DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology) at the University of Washington has, since 1992, worked to increase the successful participation of individuals with disabilities in postsecondary education and employment. It sponsors projects that promote the use of assistive technology and the development of accessible facilities, computer labs, electronic resources in libraries, web pages, educational multimedia, and distance learning programs. DO-IT is a collaboration of Computing & Communications and the Colleges of Engineering and Education at the University of Washington. Primary funding for DO-IT is provided by the National Science Foundation, the State of Washington, and the U.S. Department of Education. More information about DO-IT initiatives and projects, including AccessCollege, can be found at https://www.washington.edu/doit/.
In 1999, the U.S. Department of Education Office of Postsecondary Education (OPE) funded DO-IT Prof (grant #P333A990042) to create professional development materials and train faculty and academic administrators nationwide to more fully include students with disabilities in their courses. In 2002, OPE funded DO-IT Admin (grant #P333A020044), which expanded DO-IT Prof efforts to train student service administrators and also staff. Project team members further identified the critical need to systematically change policies, procedures, and practices in order for both universal design and reasonable accommodations to be embraced at an institutional level.
AccessCollege (grant #P333A050064) continues to offer and refine the successful professional development and resources for faculty and administrators of earlier projects. It complements them with the identification, validation, and application of campus accessibility indicators (DO-IT, 2007) to document institutional change toward more accessible courses and programs. AccessCollege also supports The Center for Universal Design in Education.
Much of the content for this publication is duplicated in other publications, training materials, and web pages published by DO-IT (e.g., Burgstahler, 2002, 2005, 2007 & DO-IT, 2007). Most can be found at the comprehensive website https://www.washington.edu/doit/. Permission is granted to copy these materials for educational, noncommercial purposes provided the source is acknowledged. Although the materials were developed with funding from the U.S. Department of Education, the contents express the opinions of the authors and do not necessarily represent those of the Department of Education, and you should not assume their endorsement.
AccessCollege is a Model Demonstration Project of the Office of Postsecondary Education in the U.S. Department of Education. The purpose of these projects is to develop innovative, effective, and efficient teaching methods to enhance the skills and abilities of postsecondary faculty and administrators working with students who have disabilities. Links to all of the Model Demonstration Projects are at https://www2.ed.gov/programs/disabilities/awards.html.