The New Accessibility in Higher Education: Disrupting the System for an Inclusive Future

The commitment to accessibility serves as a catalyst for developing and implementing practices that prevent barriers and can better allow for inclusive participation with the world around us. Unfortunately, the importance of accessibility does not always equate with commitment and compliance. While there has been a slow-moving effort to increase accessibility, the global pandemic and several key social justice movements have spotlighted inaccessible content and systems.

The New Accessibility in Higher Education guides the reader through the various areas of higher education, detailing how barriers to access were identified and how accessibility was reimagined and improved through the perspectives of faculty, administrators, and students. The book considers the multidimensionality of accessibility and how postsecondary scholars and practitioners must reconsider how accessibility in postsecondary education is understood and achieved. It argues that higher education can no longer ignore issues of accessibility nor revert to previous, antiquated, and discriminatory policies that do not support the success of disabled students. The book not only spotlights what occurred during the COVID-19 pandemic and other recent key events but, instead, but also provides a roadmap for the continued integration of more accessible strategies within modern higher education.

Katherine C. Aquino is an associate professor in the Department of Administrative and Instructional Leadership and Associate Dean for Innovation and Partnerships in The School of Education at St. John’s University. She currently serves as editorial board member for the Journal of College Student Development and the Journal of Postsecondary Education and Disability. She received a B.S. in Psychology, MA in School Psychology, and a PhD in Higher Education Leadership, Management, and Policy. Katherine’s research focuses on disability and accessibility within the organizational environment.

Adam R. Lalor, is Vice President for Neurodiversity Research and Training at Landmark College. With nearly 20 years of experience in higher education administration, his research focuses on the transition of students with disabilities to and within higher education. Dr. Lalor is a frequent speaker at national conferences and has an extensive publication record. He has served in leadership positions within the Association on Higher Education and Disability, the Learning Disabilities Association of America, and the National Center for Learning Disabilities. He received his doctoral degree in Educational Psychology from the Neag School of Education at the University of Connecticut.