Collaboration between the library and Office of Student Disability Services. Document accessibility in higher education
| Pages | 117-126 |
| Date | 09 May 2016 |
| Published date | 09 May 2016 |
| DOI | https://doi.org/10.1108/DLP-09-2015-0016 |
| Author | Rebecca Arzola |
| Subject Matter | Library & information science,Librarianship/library management,Library technology,Records management & preservation,Information repositories |
Collaboration between the
library and Ofce of Student
Disability Services
Document accessibility in higher education
Rebecca Arzola
Lehman College, New York, New York, USA
Abstract
Purpose – The paper aims to discuss the relationship between interdepartmental stakeholders in
higher education and the information identied as a result of collaborations. It proposes that
collaborations can help clarify issues to then advocate for them.
Design/methodology/approach – The paper opted for a naturalistic case study design, gathering
direct and participant observation of interdepartmental collaborations including 1 Student Share, 12
one-hour collaborative sessions and 1 Accessibility Conference.
Findings – The paper provides observed insight about student needs to have documents that are
accessible for assistive technologies to recognize and read how change is brought about during internal
brand building. It suggests that successful accessibility implementation in higher education calls for
collaboration with stakeholders.
Originality/value – This paper shows how a collaboration between the library and Student Disability
Services can work to understand document accessibility issues. It also reveals that students with
disabilities are adept with current mobile trends and technology, and need to be, for productivity in
college. It will be valuable to librarians, faculty, staff and other technology stakeholders that work with
students with disabilities.
Keywords Collaboration, Accessibility, Higher education, Library, Student affairs,
Students with disabilities
Paper type Research paper
Introduction
Academic librarians and student affairs professionals support and contribute to the
development of student learning in higher education. They each initiate collaborative
relationships with academic faculty to support students. They are a natural t as
partners to bridge academic and social experiences for students. “By their very nature,
partnerships require educators from both inside and outside the classroom to
collaborate to consider students’ educational experiences” (Whitt et al., 2008). On the
25th anniversary year of the Americans with Disabilities Act in 2015, two successful
collaborations were facilitated between the Leonard Lief Library and The Ofce of
Student Disability Services at Lehman College, City University of New York (CUNY). As
This work was supported by the Leonard Lief Library and Ofce of Student Disability Services
and Veterans and Military Affairs, Lehman College. Many thanks to Lauren McCarthy, Stephanie
Arriola, William Medina, Justin Perez, Sandy Holy, Merrill Parra, Kenneth Schlesinger and the
students from the ATC who shared their opinions, experiences and recommendations.
The current issue and full text archive of this journal is available on Emerald Insight at:
www.emeraldinsight.com/2059-5816.htm
Ofce of
Student
Disability
Services
117
Received 5 September 2015
Revised 6 November 2015
Accepted 7 November 2015
DigitalLibrary Perspectives
Vol.32 No. 2, 2016
pp.117-126
©Emerald Group Publishing Limited
2059-5816
DOI 10.1108/DLP-09-2015-0016
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