AccessINCLUDES: Linking the knowledge and results of NSF disability-related projects and projects within the NSF INCLUDES National Network

University Of Washington, Seattle WA

Investigators

Abstract

The University of Washington's DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunities, Internetworking, and Technology) Center, which has decades of experience in designing welcoming, accessible, and usable courses, research, websites, videos, and electronic documents, leads the AccessINCLUDES project. AccessINCLUDES addresses the broadening participation challenge that individuals with disabilities are underrepresented in science, technology, engineering, and mathematics (STEM) fields. AccessINCLUDES brings the work of the NSF INCLUDES National Network together with the work of DO-IT to address the intersection of identity with an emphasis on disability-related issues. AccessINCLUDES links to the NSF INCLUDES Network by sharing knowledge and results from NSF disability-focused projects and their network organizations to better prepare the NSF INCLUDES National Network to: 1. address disability-related issues in their research (e.g., design interventions to be accessible; recruit, support, and report outcomes for participants with disabilities); 2. make meetings, trainings, courses, and other project activities welcoming and accessible to individuals with disabilities; 3. design project resources and products to be accessible to individuals with disabilities; and 4. develop durable, new collaborations between multiple stakeholders and organizations that lead to future innovative projects and resources that are inclusive of individuals with disabilities. Ultimately, including more individuals with disabilities in STEM fields broadens participation and enhances these fields with their unique perspectives and expertise. Individuals with disabilities inform all aspects of the project. Participants include (1) current and future NSF INCLUDES Design and Development Launch Projects, Alliances, and the Coordination Hub, and (2) disability-focused broadening participation. All project activities support and disseminate outcomes from three conferences, one two-day on-site and two half-day webinars, all designed to be accessible to individuals with disabilities. Conference participants engage in an online community of practice focused on the project goal and objectives and conference development. In the conferences AccessINCLUDES participants, informed by research and practice with respect to broadening participation; STEM, disabilities, change management, and organizational development, advance knowledge relevant to increasing the success of individuals with disabilities through research, instruction, activities, and products of NSF INCLUDES projects. Resources collected and developed and the two dissemination webinars are tailored to the needs of the NSF INCLUDES National Network, so that they have lasting value for making Network projects more inclusive of individuals with disabilities. The project ensures long-term impact by building on two associations, NSF INCLUDES projects and NSF-funded disability-focused projects, and creating durable relationships among projects that enhance the infrastructure for STEM broadening participation research and practice; increasing the participation of people with disabilities in STEM; and disseminating transformational research and practice to enhance understanding and promote replication and impact in the NSF INCLUDES National Network and other STEM and disability-focused organizations. This award reflects NSF's statutory mission and has been deemed worthy of support through evaluation using the Foundation's intellectual merit and broader impacts review criteria.