Is your web site accessible to people with disabilities? Does it meet federal standards of accessibility? The John Slatin Access U is a two day training institute designed to provide needed accessibility skills to IT professionals. Classes offered at John Slatin Access U will help developers and policy makers create electronic information technology that is accessible to everyone – including people with disabilities. Registration is now open for the 2008 conference, held May 6 and 7 at St. Edwards University in Austin, TX.
The training institute, produced annually by Austin non-profit Knowbility is for anyone with IT responsibilities who believes that the Web should empower all people. World-renowned accessibility experts lead the classes, many of them hands-on, to help promote a better understanding of both the need and the techniques for inclusive IT design. From the basics to the bleeding edge, Access U will provide the resources needed to reach as many people as possible. On May 8th , Derek Featherstone will offer a post-conference session Real World Accessibility for AJAX and Web Apps. You can’t ask for anything better than this!
John Slatin Access U consists of concurrent classes covering subjects such as:
- how to meet state and federal accessibility mandates
- emerging best practices for Web 2.0
- incorporating Flash, CSS, JavaScript while maintaining accessibility
- accessibility techniques for Microsoft Office and PDFs documents
- captioning and other means to include accessible multimedia content
- methods for testing and evaluating Web sites fro accessibility
Participants may choose classes most appropriate to individual interest and need. Early registration discounts are available through April 10.
Access U, offered since 2003, was renamed this year to honor Dr. John Slatin, a true accessibility pioneer with an intuitive and early understanding of the power of technology. Slatin was a founding instructor of Access U. His contributions to the field include participation in the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines working group as they rewrote the World Wide Web Consortium’s global standards for accessibility, leadership of the University of Texas’ Accessibility Institute, and inspiration to countless technologists and advocates to take up the cause that he championed with brilliance and passion.
Dr. Slatin’s work provided a touchstone for Knowbility in creating programs and delivering services toward the accomplishment of the mission that he shared with the organization. He died March 24th after long illness, and the institute will be offered in his memory .