Universal Accessibility Interest Group

October 2021

Dear faculty and staff of postsecondary academic libraries,

My name is Sarah Nuxoll and I am a graduate student in Higher Education and Student Affairs at the University of Portland. I am also currently a member of the newly formed Accessibility Task Force at the UP Clark Library. For my graduate research project, I am focusing on what measures college and university libraries are taking to move toward greater accessibility, and how libraries at different institutions of higher education are handling the increased staff workload and training needed to implement accessibility from a disability justice or inclusion framework which extends beyond current accommodations practices.

The time commitment involved in participating would be approximately 30 minutes, including a 10-20 minute interview via Zoom, and potential email follow-up for clarification or sharing additional information.

The interview and follow-up would focus on two main areas:

• Student surveys or focus groups about higher education library accessibility, in terms of accommodations and/or inclusion. If your library has already undertaken either of these measures, I would be grateful to learn what approaches and questions were deemed most successful in generating student response, and an overview of student responses received.
• Any changes your library has undertaken or is considering regarding staff responsibilities and training or certification in the area of accessibility from a disability justice or inclusion framework. At a recent online presentation I attended, a participant pointed out that there are only 2 librarians in U.S. institutions of higher education who are officially appointed as full-time accessibility librarians. Hearing this, I became curious how schools that may not be able to add a dedicated accessibility librarian are implementing accessibility and disability inclusion initiatives, as well as training/certification, from a staffing and infrastructure standpoint.

Information provided by participants will be identified only by the college or university's approximate size and status as public or private. This information will be collated into reports to satisfy my graduate research requirements, including a literature review on these subjects. If participants wish they may receive a copy of these reports.

Additionally, information shared will be used to help develop student-focused qualitative research instruments asking about accessibility and inclusion at the UP Clark Library. The UP Clark Library survey or focus group questions and responses will be shared with participants if they wish. Information about current library approaches to staffing, infrastructure, and training/certification around the intersection of accommodations and inclusion may also be included (identified only by size and status of institution as public or private) as data in a potential paper to be submitted to an academic journal in spring-summer 2022. If published, all participants will be notified and will receive a link to the publication.

If you are interested in participating, please contact me at your earliest convenience, preferably by Friday, October 29^th. Zoom interviews will primarily be scheduled during the first two weeks of November. If you receive this request after that timeframe, I am still interested in hearing from you; please do reach out.

I would be grateful if you would also consider forwarding this request to library faculty and staff at other institutions of higher education who might be interested in this subject.

Thank you for your consideration as we all imagine how our libraries might better serve and welcome people with disabilities!

Warm wishes,

Sarah Nuxoll

nuxolls@up.edu

503-943-7775