Production

The Foreign Type

foreigntype at gmail.com

Portland OR

480-984-0034



From: athen-list-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu
[mailto:athen-list-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu] On Behalf Of Heidi
Scher
Sent: Thursday, March 21, 2013 7:05 AM
To: Access Technology Higher Education Network
Subject: Re: [Athen] Accessibility Statements



Love that last line, Dan!!! ;-)



Have a good one!



Heidi




+++++++++++++++
Heidi Scher, M.S., CRC
Associate Director
Center for Educational Access
University of Arkansas
ARKU 104
Fayetteville, AR 72701
479.575.3104
479.575.7445 fax
479.575.3646 tdd
+++++++++++++++



On Wed, Mar 20, 2013 at 7:17 PM, Dan Comden <danc at uw.edu> wrote:

Here's one. Yes, I'm a dreamer:

"We try to be accessible in our products and services. We understand that
accessibility is a process, not an end product. This means that we adhere to
current standards toward this goal and where we fall short, we respond to
customer concerns and complaints in a timely fashion. We won't treat
accessibility as a single disability issue. We consider accessibility a core
component of usability and will include testing for it as a primary step of
our product development cycle. We don't want our employees to make false
statements about the accessibility of our products and services, and if they
are caught fudging, fibbing, or flat out lying about accessibility, we
promise to publicly mock them before cutting them loose. We are just as
cynical about VPATs as you are and because of this, we promise to use them
as little as possible and instead refer to this mission statement. We'll
include language that addresses accessibility in all our contracts with
customers. We will steal the mice from our developers on a regular and
random basis."




On Wed, Mar 20, 2013 at 12:39 PM, Ron Stewart <ron at ahead.org> wrote:

Good afternoon all, had an interesting request. If you could set the
accessibility mission statement for a company what would you say?



Ron



--

-*- Dan Comden danc at uw.edu
<mailto:danc at washington.edu>

Access Technology Center www.uw.edu/itconnect/accessibility/atl/

University of Washington UW Information Technology




_______________________________________________
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Message: 6
Date: Thu, 21 Mar 2013 17:53:47 +0000
From: "Humbert, Joseph A" <johumber at iupui.edu>
Subject: RE: [Athen] Accessibility Statements
To: Access Technology Higher Education Network
<athen-list at u.washington.edu>
Message-ID:
<906395B08AE7B542882AC81A31B69B753031451C at IU-MSSG-MBX110.ads.iu.edu>
Content-Type: text/plain; charset="us-ascii"

The last line comes dangerously close to contradicting an earlier statement, "We won't treat accessibility as a single disability issue"...lol

Joe Humbert, Adaptive Technology and Accessibility Specialist
UITS Adaptive Technology and Accessibility Centers
Indiana University, Indianapolis and Bloomington
535 W Michigan St. IT214 E
Indianapolis, IN 46202
Office Phone: (317) 274-4378
Cell Phone: (317) 644-6824
johumber at iupui.edu<mailto:johumber at iupui.edu>
http://iuadapts.Indiana.edu/<http://iuadapts.indiana.edu/>

From: athen-list-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu [mailto:athen-list-bounces at mailman1.u.washington.edu] On Behalf Of Heidi Scher
Sent: Thursday, March 21, 2013 10:05 AM
To: Access Technology Higher Education Network
Subject: Re: [Athen] Accessibility Statements

Love that last line, Dan!!! ;-)

Have a good one!

Heidi

+++++++++++++++
Heidi Scher, M.S., CRC
Associate Director
Center for Educational Access
University of Arkansas
ARKU 104
Fayetteville, AR 72701
479.575.3104
479.575.7445 fax
479.575.3646 tdd
+++++++++++++++

On Wed, Mar 20, 2013 at 7:17 PM, Dan Comden <danc at uw.edu<mailto:danc at uw.edu>> wrote:
Here's one. Yes, I'm a dreamer:

"We try to be accessible in our products and services. We understand that accessibility is a process, not an end product. This means that we adhere to current standards toward this goal and where we fall short, we respond to customer concerns and complaints in a timely fashion. We won't treat accessibility as a single disability issue. We consider accessibility a core component of usability and will include testing for it as a primary step of our product development cycle. We don't want our employees to make false statements about the accessibility of our products and services, and if they are caught fudging, fibbing, or flat out lying about accessibility, we promise to publicly mock them before cutting them loose. We are just as cynical about VPATs as you are and because of this, we promise to use them as little as possible and instead refer to this mission statement. We'll include language that addresses accessibility in all our contracts with customers. We will steal the !
mice from our developers on a regular and random basis."


On Wed, Mar 20, 2013 at 12:39 PM, Ron Stewart <ron at ahead.org<mailto:ron at ahead.org>> wrote:
Good afternoon all, had an interesting request. If you could set the accessibility mission statement for a company what would you say?

Ron

--
-*- Dan Comden danc at uw.edu<mailto:danc at washington.edu>
Access Technology Center www.uw.edu/itconnect/accessibility/atl/<http://www.uw.edu/itconnect/accessibility/atl/>
University of Washington UW Information Technology


_______________________________________________
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End of athen-list Digest, Vol 86, Issue 17
******************************************

--
Peace.

Jean Salzer, Sr. Counselor
BVI Program/Alternative Text Coordinator
Student Accessibility Center
UW-Milwaukee
414-229-5660, Mitchell Hall B16

What we focus on, we empower and enlarge. Good multiplies when focused upon. Negativity multiplies when focused upon. The choice is ours: Which do we want more of? ~Julia Cameron

If you have peace of mind,
you don't need to have anything else.
If you don't have it,
it doesn't matter much
what else you do have.
-Dalai Lama

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