Accessibility

SPEP Accessibility Guidelines

General Accessibility Policies

  1. If you have any accessibility requests, questions, or comments, please contact the Accessibility, Disability, and Inclusivity committee at spepaccdisinc@gmail.com
  2. Please avoid the use of strong scents.
  3. If you are using slides, please consider using Google Slides, which has an auto-captioning feature.
  4. Local accessibility information for the upcoming conference, Toronto 2023: Hotel Accessibility and Transportation Accessibility.

Guidelines for Moderators

  1. Mics are mandatory (for presentations and for Q&A). Moderators should take the microphone to people in the room during the Q&A or, if that is not possible, re-voice questions.
  2. Evaluate the space (remove obstacles, test tech/sound functionality, etc.) and make Q&A index cards available.
  3. Confirm speaker info before panels begin: ask for pronouns, preferred name, and pronunciation, ensure there is water, and double check for access needs.
  4. Enforce time limits. Do not let session run over time (eroding breaks is a significant access problem).
  5. Remind the audience of the availability of electronic access copies of the presentations.

Guidelines for Presenters

  1. Always speak into the microphone, and please do what you can to stick to your time allotment. Expect the moderator to inform you if this goal is not being achieved.
  2. Verbally describe any audio/visuals used in presentation, and welcome interruptions to address any pressing accessibility issues.
  3. If your paper is not already in SPEP’s electronic accessibility Google Drive folder, send it to the current Secretary-Treasurer for upload prior to the beginning of your talk.

These protocols have been developed by the Committee on Accessibility, Disability, and Inclusivity. As with all such protocols, they are a work-in-progress. The committee appreciates and welcomes feedback, suggestions, and thoughts at spepaccdisinc@gmail.com.

Mission Statement of the ADI Committee

The aim of the Committee on Accessibility, Disability, and Inclusion (ADI) is to develop, promote, and maintain accessible practices in the Society, to increase the participation of and advocate on the behalf of people with disabilities in the Society, and to monitor these efforts with regular reports to the general body of the Society. 

Please send comments/suggestions/questions/nominations to the committee chair.

Current Members (2023-24)
(As of October 2023)

  • Chair: Christine Wieseler, California State Polytechnic University, Pomona (2021-2024)
  • Ally Peabody Smith, University of California, Los Angeles (2022-2025)
  • Desiree Valentine, Marquette University (2022-2026)

Previous Members
Joel Michael Reynolds, Georgetown University (2019-2023)
Kim Q. Hall, Appalachian State University (2019-2022)
Stephanie Jenkins, Oregon State University (2019-2021)