Accessible Teaching in the Time of COVID-19

Dear Professors,

Berea College is committed to minimizing the risk of exposure to or spread of COVID-19 and therefore we shift from face-to-face instruction to a system of alternative course delivery. DAS will continue to facilitate accommodations where barriers exist at the intersection of disability and course design. Previous barriers may no longer exist, but new barriers may arise due to the new course formats.

Please know that DAS will be available for consultation and assistance, either in person or via phone or email. We can determine new accommodations if/as needed. As you are creating your new course formats, please consider accessibility in the design phase to minimize barriers and maximize access from the beginning. The Accessible Course Content & Materials page on the DAS website is hoping to facilitate this process.

In addition to the DAS Accessible Course Content & Materials page, here are a few other resources to help facilitate this process:

  • Explore Access – A toolkit developed to assist campuses across the country who had to move online in response to COVID-19. For more information, visit Explore Access.
  • Accessible Presentations – Speakers want everyone in attendance to understand the points they are making. Since presenters are not likely to know specific characteristics of participants, it makes sense to design a presentation that is accessible to most audience members. The following tip sheet has 18 guidelines that help prepare more accessible presentations. Please visit this link for information: Tips for Delivering an Accessible Presentation.
  • A blog titled Accessible Teaching in the Time of COVID-19 by Aimi Hamraie provides us with some useful accessibility tools. In addition, it gives us a perspective of the disability community. I hope you will find it interesting. Accessible Teaching in the Time of COVID-19 Blog. 
Permission to post the blog was given by Aimi Hamraie, critical maker, feminist scholar, design historian and ethnographer, permaculture designer, and professor based in Nashville, Tennessee. Appointed as assistant professor of Medicine, Health, & Society and American Studies at Vanderbilt University.