The Accessible Virtual Campus

The Professions

Illustration representing Professional Schools section of virtual campus.

Health Sciences, Education, Business, Architecture and Information Studies are some of the broad categories of post-secondary instruction and learning in the professions.  Concerns for the inclusion of many foreign students may be one impetus for universal design change. "By designing a course based upon Universal Instructional Design (UID) or implementing UID techniques, English as a Second Language (ESL) students will no longer need to rely as heavily on support systems that are secondary to primary instructional programs."     Kregg C. Strehorn

Did you know that many non-english letters are not processed by screenreaders? See Instructional Methods and Media & Materials links to help you prepare universally designed materials.

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Equivalent Text Description (EqTD) Tutorial for Graphics

This 5 page tutorial provides step by step instructions and examples for writing equivalent text descriptions for graphic elements.

R2D2 Center at UW-Milwaukee

Tutorial for EqTDs  (PDF File)

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Thesis/Project and Dissertation Accessibility Protocol

This protocol explains the required "why" and "how" of creating an accessible thesis/document. Graduate students in the Occupational Therapy Department at UWM are required to provide an accessible copy of their thesis, project or dissertation. The protocol is distributed in conjunction with a formatted template that includes all of the requirements of the graduate school at UWM.

R2D2 Center at UW-Milwaukee

Thesis/Project & Dissertation Protocol  (PDF File)

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Rubric for Evaluating Universal Design of Syllabus

This printable rubric provides a guide to evaluate a syllabus based on different elements using universal design components.

EnACT, California State University

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Spectrum Support Program

The Spectrum Support Program at the Rochester Institute of Technology provides assistance in helping students, particularly those with autism spectrum disorders, achieve in their academic, social, and career success. The website for the program offers additional resources, information about services offered, and the enrollment process.

Rochester Institute of Technology

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Universal Design and Its Applications in Educational Environments - Article

Universal Design and Its Applications in Educational Environments is an article that discusses universal design adaptations that can be made to increase education access. It also examines several critical areas of the universal design concept. Available in PDF format.

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"When I had my accident I was told that, if I were to live, I'd live in an institution for the rest of my life... I don't think those people thought that that institution would be the Parliament of Canada"

Steven Fletcher, Member of Canadian Parliament