We found 239 results that contain "safe spaces"

Accessible Presentations Guide
This article series provides an overview of pathways for delivering presentations, workshops, etc. for some of digital composition accessibility requirements. This is meant to serve as a starting place, rather than an end-all-be-all to access. Accessibility should be considered throughout all parts of the presentation design process, and designing accessible compositions benefits all people, not just those with disabilities. This article is the first of three in its series: 

Choosing a Physical Space
Planning for Accessible Presentations
Delivering Accessible Presentations

Choosing a Physical Space
If you're not going to be presenting in a face-to-face modality, you can jump to the next article. Before reserving a physical space for the presentation, consider: 

Food: If food will be provided, consider if there is a way for folks to serve themselves from a table without needing outside assistance. Additionally, avoid snacks and surface contamination from tree nuts, peanuts, gluten and seafood.


Lighting: The lighting in the room should be adequate and flexible. You may want to ask the following questions: 




Are the lights able to be adjusted?






Is there adequate lighting for those that need more to see?






Is there the ability to turn off the glare near projector screens?






Are any of the lights flickering which may affect those with migraine or seizure disorders?




Pathways into Space: The pathways to get to and around the space should be flat (or ramped) and free from obstruction. The doorways should be able to be propped or automatic as well as large enough for mobility devices to enter.


Rest, Lactation, and Health Rooms: The space should be near and able to be navigated to without obstruction to lactation rooms, personal health rooms, restrooms with disability access, and an all-gender restroom.


Seating: The seating in the space is able to be moved for access to the tables. The seating should also have non-arm options to be flexible for different body types. The table heights (for both presenters and participants) should be between 28-34 inches from the floor.


Signage: The signage to the room and its location is easily perceivable and understandable, including the use of Braille. Emergency signage is not above eye height for those in wheelchairs. 


Smells: Avoid a space that may have chemical or deep fragrances. Note that this may also mean that presenters should not wear scented items on days of the presentation.


Travel: The space should be with facilities that allow for disability parking. The elevators should be in working condition, and the path to the room should be unobstructed.


Technology: There is a working microphone and speaker in the room, preferably. If using digital technology, it should be able to be reached and accessible for the presenter as well as have the functionality for assistive devices (e.g., closed caption, Job Access with Speech (JAWS)).

Gratitudes and Resources for Accessible Presentations
The first iteration of this series came from the work of Raven Baugh and Bethany Meadows for the East Center Writing Center Association’s 2022 conference, sponsored by the Writing Center at Michigan State University.

Ada Hubrig’s 2021 "Conference on Community Writing Presentation Accessibility Guide"
Conference on College Composition and Communication’s 2024 "Conference Accessibility Guide"
Composing Access’ “Preparing Your Presentation”

Continue to the next article in this series, Planning for Accessible Presentations.This article, Accessible Presentations Guide: Choosing a Physical Space © 2024 by Bethany Meadows, is licensed under CC BY-NC 4.0. The cover photo for this article, "Earth Day Presentation" by NASA Goddard Photo and Video, is licensed under CC BY 2.0.

Title: Hyflex Course Design: Creating Accessible Learning SpacesPresenters: Casey McArdle; Imari Cheyne Tetu (WRAC ); Liza PottsOriginally presented on May 11th, 2023Description:Under “equity” in MSU’s strategic plan, it notes, “We will eliminate barriers to access and success.” If MSU is to uphold this plan and create accessible spaces on campus, it must embrace new pedagogical approaches towards education. One approach that this panel will explore is the hyflex model, where part of a class attends in-person, while another part of the class can attend via remote technologies such as Zoom or Teams. This panel will discuss three courses that have utilized the hyflex model over the past few years to eliminate barriers for student success. These courses are in the Experience Architecture (XA) program, an undergraduate UX degree housed in the College of Arts and Letters. XA has three core principles: usability, accessibility, and sustainability. Our alumni work all over the world as UX designers, UX researchers, project managers, accessibility specialists, product designers, and software developers for companies such as Ford, Rivian, Google, Meta, and Adobe. Upon graduation, many will work in hyflex environments. This course design models best practices for how hyflex interactions might occur in the workplace and lays a foundation of empathy in our students upon graduation. Knowing what it is like to work remotely as well as in the office can give students unique experiences that they can take with them to inform their professional spaces. This panel will directly address how we created accessible hyflex classrooms that are engaging and support student learning. We will explore the practices behind the hyflex model, see various deployments of the model via hardware, software, and pedagogy grounded in accessibility. Attendees will be able to see classroom activities and practices that they can take with them, along with a model of how to deploy the hyflex model in their own classrooms.



Click here to view on MediaSpace

Title: What About Student Voice in Department and Program Level Spaces?Presenters: Brittany Dillman (College of Education / CEPSE Department / MAET Program); Liz Owens Boltz (CED/CEPSE/MAET)Candace Robertson (CED/CEPSE/MAET); Morgan Abb (CED/CEPSE/MAET)Format: Workshop Description: In the spirit of diversity, equity, inclusion, and transparency, in 2019 the Counseling, Special Education, and School Psychology (CEPSE) Department in the College of Education created and launched a Student Advisory Council to elevate student voices and experiences. Each of the department’s program areas created a plan for recruitment and elections, responsibilities and bylaws. We then created processes for ongoing communication, relationships, and information sharing. Now, completing our third cycle with our processes established, our system is smooth, and our feedback loop present. How did we do this? What are the benefits? In our session, you’ll meet the departmental Student Advisory Council (SAC) representative from the Master of Arts in Educational Technology (MAET) program and the three program directors who have valued and worked with our student representatives over the last three years. We will share our stories and lessons learned. After we share our stories, we will help you create your plan of more inclusive student voices at the department and program levels. We will support you to create processes and procedures for establishing and maintaining a similar structure for your unit, sharing our frameworks and documentation.Click here to view on MediaSpace

Topic Area: Pandemic Pivot
Presented by: Carrie Hauser
Abstract:
COVID unexpectedly challenged us all to truly assess the needs of our students, what it means to have a campus environment, and how to develop that in a virtual space. The Michigan School of Psychology (MSP), a small graduate program in Farmington Hills, is known for having a very personal and connected environment. Faculty and staff know almost the entire campus by name and students are truly invested in each other’s lives. When the school changed to remote teaching in March, 2020, the Student Engagement Office went to work to figure out how to offer anything virtual that would create that same feeling of care and nurture that the campus typically provided. This presentation will discuss how MSP developed an online supportive culture, how student needs were assessed, and how creativity helped save the day. It will also cover programming ideas for faculty and staff members that can be implemented at all types of institutions and how to remain creative with programming in the face of adversity. The presentation will finally discuss how COVID will impact the future of student programming.
Session Resources:A PDF of Carrie's presentation can be accessed here. 

Topic Area: Pandemic Pivot
Presented by: Masani Shahnaz, Cassie Dresser-Briggs
Abstract:
The COVID-19 pandemic and subsequent shift to remote teaching posed a unique challenge to courses that included a hands-on or experiential component. Left with a choice, forgo the hands-on components or get creative, we chose to get creative and develop a DIY lab stream feasible and safe for students to experience from home. In addition to sharing the lessons learned during the development and implementation of our remote lab stream (“GoGreen”) and at-home laboratory kits (“SpartanDIYBio”), our roundtable discussion will be an opportunity to collaborate and (1) curate a list of innovative laboratory streams, (2) identify the strengths and address the shortcomings of each stream, and (3) discuss approaches to evaluate the impact of these novel lab streams on student learning. GoGreen: The “GoGreen” remote lab stream was designed for the introductory cell and molecular biology course at Lyman Briggs College. Inspired by a paper in Biochemistry and Molecular Biology Education we created “SpartanDIYBio” kits which allowed students to perform DNA extraction, PCR, and gel electrophoresis from home. Instead of extracting DNA with a series of laboratory-grade reagents, students used household ingredients, such as salt, meat tenderizer, and rubbing alcohol. Instead of using a multi-thousand dollar thermocycler for PCR, they used affordable sous-vide machines to regulate water bath temperatures. Furthermore, student research teams used these supplies to experimentally test a unique research question pertaining to backyard or commercial vegetable production (e.g. one group aimed to detect the presence of bacteria on vegetables packaged in plastic, glass, cardboard, and an eco-friendly alternative - cornhusks).

While her academic home is chemistry and her funding was through engineering, Olivia had a broad scope. Her focus was on women graduate students in STEM fields. Her end project resulted in a collaboration with the Academic Women’s Forum and the establishment of graduate student-only dialogues after AWF events.

Topic Area: Student Success
Presented by: Jackie Heymann
Abstract:
This workshop will engage participants in critically reflecting on their classroom and co-curricular spaces, the neurotypical "norms" expected of students within those spaces, and the additional challenges experienced by neurodivergent students when those norms are enforced. Then, using the framework of the social and the social justice models of disability, participants will identify tangible action steps they can take to create spaces that are more welcoming of neurodivergent students.
Session Resources:
Presentation Slides (pptx)
ADHD & Autism Communication Learning Resources
ADHD

ADHD & Conversations: (Sandra, @theADHDgoodlife on IG)
ADHD & Masking: (Sandra, @theADHDgoodlife on IG)
ADHD Mind (Zoe, @ADHDactually on IG)
ADHD & Conversations (Zoe, @ADHDactually on IG)
Smilges, J. (2020). Bad Listeners. Retrieved from: https://cfshrc.org/article/bad-listeners

Autism

Tee on masking (Tee, @unmasked on IG)
Tee on autism and auditory processing disorder (Tee, @unmasked on IG)
On language and talking "professionally"(@autistictic on Twitter)
Eiza Wolfe on masking (@eizawolfe on TikTok)
Eiza Wolfe on neurodivergent listening (@autistictic on Twitter)
Brown, L. (2018). The Neurodiversity Movement Needs its Shoes Off and Fists Up. Retrieved from: https://www.autistichoya.com/2018/10/neurodiversity-needs-shoes-off-fists-up.html

Additional folks to learn from:

Cole (@semispeaking on Twitter)
Lydia X.Z. Brown (@autistichoya on Twitter)
Sandra (@theADHDgoodlife on Instagram)
Jess Rauchberg (@disabledpHd on Twitter)
Autistic Self Advocacy Network (@autselfadvocacy on Twitter)
Black Disability Collective (@blackdisability on Twitter)

"Being a part of the Learning Communities at MSU has been a wonderful experience. Within our community we have had the opportunity to share ideas, brainstorm solutions to challenges commonly faced, and expand our thinking with individuals from a wide variety of departments. I have deeply appreciated being a part of this new campus-wide community and having a space to connect with faculty and academic staff in similar positions to my own. Seeing what the other Learning Communities are doing has helped with inspiration for our own progress," said Mary-Anne Reid co-facilitator of the Sharing Process Improvement Tools in Undergraduate Internships and Experiential Education Learning Community. 
Learning Communities are self-organized, safe, and supportive spaces for faculty and academic staff to address complicated questions of curriculum and pedagogy. Michigan State University has supported these initiatives since 2004 and continues to do so through a funding program administered by the Academic Advancement Network in collaboration with the Hub for Innovation in Learning and Technology.
See what Learning Communities are available
 
Different Aims, Different Practices
Dr. Michael Lockett, the program Director, is quick to point out that the word “safe” is crucial to that statement of purpose, as it conveys the agency members and facilitators of Learning Communities enjoy. 
“Once a community is funded, our interventions in their work only take place at the most basic administrative level,” says Lockett. “It’s a space we designed to maximize autonomy and academic freedom.”
Learning Communities at MSU are free to propose their own topics and determine the structures that best support their interests. Accordingly, communities tend to vary greatly in their practices and topics. All communities, however, share three things in common: they meet at least eight times across the academic year, explore important educational themes, and welcome all members of MSU’s instructional staff, regardless of rank or discipline.
“We have approximately thirty communities running. That means approximately three hundred faculty members are contributing to and benefitting from the program.  Given that scale, there’s tremendous diversity in terms of topics and methods,” says Lockett. “Broadly defined, the conversations all connect back to ideas of education, teaching, and learning, but not necessarily in a formalized curricular context. We don’t limit their purview to credit-bearing courses at MSU and some communities are invested in educational topics that transcend this campus, or this country, or even this era.”
 
Dialogues Characterized by Freedom and Safety
Although many Learning Communities do not discuss fraught topics, some do.  “Because some groups explore topics related to critical pedagogy, they may require particular community structures,” says Lockett. “Which is to say the community is not closed but carefully defined.  All communities are inclusive. But the facilitators (those members responsible for the administration and protocol within the Community) determine the structure and it’s fair for them to ask their membership to commit to certain protocols.”
Some Communities only meet the required eight times during the academic year and encourage members to drop in or out at their discretion. Other Communities are working on highly complex questions of critical pedagogy, and require regular attendance, as the associated dialogues must be sustained and reflected upon. Ultimately, the facilitators decide the protocols for each Community. 
The conversations held in the Learning Communities might also involve very personal pedagogical experiences; those kinds of conversations require time, trust, and a sense of open inquiry to make the dialogue supportive and generative. The AAN strives to provide that atmosphere by respecting the autonomy of the facilitators and working diligently behind the scenes to design flexible administrative structures that can support diverse methods. Lockett says, “although it’s not necessarily their primary role, Learning Communities can be therapeutic spaces. There’s an emotional dimension to teaching, particularly in high-pressure contexts. These communities can become a place where people find support, where they can share and hopefully resolve some of the challenges they’re encountering, teacher-to-teacher.”
 
Why Learning Communities?
Variations on the Learning Communities program exist on many campuses. “Questions of curriculum and pedagogy are always complicated and often best addressed face-to-face,” says Lockett. “You can do a lot of important work through dialogue.  When colleagues get together to discuss curriculum and pedagogy, their conversations become nuanced and empathetic and situated in a way they can’t through other discursive forms.  They can also be highly creative and generative places where good ideas disseminate swiftly.”
 
Getting Involved
The Learning Communities at MSU grew over 150% last year, from 12 to 30 groups. Lockett credits the passion of the facilitators and the leadership of Drs. Grabill and Austin (Associate Provost for Teaching, Learning, and Technology, and Interim Associate Provost for Academic Staff Development, respectively).  He also applauds the work of his predecessor, Dr. Patricia Stewart, who advocated for the program’s continued existence and provided a vision of success. “We wouldn’t be seeing this level of engagement and success without Patti’s leadership and dedication to the program,” he says.
A full list of Learning Communities and the contact information of their facilitators is available below and on the Academic Advancement Network website, in addition to information on proposing new communities.
"As a co-facilitator of the ANS TLC the past few years, I have been impressed with our cohort’s desire to continue to become better educators. Our learning community focuses on presenting and supplying tools to our members that address their reported concerns of education, including but limited to instruction, assessment, and student engagement. Since the pandemic has rendered our instruction to be “survival mode”, the ANS TLC has reached out to provide tips and tricks to its members for better classroom experiences, in whatever platform is being used. We look forward to hosting monthly “Chitter-chatter What’s the Matter” discussions alongside our continual scaffolding of the ANS curriculum for the Fall 2020 semester." said Tasia Taxis, co-facilitator of the Department of Animal Science Teaching and Learning Community (ANS TLC) Learning Community.