WTM20 - Accessibility: Beyond The Buzzword by Jeannette Washington

Diversity in Tech has traditionally looked at women, people of color, and LGBT representation. However disability is now becoming a bigger part of that conversation. Learn what companies like Microsoft, Amazon and Google are doing to increase accessibility.

Jeannette Washington
Detroit, Michigan, USA / Bearly Articulating
Chief Academic Officer at Bearly Articulating; Principal Mischief Maker

Jeannette Washington, M.Ed. worked as Speech Pathologist for a number of years before attending a coding bootcamp and transcending into teaching career changers and industry implants to code. Her passion for exceptional learners has helped ignite conversations across multiple dimensions of diversity in the tech industry. Jeannette has worked in service delivery across the U.S., UAE, Canada, the Dominic Republic and Nigeria. She owns Bearly Articulating, a concierge style, equity, diversity and inclusivity (D&I) think tank.

https://www.wtmmontreal.com/schedule/2020-03-21?sessionId=118

Transcript

2. Twitter: @BearlyArtic | Facebook: Bearly Articulating | Instagram: Bearly_Articulating Accessibility: Beyond the Buzzword Expectations 1. Discuss common special abilities. 1. Develop a new understanding of workplace diversity. 1. Empower further accessibility investigation.
5. Tag, You’re It! @WTM_Montreal @BearlyArtic _________________ #WomenTechmakers #WTMMontreal _________________ View slides & follow along here: http://bit.ly/WTMA11y
6. • 1 billion people have a special ability. • 27% of people believe autism only affects children. • There has been a 42% increase in ADHD diagnoses. • Out of the 40 million with dyslexia, only 2 million know.
9. What would happen if you began to view ability as a form of diversity rather than a deficiency?
10. Twitter: @BearlyArtic | Facebook: Bearly Articulating | Instagram: Bearly_Articulating @Work • Hiring and interviewing should showcase the use of creative challenges and performance based tasks. • Document objective skills and experience over personality quirks. • Assignments should involve collaborative teams that mix people creatively. So teammates can garner value from diverse navigations and perspectives.
11. Twitter: @BearlyArtic | Facebook: Bearly Articulating | Instagram: Bearly_Articulating @Work • Trainings must be well designed to benefit the diversity of thought and to address social skills and emotional IQ. • Revamp performance reviews or company wide procedures and policies. • Provide a clear avenue to request accommodations or workplace adjustments during the hiring process, during onboarding, or before the first day on the job.
14. A11y is how people perceive, understand, navigate, interact with and contribute to the web. Rachel Cherry, Disney Senior Software Engineer and Founder of WP Campus
15. Who benefits from high contrast text? • Vision Loss (perm.) • Cataracts (temp.) • Snow blinded (situational)
16. Who benefits from large tap areas? • Parkinson's Disease (perm.) • Broken hand (temp.) • Drunken individual (situational)
17. Who benefits from cc? • Hearing loss (perm.) • Ear infection (temp.) • Video on bus (situational) • Hearing loss (perm.) • Ear infection (temp.) • Video on bus (situational)
18. • Internet Filters • Page Simplifiers • Syntax Checkers Programmers Need...
19. Users Need... • Contrasting Colors • Text Magnifiers • Screen Readers
20. Twitter: @BearlyArtic | Facebook: Bearly Articulating | Instagram: Bearly_Articulating NEXT STEPS 1. Show up! 3. Be the change that you want to see. Advocate! Advocate! Advocate! 2. Learn what works best for you. Trial and error, my friend!
21. Tag, You’re It! @WTM_Montreal @BearlyArtic _________________ #WomenTechmakers #WTMMontreal _________________ View slides & follow along here: http://bit.ly/WTMA11y