Travel information must be available to travelers with disabilities also and the web ihe most popular sources of travel information. Web designers have the opportunity to annually hone their ability to reach the inclusive travel market and more at Access U 2006 on May 11 and 12.
(Austin, TX) – May 1, 2006 – More than 350 technology professionals will converge on St. Edward’s University to learn how to make web sites and software that is accessible to everyone – including people with disabilities. Knowbility’s 4th annual Access U is geared toward web professionals in both the public and private sector. The conference provides more than 20 conference sessions and two days of hands-on training on how to make technology and the Internet more accessible.
This year’s conference will take place May 11-12, 2006 Access U 2006 sponsors include St. Edward’s University, the DLRP (Disability Law Resource Project), ABILITY Magazine and Wells Fargo Bank. Individuals can register online to attend Access U 2006 at www.knowbility.org/conference.
Knowbility started Access U in 2002 in response to the previously unfilled need for technology professionals to have reliable hands-on accessibility training to help them meet state and federal mandates. Just as automatic doors and ramps create access to physical space required by the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), there are technology design techniques that allow access to cyberspace for people with disabilities. As state and federal agencies adopt accessibility requirements, technology companies that perform government contracts must ensure that they can meet these standards.
“Technology professionals come from all over the US, Canada, and even from England to take these classes," said instructor Rhodes Gibson of Go9 Media. “Legal mandates and standards compliance is just part of it. The universal design techniques that Access U teaches are becoming the cutting edge industry standard because they also provide competitive advantage in many other ways. Accessible design reduces files sizes, adapts a web site for mobile browsing, improves general usability, and aids search engine ratings.”
These and other benefits have broadened the interest and increased attendance in Knowbility’s unique series of training sessions. Access U 2006 comes as Texas state agencies are working hard to comply with state law, Texas HB 2918, which passed the 79th Texas State Legislature in 2005 and that requires Texas state agencies to make information available and provide access to online services to all individuals, regardless of disability. HB 2819 also requires that agencies adopt rules to develop and maintain state websites so that all individuals, regardless of disability can view, access and understand provided information. State agencies must comply by September 1, 2006.
Texas HB 2819 is based on Section 508 of the Federal Rehabilitation Act, which requires federal agencies to allow disabled employees and members of the public the same online availability and access to information and function that any other member of the public may have.
“Access U 2006 is the only conference solely dedicated to educating web professionals about accessible technology design,” said Sharron Rush, Executive Director of Knowbility, Inc. “We have planned a series of activities - including workshops, an audio-described movie and dinner at Alamo Drafthouse, and interactive discussion over lunch with world leaders in accessibility - that we expect will spark the imagination of our attendees. Through the years we have found that innovative technology practitioners are quick to implement solutions once they understand the barriers experienced by people with disabilities. We are building a community of best practice through which we all continue to learn from one another.”
About Knowbility
Knowbility (www.knowbility.org) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization founded in 1999 to support the independence of children and adults with disabilities by promoting the use and improving the availability of accessible information technology. Knowbility provides programs and services that directly help the blind visualize the world around them, help the deaf communicate with the hearing world, and help those with mobility impairments “travel” via the Internet. Knowbility’s training and advisory services help companies learn to tap into the growing market of people with disabilities – a market that Fortune magazine estimates at $1 trillion annually.
Media Contact:
Rachel Jordan
512.965.3774
Rachel@Launc-Marketing.com
Posted by rollingrains at May 3, 2006 01:54 PM