Connecting PreK-12 Digital Accessibility to the Global Accessibility Community
The annual CSUN Assistive Technology Conference (ATC) provides a global platform designed to strengthen the community of accessibility and assistive technology professionals, advocates, consumers, and vendors. It is a powerful space for sharing best practices, research, lived experiences, and emerging technologies. Christopher Phillips and Jena Fahlbush represented NCADEMI at the conference, presenting two sessions and networking with colleagues to bring back insights to strengthen the team’s work in supporting accessible digital learning.
While eager to share NCADEMI resources and tools with a new audience, we were also unsure on how many PreK–12 educators and leaders were in attendance and how our work would connect with their needs. We were thrilled to find that each of our sessions drew in over 50 attendees who asked thoughtful questions and stuck around after the sessions to share their excitement for our work.
One the first full day of the conference we presented, “Advancing Inclusive Procurement with the EdTech Accessibility Directory.” This session introduced participants to the vision and development of the EdTech Directory. We shared how the directory saves school districts time and helps to embed accessibility into the procurement process. Questions from attendees included how we would maintain and update the directory, how much we were coordinating with vendors, and how we selected products to include. Attendees were encouraged to review the directory and submit feedback on new features that would make it more useful in their day-to-day work.
Taking full advantage of an in-person event, Christopher was able to connect with several vendors included in the Directory to answer questions, gather feedback, and strengthen relationships.
Later in the week, we explored key components of our new Quality Indicators for the Provision and Use of Accessible Digital Educational Materials while presenting “Closing Gaps & Improving Access to Digital Materials for Students.” This session shared insights to help agencies build and evaluate systems for accessible materials using the Quality Indicators and Implementation Resources. The team encouraged attendees to consider enrolling in our virtual Professional Learning Group of state and district teams implementing the Quality Indicators.
This inspired attendees to inquire about targeted technical assistance (TTA) for higher education. We provided information about our community of practice for teacher preparation programs, co-facilitated by Teach Access, and suggested learning more about all of TTA opportunities on our website.
We also spent time in the vendor hall learning about new products and services, and attended sessions throughout the week led by incredible presenters doing important work to advance digital accessibility. It was evident by the number of sessions on artificial intelligence that many organizations are working through both the challenges and opportunities that AI brings to our field. You can read more about AI and accessibility in our blog.
Overall, CSUN provided a remarkable opportunity to share the work we are doing, build relationships, and learn from those dedicated to making the world a more accessible place. We are honored to be part of this community and look forward to building on these relationships and shared learning at CSUN ATC 2027.
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