Equal Access: Universal Design of Your Advancing Informal STEM Learning (AISL) Project

• In your project proposal and implementation do you ensure there is expertise in disabilities, accommodations, and universal design through a staff member, consultant, or partnership with an organization that specializes in this area? Do you include costs for accommodations and access-related consultations in the proposal?
• If you have an AISL project, have you considered submitting a request for supplemental funding to support access to and engagement in STEM learning, research, and workforce development for students, postdoctoral scholars, or faculty and staff with disabilities? See Persons with Disabilities - STEM Engagement and Access for more information.
• Do project policies and procedures ensure access to facilities, events, and resources for people with disabilities?
• Does a simple, transparent procedure to ensure a timely response to requests for disability-related accommodations exist and are staff and participants made aware of these services?
• Do project policies and procedures that support people with disabilities move beyond minimum levels of compliance and accommodations for individuals to focus more broadly on universal design?
• Are disability-related access issues addressed in research design, data collection, and evaluation instruments? Do you include disability along with other requests for demographics on surveys and present this data in project reports and published articles?

• Do pictures in your publications and websites include people with diverse characteristics that include disability?
• Are all publications designed to be accessible to people with blindness as well as learning and other disabilities? Do project web pages adhere to accessibility guidelines or standards adopted by your institution, such as the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines?
• Do key publications and websites include a statement about commitment to diversity, equity, and inclusion, as well as procedures for requesting disability-related accommodations? For example, a project website could include the following statement: “The [project name] values diversity, equity, and inclusion and strives to make project facilities, technology, courses, information resources, and services accessible to everyone, including those with disabilities. Please inform [project staff] of accessibility barriers you encounter and request accommodations that will make facilities courses, services, and information resources accessible to you.”
• Do videos developed or used in the project have accurate captions?
• Is the technology used for project communication and collaboration accessible?
• Are there flexible policies that allow participants to attend meetings and activities remotely? Are important meetings recorded, captioned, and shared for those who cannot attend?

• Are all levels of facilities connected via wheelchair-accessible routes? Are accessible routes of travel easy to find? Do restroom, entrance, and other commonly used doors have sensors or buttons for automatic opening? Are they regularly inspected to ensure functionality?
• Do elevators have auditory, visual, and tactile signals and controls accessible from a seated position?
• Are there parking areas, pathways, and entrances to the building that are wheelchair accessible and clearly identified?
• Are aisles kept wide and clear of obstructions for the safety of users who have mobility or visual impairments?
• Are wheelchair accessible and child-friendly restrooms with well-marked signs available in or near the facility?
• Is at least part of a service counter at a height accessible from a seated position?
• Are adjustable-height tables, ergonomic chairs, and adequate/adjustable light available?
• Are there ample high-contrast, large-print directional signs to and throughout facilities? Is braille signage used where appropriate?

• Do staff members know how to respond to requests for disability-related accommodations, such as sign language interpreters?
• Are staff and contractors in specific assignment areas (e.g., event management, web page development, video creation) knowledgeable about accessibility requirements and considerations?
• Are staff members aware of issues related to communicating with participants who have disabilities? See Communication Hints at the end of this publication.
• Do staff deliver conference presentations and exhibits that are accessible to all participants (e.g. with captions, accessible handouts, large print and high contrast slides)? See Universal Design of Physical Spaces for details.

Checklist Updates

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• Ask a person with a disability if that person needs help before providing assistance.
• Talk directly to the person with a disability, not through their companion or interpreter.
• Refer to a person’s disability only if it is relevant to the conversation.
• Avoid derogatory slang or negative descriptions of a person’s disability. For example, “a person who uses a wheelchair” is more appropriate than “a person confined to a wheelchair.” A wheelchair is not confining—it’s liberating!
• Provide information in alternate means (e.g., written, spoken, diagrams).
• Do not interact with a person’s guide dog or service dog unless you have received permission to do so.
• Do not be afraid to use common terms and phrases, like “see you later” or “let’s go for a walk” around people with disabilities.
• Do not touch mobility devices or assistive technology without the owner’s consent.
• Do not assume physical contact—like handshakes, high-fives, or hugs—is okay.
• Understand that not everyone uses eye contact.

• Be descriptive. Say, “The computer is about three feet to your left,” rather than “The computer is over there.”
• Speak all of the projected content when presenting and describe the content of charts, graphs, and pictures.
• When guiding people with visual impairments, offer them your arm rather than grabbing or pushing them.

• Offer directions or instructions both orally and in writing. If asked, read instructions to individuals who have specific learning disabilities.

• Consider carrying on a long conversation with an individual who has a mobility impairment from a seated position.

• Listen carefully. Repeat what you think you understand and then ask the person with a speech impairment to clarify or repeat the portion that you did not understand.

• Face people with hearing impairments, and avoid covering your mouth, so they can see your lips. Avoid talking while chewing gum or eating.
• Speak clearly at a normal volume. Speak louder only if requested.
• Repeat questions from audience members.
• Use paper and pencil, or type things out on your cell phone, if the person who is deaf does not read lips or if more accurate communication is needed.
• When using an interpreter, speak directly to the person who is deaf; when an interpreter voices what a person who is deaf signs, look at the person who is deaf, not the interpreter.

• Provide information in clear, calm, respectful tones.
• Allow opportunities for addressing specific questions.