Accessibility Plan

for the period October 1, 2009 to September 30, 2010

Executive Summary
Commentary/Introduction
Objectives and Structure of the Accessibility Plan
The Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities Advisory Committee
Working Group Memberships
Measures to Assess By-Laws, Policies, Programs, Practices and Services to Determine their Effect on Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities at the University of Guelph
Accessibility Initiatives 2008 - 2009
Accessibility Plan for 2009-2010
APPENDIX I
APPENDIX II
APPENDIX III
APPENDIX IV
APPENDIX V

Glossary of Acronyms

ADO: Accessibility Directorate of Ontario
AO: Awareness and Outreach Working Group (APDAC)
AODA: Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2005
APDAC: Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities Advisory Committee
APP: Accommodation Partnership Program
CAC: Campus Accessibility Committee
CCS: Computing and Communications Services
COU: Council of Ontario Universities
CSA: Central Student Association
CSD: Centre for Students with Disabilities
HREO: Human Rights and Equity Office
IRAT: Information Resources and Adaptive Technology Working Group (APDAC)
ISC: Information Services Committee
LCSD: Library Centre for Students with Disabilities
MMAP: Multimedia Accessibility Project
ODA: Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2001
OOL: Office of Open Learning
PPP’s: Policies, Procedures and Practices
TSS: Teaching Support Services
UD: Universal Design
UID: Universal Instructional Design
W3C: World Wide Web Consortium

Executive Summary

This report represents our 7th annual accessibility plan. Many units at the University, including the Centre for Students with Disabilities, the Library Centre for Students with Disabilities, the Office of Open Learning, the Human Rights and Equity Office, Teaching Support Services and the Human Resources Directorate, have had many accessibility accomplishments. Since the passing of the AODA in 2005, APDAC’s efforts have been tailored to anticipate the release of the act’s legislated standards. This year APDAC moves to implement training programs and systems reviews to facilitate all University stakeholders working in accordance with the standards as they roll out from the province.. APDAC is reorganizing its working structures to better respond to the AODA. The committee will continue working with all of its University partners to effectively implement the standards and moving towards a fully accessible University.

Commentary/Introduction

The Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2001 (ODA) requires institutions to review their policies, programs and services as they relate to persons with disabilities, and to develop accessibility plans to address the associated needs of its constituent groups. In 2005 the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilites Act (AODA) was passed. It does not alter our obligations under the ODA but it does provide us with standards we must meet in the upcoming years in relation to customer service, information and communication, employment, transportation and the built environment.

This report covers our activities from October 2008 through to September 2009. It also provides a strategy for the coming year, outlining initiatives we plan to undertake. This report is our 7^th annual and includes the efforts of all those on the Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities Advisory Committee (APDAC), a broad based committee drawing on diverse expertise in the University community, as well as the efforts of units and groups working on accessibility at the University.

Last year APDAC introduced a functional skills inventory which was completed by all members. Individuals’ particular abilities and experience were matched against an agreed upon list of desired member skills. Recruitment of replacement members will aim to fill gaps in the desired overall skill sets. We are continuing to rethink the structure of APDAC’s working groups in order to best meet challenges anticipated in the coming year.

The specific challenge we face will be implementing AODA standards throughout the University. At this time, the Customer Service Standard is in effect and other Standards have been released in draft form. We are preparing to roll out AODA training programs and begin an accessibility review of policies, procedures and practices (PPP’s) in 2010. This is a daunting and time sensitive task. We have, however, turned this challenge into an opportunity for full inclusion of all human rights and equity mandated areas. A training and accessibility review strategic plan has been developed which will guide the University’s Human Rights and Equity Office (HREO), in conjunction with APDAC, to roll out the necessary training and review.

This past year we again participated in programs important to APDAC such as Wheels in Motion, Accessibility Day, and the first of what we hope will be an annual accessibility conference. Looking forward, it is our hope and expectation that APDAC will be able to integrate such programs and events with the emerging responsibilities associated with the AODA standards implementation. For example, some of the content from the 2009 Aiming for Accessibility conference may well provide content for training with respect to the Information and Communications Standard. These and other initiatives are detailed in the report that follows.

Objectives and Structure of the Accessibility Plan

The ODA requires universities to prepare an accessibility plan that addresses the identification, removal and prevention of barriers to persons with disabilities in their policies, programs, practices and services. These plans must report on:

(a) accessibility initiatives that have occurred in the past year;

(b) accessibility initiatives planned for the coming year;

(c) measures taken to ensure proposals for policies, programs, practices and services are assessed to determine their effect on accessibility for persons with disabilities;

(d) policies, programs, practices and services that will be reviewed in the coming year to identify barriers to persons with disabilities.

The AODA, which passed in June 2005, does not currently change our reporting requirements under the ODA. The AODA will have associated accessibility standards which will contain additional reporting requirements. The first of these standards, and the only standard currently in effect, is the Customer Service Standard. The University will report on our compliance with this standard annually beginning January 1, 2010. As further standards are released, the University will report on our compliance with each as required. It is unclear at this point whether reporting requirements under the ODA and AODA will be integrated. However, until these reporting requirements are more clearly defined, the University continues to report on its progress under ODA requirements.

This plan addresses the following seven areas as they pertain to the above reporting requirements. These are the areas of particular concern identified by the 2002 Council of Ontario Universities (COU) Report of the Working Group on the Ontarians with Disabilities Act, 2001:

(a) publications and information resources;

(b) equipment and adaptive technology;

(d) human resources issues;

(e) awareness issues for faculty and staff;

(f) academic services and policies for students with disabilities;

(g) non-academic student support services.

The central reporting mechanism of this Accessibility Plan is contained in sections 4, 5 and 6 as follows:

Section 4. Measures to Assess By-Laws, Policies, Programs, Practices and Services to Determine their Effect on Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities at the University of Guelph. This section describes how the University intends to address the review of policies, programs, practices and services to ensure all of its activities are barrier free.

Section 5. Accessibility Initiatives 2008-2009. This section details the University’s accessibility initiatives in this last reporting year. It includes measures already instituted and in place and those that are in place but under ongoing development.

Section 6. Accessibility Plan for 2009-2010. This section details the University’s accessibility plans for 2009-2010. It describes initiatives that are ongoing, initiatives that are under development but not yet instituted, and initiatives that have been recommended by APDAC and are under consideration.

The Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities Advisory Committee

2008-2009

Laurie Arnott Human Rights Advisor, Human Rights and Equity Office
Annette Boodram Human Resources Planning Manager
Margaret Carter President, United Steelworkers
Patrick Case Director, Human Rights and Equity Office
Denise De La Franier Centre for Students with Disabilities
Christi Garneau-Scott CSA Academic Commissioner
Athol Gow Coordinator, Library Centre for Students with Disabilities
Ruth Gillespie Classroom Technical Support Manager, Teaching Support Services
Chantal Huinink Student
Judith McKenzie Faculty, Dept. of Political Science
Cyndy McLean Director, Health and Performance Centre
Gisele MacNeil Manager, Health and Wellbeing, Dept. of Occupational Health and Safety
Jeff Morrison Multimedia Coordinator, Office of Open Learning
Barbara O’Neill Registrar, Ridgetown College
Kelly O’Rourke Graduate Student Association
Heather Stewart Senior Lecturer (Communications), Kemptville College
Nicole Tessier Supervisor, Student Services, Alumnae Conferencing and
Communication, College d’Alfred (Ken St-Denis)
Joseph Tindale (Chair) Faculty, Dept. of Family Relations and Applied Nutrition
Rob Vanderspek Director of Design, Engineering & Construction, Physical Resources
Bo Wandschneider Associate Director, Information Systems Services
Brenda Whiteside Associate Vice-President (Student Affairs)

Working Group Memberships

There are currently three working groups to address the seven areas of emphasis outlined in the COU Guidelines (see page 2). Each working group is responsible for identifying barriers and advising the Committee on the removal and prevention of barriers in one or more of the key areas. The COU areas of emphasis are not mutually exclusive and therefore some of the work of the working groups overlaps. The working groups are composed of committee members and members of the University community with particular expertise recruited to support the work of the group. The Chair of APDAC is not a member of any working group but works with each, as appropriate, on a variety of initiatives. The Chair is also a member of the Campus Accessibility Committee (CAC) as a way of liaising between it and APDAC. In the 2009-2010 year the activities of the working groups will largely be focused on assisting in the implementation of the development and execution of the PPP review and training programs associated with the implementation of the AODA standards.

Awareness and Outreach Working Group (AO)

Laurie Arnott (Leader)
Cyndy McLean
Gisele MacNeil
Denise De La Franier
Chantal Low* (student)
Sara Repa* (student)
Annette Boodram
Melanie Bowman* (staff, Wellness Centre Manager)

Information Resources and Adaptive Technology Working Group (IRAT)

Barbara Lavergne* (staff, CCS)
Ruth Gillespie
Athol Gow (Leader)
Paula Hearn
Kyle Mackie* (staff, TSS)
Jeff Morrison
Stuart Robertson* (staff, Website Manager)

Student Support Services Working Group (SSS)

Kelly O’Rourke
Chantal Huinink

*Ad hoc members

APDAC also works closely with other University committees which were already in place prior to APDAC’s creation, e.g. CAC, Information Services Committee (ISC).

Measures to Assess By-Laws, Policies, Programs, Practices and Services to Determine their Effect on Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities at the University of Guelph

The ODA requires institutions to review their policies, programs practices and services as they relate to persons with disabilities, and to develop plans to enhance accessibility. In 2005 the AODA added to this responsibility. The AODA provides regulations establishing specific requirements for meeting the needs of persons with disabilities. Broadly put, the AODA extends the concept of accommodating people with disabilities beyond passive, individual reaction to an active, systemic approach. This shift is aimed at creating a cultural change in Ontario where accessibility means considering differing abilities at the outset and results in access to participation for everyone without alterative participation methods for those with disabilities.

The University is developing a strategic plan to meet its obligations under the AODA standards: the Customer Service Standard, the Information and Communications Standard and the Employment Standard. This strategic plan involves training and an accessibility review of policies, procedures and practices (Accessibility Review) with a broad overarching approach to coordinate training and review requirements.

Training

The AODA has various training requirements laid out in its Customer Service Standard, Information and Communications Standard, and Employment Standard. The Customer Service Standard requires training be developed and carried out by January 1, 2010. However, the Accessibility Directorate of Ontario (ADO) has confirmed that, by having a detailed training plan in place and by being able to demonstrate progress towards implementation by January 1, 2010, the University will not be found to be non-compliant with the timelines. The other standards have different timelines ranging from one year (elements of the draft Information and Communications Standard) to three years or more (elements of the draft Employment Standard) after they come into force.

The University will develop a training plan by January 1, 2009 that integrates the training requirements of all three Standards. With such an approach, employees and service providers will only need to participate in one training series to meet our legislative obligations, rather than separate training sessions as each standard is released.

Accessibility Review

The AODA standards require the establishment of policies, procedures and practices (PPP’s) to ensure a barrier-free environment. This necessitates a review of our current PPP’s to ensure they are barrier-free. As such, the University will develop a plan to conduct a comprehensive Accessibility Review. This Accessibility Review will meet the policy requirements set out in all the AODA standards. This plan will be developed by January 1, 2010 to meet our legislated and ADO revised (see above) timeline obligations in the Customer Service Standard. The implementation timelines established in the Customer Service Standard will require simultaneous development and implementation the training plan and the Accessibility Review.

Accessibility Initiatives 2008 - 2009

The following initiatives are actions and recommendations identified by APDAC in the 2008-2009 accessibility plan as well as additional accessibility initiatives that occurred during this reporting period. The status of each initiative is displayed after each item using the code below.

C: refers to initiatives identified in the 2008-2009 accessibility plan that are one-time undertakings and are now complete. No further action is required and/or identified.
CFU: refers to initiatives identified in the 2008-2009 accessibility plan that have been completed and for which a follow-up step and/or additional activity has been identified.
O: refers to initiatives identified in the 2008-2009 accessibility plan that will continue in 2009-2010. These initiatives are ongoing but not yet completed.
NAT: refers to initiatives identified in the 2008-2009 accessibility plan where no action has been taken.
N: refers to additional initiatives not identified in the 2008-2009 accessibility plan that have been completed.

Physical Facilities

This section of the accessibility plan focuses on initiatives undertaken at the University to address physical barriers faced by persons with disabilities and the community as a whole. The following initiatives occurred in 2008-2009:

(a) The CAC continues to be responsible for the analysis of all major construction or renovation projects for accessibility features and for review of proposed smaller accessibility projects (retrofits) on the Guelph campus. The CAC submitted a call to the University community for accessibility-related construction projects, and assessed and prioritized the requests according to importance and fiscal possibility. The CAC recommended to the Vice-President (Finance & Administration) that specific projects be funded from the University's facility accessibility renewal funds ($125,000) or other sources. The CAC has representation from the Centre for Students with Disabilities (CSD), Physical Resources, Student Housing, students, faculty, and Classroom Technical Support. (O)

(b) As part of an ongoing program addressing issues of physical accessibility on the main campus, the following modifications to physical plant have been made in 2008-2009:

installation of two power door operators on the front interior vestibule doors of the Trent (Police & Parking) Building;
installation of a power door operator on the entry door to the 3rd floor University Centre, CSD Dept's. accessible washroom;
reworking of the installation of a power door operator on the McGilvray Street entrance to the Food Science Building;
installation of two power door operators on the 1st floor of the McLaughlin Library;
installation of two power door operators in the OVC Main Building -- one on the exterior door from breezeway and the other on the corridor door into Bldg. #39 for access to the elevator;
installation of a power door operator on the 1st floor of the Thornbrough Building on the door separating corridors C1399 and C1319;
construction of a concrete wheelchair ramp into the main southwest entrance of the Central Animal Facility and installation of two power door operators on the entrance doors;
replacement of existing door knob handles with barrier free lever handles on two program counsellors’ office doors in the MacKinnon Building;
improvement of lighting and signage inside the vicinity of the 1st floor University Centre accessible northwest entrance;
purchase of a portable wheelchair lift to be used at University functions across campus. The University's PR transportation shop has been put in charge of the lift to setup at various events, as well as the storage, transport and maintenance of the lift;
funding of the installation of electromagnetic door hold open devices on the corridor doors leading to the Room 100 and 200 Lecture Halls in the Axelrod Building;
barrier free upgrades/renovations to the 1st floor McLaughlin Library men's washroom;
installation of accessible/barrier free drinking water fountains to the basement, 1st, 2nd, 4th, 5th and 6th floors of the McLaughlin Library;
construction of a concrete wheelchair sidewalk/ramp to the front entrance of Bldg. #104, CSA Food Bank House;
installation of safety stair nosings (for the visually and physically impaired) to distinguish the change in floor levels on the lecture hall risers in the Axelrod Bldg., Rooms 100 and 200, and the MacNaughton Bldg., Rooms 105 and 113;
a barrier free pedestrian crossing has been constructed at the intersection of Trent Lane and Alumni Walk. Appropriate curbing and a sidewalk have been installed along Trent Lane. (C)

Awareness and Outreach

This section of the accessibility plan focuses on initiatives taken to address attitudinal barriers as they impact on people with disabilities and the community as a whole. The following are primarily new initiatives and significant enhancements of core programs. Details of core activities for the 2008-2009 reporting year are provided in Appendix I of this report. The following new initiatives took place in 2008-2009:

(a) The current AODA Customer Service Standard and proposed Information and Communications Standard and Employment Standard require significant work to implement at the University. HREO employees participated in several conferences related to implementing these standards including those held by the COU, the Ontario Ministry of Agriculture, Food and Rural Affairs, and the Ontario Universities Employment Equity Network.

(b) The University also hosted “Aiming for Accessibility: Creating Barrier-free Information and Communication,” an internal/external conference dealing extensively with the Information and Communications Standard and elements the Customer Service Standard (see section 5.3(b) for details).

(c) The University began developing a strategic plan to meet its obligations under the AODA standards. The outreach and awareness components of this plan include the development of training for staff and faculty regarding the Customer Service Standard and the proposed Information and Communications Standard and Employment Standard (see section 4 for details).

(d) Accessibility Awareness Day took place on Tuesday, March 3^rd, 2009. Several events were planned by the Accessibility Awareness Day Planning Committee (chaired by a CSD staff member and student, with staff, student and faculty participation) with the support of the Central Student Association’s (CSA) Human Right Office, the HREO, and Student Health Services. Events included:

a resource fair in the University Centre courtyard at which representatives of a number of internal and external organizations participated. These included the Rick Hansen Wheels in Motion Committee, the Canadian National Institute for the Blind, the Ontario Disability Supports Program, Epilepsy Waterloo-Wellington, Second Chance Employment Counselling, as well as several on-campus groups that work toward improving access.
a performance by singer-songwriter Mark Wilson, a person with a mobility disability;
a $2 Wellness Lunch organized by committee representatives from Forward Minds, a student-run mental health awareness group;
a speaking event featuring Adam Orfanakos, a University of Guelph (BSAHS Criminal Justice and Public Policy) and York University (MA in Critical Disability Studies) graduate. Adam currently works as an investigator for the Office of the Ontario Ombudsman. (C)

(e) Registrarial Services incorporated pictures of people with disabilities in the undergraduate calendar. The University’s website manager has posted images of people with disabilities on the University homepage. (C)

(f) The HREO has produced a disability pamphlet, Understanding Disability: Creating an Accessible Environment. This pamphlet, which is one of a series of human rights brochures, provides information on accommodation, discrimination and harassment. It is available at the HREO and other University locations and on the HREO website (www.uoguelph.ca/hre), and is being used in conjunction with HREO workshops.(C)

(g) The CSA established an Accessibility Working Group with the goal of making recommendations to eliminate barriers for students with disabilities within the CSA. Membership is flexible and open to those who identify as having a disability or who are committed to accessibility. The working group collaborated with the CSD, HREO, APDAC and CAC for their initiatives this year. Activities included:

an orientation week ice cream social for students with disabilities. This first social event for incoming students with disabilities was considered a success by the CSA. Members of the CSD, APDAC and CAC joined students for a discussion about disability at the University.
co-hosting, with the Office of the President, Lieutenant Governor David C. Onley for a brief campus tour, public lecture, and luncheon. This event gave members of the CSA Accessibility Working Group a chance to discuss the challenges of being an accessibility advocate with a well known public figure with a disability.

(h) A new course entitled, “It’s not hard to be accessible,” is being offered through the Office of Open Learning (OOL). It is a 12 week, online course designed to help employers overcome the challenge of providing accommodations, recruit from within a more diverse workforce and sustain a competitive edge in a global market place. (C)

(i) The CSD updated its website, www.csd.uoguelph.ca. It now includes more information for students, parents and visitors about CSD services.

(j) The University hosted the 6th annual Rick Hansen Wheels in Motion event for the Guelph area. This event involved participants who wheeled, biked, skated, walked or ran a two or five kilometre route through the University of Guelph main campus and teams who participated in a wheelchair relay. The event raised approximately $15,000. Fifty-five percent of the net proceeds from the event were returned to the area through the Rick Hansen Foundation and the local Wheels in Motion Committee to assist individuals with equipment needs, recreation and other initiatives that enhance the quality of life of those with spinal cord injuries. The other forty-five percent has been committed to spinal cord research. The University of Guelph Associate Vice-President (Student Affairs) was the honourary Chair and two university employees were Ambassadors for the Guelph event. (C)

(k) The student group, Forward Minds, promoted mental health awareness on the main campus through the following initiatives:

Mental Health Awareness Week (September) with a focus on anti-stigma and awareness raising about mental health issues;
launch of a self harm awareness initiative with the theme “Love Yourself”. Students wrote positive messages on their body part of choice;
a Toonie Wellness Lunch in the University Centre on Accessibility Awareness Day;
weekly team meetings to provide updates on mental health & accessibility issues at the University and in the community;
delivered an updated stress management workshop and eight times in residence and in classrooms;
updated information kits about a full range of mental health issues (C)

(l) OOL’s Accessibility Planning Group identifies opportunities for accessibility education and awareness for employees and faculty with whom OOL works in course development projects. The University’s accessibility conference (see section 5.3(b)) was such an education and awareness opportunity. The group is drafting a document to outline possible strategies. (O)

(m) In order to develop a systemic and collaborative approach to disability and accessibility awareness at the University, the Awareness and Outreach working group (AO) continues to pursue development of a Gryph calendar into which every department, group and individual can enter disability-related events. The calendar will have a moderator to ensure all events are relevant. It will be viewable by the entire community via the Gryph mail and calendaring system. The calendar will then be used to ascertain the effectiveness of our awareness efforts. Duplication or gaps will be identified and a process to address these issues can then be initiated. (O)

Information Resources and Adaptive Technology

This section of the accessibility plan focuses on initiatives taken at the University to create an accessible environment for persons with disabilities through information resources and adaptive technology. The following initiatives occurred in 2008-2009:

Information Resources

(a) The 2008-2009 accessibility plan outlined in sections 4.3 (g) and 5.3 (f) that consideration would be given to the media and formats in which information is released and disseminated at the University. Subsequent to this commitment, the draft AODA Information and Communications Standard was released. This standard addresses the issues to be discussed and sets out new requirements for information and communication.

The University began developing a strategic plan to meet its obligations under all of the AODA standards. In this plan, IRAT will help develop the University’s policy and training related to the final Information and Communications Standard.

(b) During the 2008-2009 academic year, IRAT focused primarily on planning a conference entitled, Aiming for Accessibility : Creating Barrier-Free Information and Communication . The conference mission was to raise awareness and encourage action among educators, IT managers and providers, web managers and content providers, course designers, and individuals who create and disseminate information regarding:

accessibility issues related to the use of information in a range of formats and settings;
standards, tools and strategies for identifying and correcting information accessibility barriers; and
strategies for incorporating the issue of accessibility into the real-world environment of competing interests and limited resources.

OOL and Teaching Support Services (TSS) participated in planning and hosting the conference. The AVP (Academic) supported the event. Over 170 participants, speakers and exhibitors attended the conference. The presentations and panel discussion video will be made available through the conference website or on a related website.(C)

(c) The Multimedia Accessibility Project (MMAP) came to an end with some successes. The first goal of captioning the multimedia used in PSYC3710 was accomplished, along with making many other aspects of the course accessible to the broadest number of users that we felt was possible. OOL course design and development staff have gained valuable insight and learning with respect to accessibility. This has already started to influence how we format content, develop media components, and generally how we approach the process of course design at the earliest phases.

There have been some barriers as well. PSYC3710 was scheduled to be delivered during the summer 2009 semester, but was cancelled due to resource issues within the department of origin. OOL was counting on using this initial delivery to collect valuable data on how effective the accessibility enhancements actually are in a live delivery. OOL is hopeful that an upcoming offering for this course will be scheduled soon.

As a follow-up to MMAP, OOL decided to form an internal group to ensure that focus in this area is maintained. The group has met twice since January 2009. The group is working on an informal plan which will define how OOL incorporates accessibility considerations in course design and development.

(d) OOL continued to place strong emphasis on its capacity to create multimedia that comply with accessibility guidelines (e.g., W3C) and reflect best practice. The multimedia development unit within OOL has been working to better define a process for developing learning support media for distance education courses. An important component of the process is to identify when in the process OOL should address considerations of accessibility. Once this is determined, OOL will have a clear indication of how to proceed and what options are available. (O)

(e) OOL is in the process of incorporating a multimedia database to manage learning support media components for online courses. One aspect of this database will be to tag media components with important information including consideration of accessibility. This will serve as an effective method of inventory management including the verification of media that has been developed with accessibility features. (O)

(f) There has been limited movement to date in creating any descriptive video for OOL’s distance education courses. Complications in this endeavour include the substantial amount of instructor time and effort required to produce descriptions and the further time and effort entailed in retrofitting video with descriptive tracks. OOL’s current approach to descriptive video is to create descriptive video based on the feasibility of individual projects and the willingness of instructors to contribute to them. In these cases, the instructor needs to determine what concepts are key to convey since much detail in a video may not be relevant. (O)

(g) OOL will continue working toward course website accessibility, including image tags and alternative text resources, eliminating, where possible, the use of tables in course websites, achieving device independence, and providing print and audio captions for images, charts, and illustrations. (O)

(h) OOL promoted device independence and thus accessibility in website design, navigation and use by using features that enable activation of page elements via a variety of input devices. However, embedded objects (such as flash animations) are often problematic because of device dependence. Where such barriers to accessibility are identified, alternative formats for content delivery are being provided. Also, with other groups on campus, OOL is looking into use of a program called Forscene for the delivery of video and Flash files. This product promises delivery of video and Flash files without need for separate applications, such as video players. Forscene has not completed their testing phases on campus and therefore OOL has not moved forward with this. However, the new release of Camtasia software now allows OOL to produce flash video files that have an accessibility component (i.e. close-captioning, alt tagging). (O)

(i) OOL continues to make significant progress in consistent and proper use of markup and style sheets, including ensuring that tables have the necessary markup to be transformed by accessible browsers and other user agents. OOL continues moving toward eliminating the use of tables in course websites, where possible, to increase readability by screen readers. (O)

(j) The Website Manager continued to follow up with University web managers to ensure they address accessibility barriers identified during the website accessibility audit. (O)

(k) To further implement ISC’s philosophy, opportunities for University web developers to receive in-house instruction in accessible web design were offered at the Aiming for Accessibility conference (O)

(l) The McLaughlin Library received the final version of the Accessibility of Services to Users with Disabilities report, which was prepared by an external consultant. The report focuses on the accessibility of “soft services” or programs offered by the library. It was commissioned by the library to complement an earlier (2005) audit of its built environment. The purpose of the report was to identify potential accessibility barriers in order to improve services for library users with disabilities and look for ways to minimize or offset the impact of deficiencies in the built environment. The scope of the study included targeted interviews with library staff members, an online survey of library users, and a review of practices of other university libraries.

The library’s administration has begun discussion on where and how to make the report public, as well as implementation of the report’s immediate and longer term recommendations.

Adaptive Technology

(a) The Library Centre for Students with Disabilities (LCSD) installed a high-speed scanner in a bookable study room in its computer lab. The scanner, which can process up to 60 pages per minute, provides students who use Kurzweil 3000 scanning/reading software with a faster and more effortless workflow for creating compatible files if they can’t be supplied through other sources.

(b) Thanks to a grant from a charitable foundation, the LCSD purchased copies of Kurzweil 3000 installed on USB keys. These USB-based versions of Kurzweil offer the same functionality as the regular application and enable a user to run a fully authorised version of Kurzweil on any computer that the USB key is plugged into. The keys will permit students to access Kurzweil 3000 on computers that are outside the LCSD computer lab and even outside the library. The Kurzweil USB loan program will be ready for the Fall 2009 semester. (C)

(c) Computing and Communications Services (CCS) continues to monitor progress around consortial purchasing being undertaken by Ontario’s Association of Computing Services Directors (an affiliate organization of the COU). The initiative would involve a cooperative purchase of assistive technologies among affiliated institutions. A few universities are in discussion and will be approaching the Ontario Government for assistance and advice. (O)

Student Support Services

This section of the accessibility plan focuses on initiatives to address support services as they impact on students with disabilities and the community as a whole. The following initiatives occurred in 2008-2009:

Academic Initiatives

(a) Universal Instructional Design (UID) principles have been promoted at the University in TSS workshops. Now, the AODA Customer Service and Information and Communications Standards will require UID principles to be implemented in the classroom. The University began developing a strategic plan to meet its obligations under the AODA standards. Part of this broad plan includes providing faculty orientation on UID concepts. (O)

(b) A new course entitled, “It’s Not Hard to be Accessible,” is being offered through OOL. It is a 12 week, online course designed to help employers overcome the challenge of providing accommodations, recruit from within a more diverse workforce and sustain a competitive edge in a global market place. (C)

(c) The University has migrated to Desire2Learn as the University’s Learning Management System, which addresses a number of non-compliance accessibility issues inherent in the current installation of Blackboard. (C)

(d) TSS participated in the Desire2Learn Accessibility Interest Group (D2L-AIG). D2L-AIG has been working directly with Desire2Learn Product Designers to address accessibility issues within the product itself, as well as working to raise awareness of accessibility issues in their individual institutions and among all users. (O)

(e) TSS created guidelines, workshops and presentations on creating accessible course content within a Learning Management System. Resources for content creators working with an LMS include:

guidelines on how content can be created, organized and presented;
guidelines on use and configuration of interactive course components to meet different user needs; and
guidelines on using course tools to create a supportive environment for all users. (C)

(f) TSS offered one-on-one consultations with faculty in the accessible learning technology lab in the library. Faculty can schedule these sessions by contacting TSS. (O)

(g) TSS completed accessibility briefs for faculty on hearing loss, vision loss, physical disabilities, learning disabilities, and mental health issues. The briefs are available in the Teaching Resource Center, AV Loan Counter and as PDF's in the faculty resource section on the TSS website. (C)

(h) TSS created accessible online orientation and help resources for instructors and students using courseware including close-captioned orientation videos and compliant HTML. (C)

(i) TSS re-designed CourseLink and TSS websites to the University template, and adhered to accessibility standards. (C)

Non-Academic Initiatives

(j) The CSA drafted new accessibility standards for board meetings that include use of the LCD projector for motions and mandatory recesses when documents are circulated at the meeting. (C)

(k) A scent-free policy has been adopted for the CSA office. Work continues to ensure this is understood and abided by for all using the CSA space. (C)

(a) In addition to the Pre-Flight Program offered each fall to students with learning disabilities (see Appendix I), the CSD offered a similar program, the Campus Compass, for students with other types of disability. The program provides the opportunity to prepare for life as an undergraduate student, including the opportunity to live in residence, discover campus resources, learn to use adaptive technology, find out what to expect at university, experience life on campus, learn effective academic strategies, learn about themselves, and meet other new students. (C)

(b) The CSD facilitated weekly workshops for anxiety and depression in the fall and winter semesters. (C)

(d) CSD and Co-op and Career Services continue to plan a program for transitions to work for students with disabilities. CSD also co-hosted, with the University of Waterloo, a career fair geared towards students with disabilities called Lime. Lime is held in Waterloo and the CSD shared the bus costs with Career Services and Cooperative Education. (O)

(e) The CSD facilitated a bipolar and depression support group during the academic year. The group gave students who diagnosed with bipolar disorder or depression an opportunity to connect with other students who also experience the same disability for mutual support and discussion. (C)

(f) Under the qualitative goals of the employment equity plan, the University has been working to develop measures in emergency and fire response plans for persons with disabilities, both students and employees (O)

Human Resources Initiatives for Staff

This section of the accessibility plan focuses on human resources initiatives to address support services as they impact on staff with disabilities and the community as a whole. The following initiatives occurred in 2008-2009:

(a) The draft AODA Employment Standard was released in 2009. The University began developing a strategic plan to meet its obligations under all of the AODA standards. The strategic plan involves accessibility-related employee training and policy review (see section 4). Workforce training will include accessible customer service, accessible information and communication and accessible employment. Several current and soon to be implemented Human Resources initiatives will be included in the workforce training including the Accommodation Partnership Program, which addresses the manner in which employees with disabilities will be accommodated at the University, and the Staff Hiring Guidelines. (O)

(b) The University’s Human Resources division is developing hiring guidelines for managers and those involved in the employee selection process. The guidelines will comply with the AODA Employment Standards and incorporate employment equity strategies and promote sound hiring processes. The guidelines will roll out where required with the AODA training. (O)

(c) The CSA Accessibility Working Group collaborated with the Local Affairs and External Commissioners to create new employment equity process at the CSA including the use of a confidentiality form and more targeted advertising. (C)

Office of the Provost Initiatives and Other Initiatives Related to Faculty

This section of the accessibility plan focuses on initiatives to address support services as they impact on faculty with disabilities and the community as a whole. The following initiatives occurred in 2008-2009:

(a) The Office of the Provost continues to conduct its appointments process with a view of eliminating accessibility barriers in the collective agreement. (O)

(b) The Office of the Provost, the HREO and others continue to address the barriers to closing the gaps between the external availability of faculty from the four employment equity designated groups, which include persons with disabilities, and their internal University representation. Members of faculty search committees continue to be required to attend an orientation to the principles of equity hiring. The Office of the Provost continues to remind hiring departments of the need to hold these sessions early in the process, before profile positions have been drafted. HREO staff are available to advise search committees about the drafting of position profiles to attract a diverse pool of candidates and outreach for candidates with disabilities. Early orientation will also permit search committees to discuss and perhaps agree to candidate self-identification, a recently agreed upon enhancement to the equity hiring process. (O)

(c) The Office of the Provost met regularly with the Council of Chairs, the deans (through VPAC), and the College level administrative assistants to provide orientation and training sessions with respect to all aspects of the terms and conditions of employment, including issues of accommodation, human rights and accessibility. (O)

(d) The new faculty orientation program was reorganized to include an opportunity for HREO to present and address issues of human rights and accessibility with recently hired faculty and chairs. The Associate Vice President Student Affairs also presents on student issues including accommodation and accessibility. (C)

Accessibility Plan for 2009-2010

Physical Facilities

This section of the accessibility plan explores ways that the University intends to address current barriers and prevent future barriers in the physical environment that may limit universal access. The following list outlines the University’s plans to address these barriers in 2009-2010.

(a) The draft AODA Built Environment Standard was released in July 2009 for public consultation. The HREO, in consultation with Physical Resources, the Campus Accessibility Committee and APDAC will review the draft standard and provide feedback to the standards’ development committee.

(b) The CAC will continue its primary activities at the Guelph campus:

analysis of all major new construction projects to ensure accessibility features are built into the design and equipping of the buildings and design of their environs; and,
analysis of all major renovation projects to ensure accessibility requirements are addressed in the design to the fullest extent possible, and that the equipping of buildings and design of their environs take advantage of opportunities to enhance accessibility.

(c) The CAC will continue to submit calls to the University community for accessibility-related construction projects, assess and prioritize these requests according to impact and fiscal possibility, and recommend which specific projects should be funded from the University's facility renewal funds or other resources.

Awareness and Outreach

This section of the accessibility plan focuses on addressing attitudinal barriers as they impact on people with disabilities and the community as a whole. The following list outlines the University’s plan to address these barriers in 2009-2010:

(a) The University will continue to work with the strategic plan for implementation of the AODA Standards. The workforce training requirements will be developed and rolled out in 2010.

(b) The CSD will continue to lead the Accessibility Awareness Day Committee and build upon the events and experiences of previous years.

(c) The CSA accessibility working group will host another orientation week Ice Cream Social for students with disabilities

(d) The CSA accessibility working group will hold its Annual General and General Members Meetings in Peter Clark Hall, a space more accessible than the previously used University Centre Courtyard. The accessibility working group will consider holding a pre-meeting for students with disabilities to accommodate where requested.

(e) The CSA accessibility working group will consider whether the event and club accessibility guidelines from University of Toronto Scarborough Campus are appropriate for the CSA.

(f) The Rick Hansen Wheels in Motion event committee will continue to promote the event on the main campus and promote greater staff, student and faculty involvement (in addition to City of Guelph community members).

(g) The student group, Forward Minds, hopes to continue its community involvement in the upcoming year and further develop collaborative programming with CSD to address increasing mental health issues at the University.

(h) Through its Accessibility Planning Group, OOL will identify opportunities for education and awareness for employees and faculty that the department works with in course development projects.

Information Resources and Adaptive Technology

This section of the accessibility plan focuses on current University plans to create an accessible environment for persons with disabilities through use of technology. The following list outlines the University's 2009-2010 plan to address the technological environment:

(a) Meeting the University’s obligations under the AODA Information and Communications Standard will be the primary focus of activities regarding information resources and adaptive technology. Work will continue on the development and implementation of the University’s AODA strategic plan as set out in section 4.

(b) Following the success of the Aiming for Accessibility Conference, IRAT, OOL and TSS are planning a second conference.

(c) As a follow-up to the Multimedia Accessibility Project (MMAP) OOL is forming an internal group to ensure that focus in this area is maintained. The group is working on an informal plan which will define how we incorporate accessibility considerations in course design and development. There are many elements that can be brought into this plan from what has been learned in the development of PSYC3710 – Psychology of Learning Difficulties and Disabilities. One of the outcomes from this working group will be to identify a number of basic accessibility standards that our design team will follow during the course development and revisions process.

(d) OOL will continue the process of incorporating a multimedia database to manage learning support media components for our online courses. One aspect of this database will be to tag media components with important information including consideration of accessibility. This will serve as an effective method of inventory management including the verification of media that has been developed with accessibility features.

(e) OOL will continue to consider how descriptive video can be created for distance education courses.

(f) OOL will continue working toward course website accessibility, including image tags and alternative text resources, eliminating, where possible, the use of tables in course websites, achieving device independence, and providing print and audio captions for images, charts, and illustrations.

(g) OOL will continue, with other groups at the University, to investigate the use of the various software such as Forscene and Camtasia for the delivery of video and Flash files to determine which products deliver video and Flash files without need for separate applications, such as video players.

(h) OOL will continue to promote consistent and proper use of mark-up and style sheets, including ensuring that tables have the necessary mark-up to be transformed by accessible browsers and other user agents.

(i) OOL will continue moving toward eliminating, where possible, the use of tables in course websites to facilitate readability by screen readers.

(j) The Website Manager will continue to follow up with University web managers to ensure they address accessibility barriers identified during the website accessibility audit.

(k) Opportunities for University web developers to receive in-house instruction will be sought, including a comprehensive workshop for web-developers.

(l) The Library’s administration begin implementing the Accessibility of Services to User with Disabilities Report’s recommendations.

Adaptive technology

(m) Investigation will continue into the feasibility of consortial purchasing arrangements for adaptive software at a regional or province-wide level in order to reduce the cost of this software for both institutional and individual users.

Student Support Services

This section of the accessibility plan focuses on plans to address support services as they impact on students with disabilities and the community as a whole. The following list outlines the University’s plan for these services in 2009-2010:

Meeting the University’s obligations under the AODA Customer Service and Information and Communications Standards will be the primary focus of activities regarding student services. Work will continue on the development and implementation of the University’s AODA strategic plan as set out in section 4.

Academic Initiatives

(a) Universal Instructional Design:

The Provost and Vice-President (Academic) will continue to promote the principles of UID as the 21^st Century Curriculum Report is advanced.
APDAC will promote the adoption of UID at the University by continuing to work with TSS, OOL and the Office of the Provost.
TSS will continue to conduct workshops that incorporate UID into their structure.

(b) CSD staff and Co-op and Career Services will continue to focus attention on transitions to work for students with disabilities.

(c) TSS will continue to offer one-on-one consultations with faculty in the accessible Learning Technology Lab in the Library.

Non-Academic Initiatives

(d) The CSA Accessibility Working Group will gather and consider feedback concerning congestion in the University Centre created by vendors which may make this area inaccessible to many people with disabilities.

(e) The CSA Accessibility Working Group will consider developing a policy for board members absent without leave due to disability.

Human Resources Initiatives for Staff

(a) Meeting the University’s obligations under the AODA Employment, Customer Service and Information and Communications Standards will be the primary focus of activities regarding Human Resources accessibility initiatives. Work will continue on the development and implementation of the University’s AODA strategic plan as set out in section 4.

(b) The Human Resources department will continue its efforts to identify and address employee agreement provisions that offer barriers to accessibility with a view to eliminating identified barriers, whether through permissive language or other agreed upon means.

(c) The Employment Equity Committee and the Vice-Presidents, working within their respective areas, will continue to work to address qualitative barriers for employee with disabilities as well as quantitative gaps (the degree to which there is a lower percentage of employees with disabilities in our workforce then the percentage of people with disabilities available in the job market) identified in the Employment Equity plan.

(d) The CSA accessibility working group will continue work on employment equity initiatives.

Office of the Provost Initiatives and Other Initiatives Related to Faculty

(a) Building on the goals established as part of the Federal Contractor’s audit process, the Office of the Provost will continue to work with the Deans to address under-representation of faculty in the four designated groups, including persons with disabilities.

(b) The University of Guelph Faculty Association has been invited to take part in the development of the Accommodation Partnership as part of a unified approach to applying the principles of accommodation. Inasmuch as the Accommodation Partnership Program will require the extensive training of all supervisors, involvement of faculty in the program will contribute to the recruitment and retention of faculty members with disabilities.

(c) The Office of the Provost will continue to meet regularly with the Council of Chairs, the deans (through VPAC), and the College level administrative assistants to provide orientation and training sessions with respect to all aspects of the terms and conditions of employment, including issues of accommodation, human rights and accessibility.

APPENDIX I

Ongoing accessibility initiatives

Through units such as the CSD, the LCSD, Student Health Services, Human Resources (Occupational Health), the HREO and the CAC, the University addresses the needs of disabled members of the community on a daily basis. Some of these activities do not change in the short term and have been adequately addressed in preceding accessibility plans or on the University's accessibility website; they do not represent new initiatives and are not detailed in the body of this report. However, for those activities that are ongoing but whose level of involvement is subject to change, the current level of involvement is detailed in this section. The intention is to ensure completeness in the accessibility plan without obscuring new initiatives with details of activity in previously reported areas.

Awareness and Outreach

Awareness and education workshops addressing accommodation for persons with disabilities are facilitated by TSS, the HREO, and the CSD, who work collectively to promote awareness and education.

(a) TSS Workshops: TSS has continued to conduct workshops throughout this reporting period. The unit has incorporated UID principles and concepts of inclusiveness into these workshops as standard practice.

(b) HREO Workshops:The HREO conducted a number of awareness and education workshops which were attended by students, staff, faculty and members of the larger community. The workshops included training and orientation sessions for search committees (faculty, directors, chairs), supervisors, staff, committees and councils, student organizations, and regional campuses.

(c) CSD Workshops: CSD peers and staff provided awareness workshops and training throughout the year including:

Peer Helper training - facilitated a workshop on Communication 101 in fall and winter semesters;
training for Student Support Network members to educate the group about CSD resources and to increase awareness of disability-related issues;
numerous information fairs in August for new students and Residence Life Staff (Start residence life staff, Campus Safe Walk, First Aid Response Team, campus liaison and other student service providers on campus);
Behind Closed Doors, a disability-related training for residence assistants;
applied suicide intervention skills training (2 days) in fall and winter semesters;
training for peer helpers, and workshops providing education and awareness to staff on accommodation for persons with disabilities upon request;
teen leadership session in the VOICE conference held on campus to promote education and awareness for people with hearing impairment. CSD was also a conference exhibitor.

CSD Caseload

In the 2008-2009 academic year, 992 students registered with the CSD. Support to students included:

assistance with the admission process;
assistance with arranging appropriate on-campus housing;
additional one-to-one support to new students for a successful transition into residence;
orientation to campus and to CSD services for new students;
residences tours and assistance on move-in day for students with mobility and vision disabilities;
individual support from a CSD advisor in the form of counselling, development of customized learning strategies and academic accommodations;
classroom support such as assistance in accessing notes and campus resources, facilitating support from faculty, and accessing ASL/oral interpreters;
examination support such as extra time, quieter space, access to assistive technology, scribes and/or readers;
screening and referrals for students who suspect they may have a learning disability;
assistance with individual parking needs.

Pre-flight Summer Preparation Program for Students with Learning Disabilities

Pre-flight is a week-long, on-site summer preparation program for students with learning disabilities and is open to all current high school students who plan to attend any Ontario university in Fall 2009. The program affords candidates the opportunity to prepare for life as an undergraduate student, including the opportunity to live in residence, discover campus resources, learn to use adaptive technology, find out what to expect at university, experience life on campus, learn effective academic strategies, learn about themselves, and meet other new students. Students are required to complete an application for the Pre-flight program, which is free of charge to accepted students and includes residence accommodation, access to the library, computer labs with assistive technology, and course materials. Participants are responsible for the costs of travel, some meals and social activities. The program is funded by the Learning Opportunities Task Force, Ministry of Training, Colleges and Universities.

PSYCH*1300: Experience to Understanding

This credit course, offered for students diagnosed with a specific learning disability, continues to be offered with collaboration of the Psychology department, the CSD, the LCSD and OOL.

Other CSD/OOL/TSS Activities

The CSD provides representation at the Ontario Universities’ Fair as well as at the on-campus Fall Preview Day and Campus Days.
The CSD sits on the Orientation Week Advisory Committee and the Orientation Volunteer selection committee. Accessibility is promoted by the CSD to increase participation of students with disabilities.
CSD Advisors act as disability consultants to faculty and staff, by interpreting disability related legislation for accommodation in the university environment.
OOL provides captioning tracks for any new videos that OOL encodes. Sometimes course scheduling precludes this provision on all projects for initial course offerings.
OOL works with the CSD to provide printed course manuals as accessible .rtf documents. Where appropriate, electronic readers are being incorporated as part of course resources.
Where appropriate, OOL incorporates electronic library reserve items as part of course resources. Alternatively, readings are also being provided electronically as pdfs posted to course websites. In specific situations, OOL works with the CSD to create universally accessible text from scanned documents. In these instances, documents are translated via OCR (optical character recognition) to create text suitable for assistive technologies.

Awards

The CSD administers three scholarships/awards for students with disabilities or those involved with CSD activities:

Tara Lynn Guiliani Memorial Award: The family of this student has set up an award in memory of their daughter Tara Lynn. The award of $500 is made annually, and preference is given to a student with a visual impairment.
The Gonder Family Volunteer Scholarship is a $900 award for a volunteer who has worked directly with a student with a learning disability.
The Gonder Family Student Scholarship is a $900 award for a student in the B.Comm program who has a learning disability, a minimum average of 70%, and has 10 to 15 course credits.
The CIBC Access Award.
The Student Life Accessibility Award is a $200 award given to a community member or group that advance accessibility at the University.

Student Sign Language Club

The University has a student-based Sign Language Club that promotes awareness of deaf and hard of hearing culture. The CSA subsidizes this club which offers intermediate and advanced ASL courses to staff and students at no cost. Information about this club can be found at their website: http://www.uoguelph.ca/~sign/information/thesignclub/ .

Accessibility Website

The accessibility website continues to be administered and updated by the HREO. It can be found at the following url: http://www.uoguelph.ca/accessibility/

The Learning Centre for Students with Disabilities

The LCSD offers three main services to students who are registered with the CSD:

Adaptive Technology: The LCSD provides access to, and training in the use of, adaptive software and technology (e.g., screen readers, text magnification, scanners, reading/writing support and concept mapping software). Three of the Centre’s seven computers are on motorized, height-adjustable tables.
Reference Help: The LCSD provides students with instruction in how to use the Library’s TRELLIS catalogue and journal indexes. Students can also receive intensive, one-on-one reference support.
Alternate-Format Text Services: The LCSD provides course-related texts and research material in alternate formats for students with print disabilities (e.g., electronic text, Braille, tapes or MP3's).

Other services include retrieval of books and articles from the Library’s stacks and reserve area, locker loans and 4-track tape player loans. The LCSD Coordinator also acts as a resource for students who are interested in purchasing adaptive technology, computers or peripherals, as well as for faculty and staff who are interested in accessibility issues relating to technology.

In July, the LCSD Coordinator took part in the Pre-flight program by introducing participants to adaptive software programs and providing instruction on how to incorporate adaptive software into a variety of learning strategies. Useful hardware and peripherals such as digital recorders, personal digital assistants and tablet PCs were also demonstrated.

Each fall, the LCSD Coordinator participates in the PSYCH*1300 Learning Disabilities course, which focuses on learning disabilities and strategies. This is a first year course offered through the CSD and the Psychology Department. Enrolment is limited to students who are approved by the CSD’s learning disabilities specialist. The LCSD Coordinator provides library instruction sessions, an introductory lecture on adaptive software and leads a hands-on adaptive software workshop.

Additional Non-Academic Supports

Additional non-academic supports provided by various administrative units across the University include:

parking accommodation;
meal plan and on-campus food accommodation;
assistance with meals on campus;
priority for residence room selection;
workshops promoting balance, e.g., free arts workshops;
disability awareness training for non-academic units;
sighted guiding for students with vision disability;
specialized campus tours for students with disabilities;
provision of non-academic information in alternative formats;
employment information and work placement support for students with disabilities;
social events for students with disabilities;
assistance with locating community resources such as housing and attendant care;
mobility device loan program;
working with orientation committees to provide accessible orientation.
use of sign language interpreters for some major events on main campus including Convocation.
funding funding for work-related accommodations (procedures are on the HREO website );
Portable Gentner Assistive Listening Devices available for special events in central classrooms and meeting facilities;
Placement of a standing job advertisement in Abilities magazine.

APPENDIX II

Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities Advisory Committee Mandate - September 2007

In striving to create an environment that supports the ability of all community members to live, work and study on campus, the University of Guelph recognizes the particular and diverse needs of persons with disabilities, and endeavours to provide services and facilities that meet those needs. Reporting to the President through the Human Rights and Equity Office, it is the responsibility of the Accessibility for Persons with Disabilities Advisory Committee to monitor and advise on the development and implementation of the University’s annual plan to address accessibility for persons with disabilities and to promote awareness of the plan so that it can guide decisions affecting the University’s operations.

The University of Guelph is guided by the definitions of “disability” and “barrier” found in the Ontario Human Rights Code and the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act, and is concerned with issues and circumstances that constrain access to the University, its programs and services. Consistent with the values and principles in the University’s Human Rights Policy, the University is also concerned with the development of educational initiatives that will address subjective perceptions and misconceptions and that will contribute to the University community’s overall ability to create a welcoming environment for persons with disabilities.

Broad Goals of the Committee

1. To identify and create mechanisms and channels whereby information on disability issues is continuously gathered, assessed and acted upon, and the University community advised of measures already in place.

2. To foster the identification and promotion of opportunities whereby disability issues can be kept before the University community so as to cultivate awareness.

3. To seek out and promote opportunities whereby the principles of UD can be applied in the course of addressing accessibility, with the intent that persons with disabilities be recognised as members of a continuum of abilities rather than as a distinct and separate group.

4. To promote development of policies whereby issues of accessibility for persons with disabilities are implicitly as well as explicitly addressed in all University endeavours.

Specific Duties of the Committee

In advising on the development of the University’s annual plan to address accessibility for persons with disabilities, the Advisory Committee will:

a) Consult regularly with faculty, staff and students, and particularly those with disabilities, to identify barriers on campus;

b) Recommend to the President measures to be used for the review of the University’s by-laws, policies, programs, practices and services to determine their impact on accessibility for persons with disabilities and prepare an ongoing plan for the review of by-laws, policies, programs, practices and services. Where possible, the advisory committee should benefit from and build upon the work done in various other related University committees and initiatives, such as those associated with the Employment Equity Plan, the services of the CSD, and the work of the Advisory Committee on Physical Accessibility;

c) Prepare an annual report to be presented to the President that will form the basis for the University’s annual plan to address accessibility for persons with disabilities. The report will focus on the identification, removal and prevention of barriers to persons with disabilities at the University of Guelph, give an update on progress the University has made in the preceding year in removing barriers, and provide advice on the University’s ongoing need to be in compliance with the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act.

The University’s HREO will take a co-coordinating role to support the work of the Advisory Committee, providing it with a secretariat and guidance on how to access information and resources to carry out its responsibilities. The HREO will assist the Advisory Committee with the identification of resource people who can be invited to provide specialized expertise and attend meetings for background briefings as appropriate.

Committee Composition

Committee members shall be annually appointed by the President and will reflect a broad cross-section of the University community as well as participation from those within the University who bear specific responsibility for issues related to accessibility for persons with disabilities.

The Chair shall be appointed by the President and shall serve a three year term.

APPENDIX III

Principles of Universal Design

Designs should:

Be useful and marketable to people with diverse abilities - equitable use.
Accommodate a wide range of individual preferences and abilities - flexibility in use.
Be easy to understand, regardless of the user’s experience, knowledge, language skills, or current concentration level - simple and intuitive use.
Communicate necessary information effectively to the user, regardless of ambient conditions for the user’s sensory abilities - perceptible information.
Minimize hazards and the adverse consequences of accidental or unintended actions - tolerance for error.
Be used efficiently and comfortably and with a minimum of fatigue - low physical effort.
Provide appropriate space for approach, reach, manipulation, and use regardless of user’s body size, posture or mobility - size and space for approach and use.

APPENDIX IV

Principles of Universal Instructional Design

Instructional materials and activities should:

Be accessible and fair.
Provide flexibility in use, participation and presentation.
Be straightforward and consistent.
Be explicitly presented and readily perceived.
Provide a supportive learning environment.
Minimize unnecessary physical effort or requirements.
Ensure a learning space that accommodates both students and instructional methods.

Further information on these principles can be found at the UID website, including examples of the translation of the principles for different teaching and learning roles.