Digital Accessibility Specialist

Posting Summary:
The Office of Access and Services for Individuals with Disabilities (OASID) at Teachers College, Columbia University (TC) is seeking a Digital Accessibility Specialist to ensure digital accessibility at TC and provide support services for faculty, staff, and students to ensure that individuals with disabilities can fully participate in the Teachers College community.

Job Summary/Basic Function:
Reporting to the Associate Director of Digital Accessibility and Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services, the Digital Accessibility Specialist is responsible for providing guidance and services to ensure digital access for individuals with disabilities at Teachers College.

Oversee accessibility audits and assessment of Teachers College digital applications/software to ensure that teachers College’s digital accessibility standards for campus-wide use are met.
Oversee all technology-related accommodations for students and employees including, but not limited to, managing and maintaining assistive technologies; researching, recommending, and training on technologies

Technical Responsibilities

Research, evaluate, recommend and maintain College-wide digital applications, websites, and software to support accommodations, accessibility, and inclusion.
Complete accessibility testing through the use of the various OS, assistive technologies, and other techniques.
Develop/maintain expertise in assistive technologies including but not limited to: Kurzweil, Dragon Naturally Speaking, Sonocent, JAWS, and ZoomText.
Provide one-on-one technical support to students and employees with disability technology-related accommodations.
In collaboration with the Associate Director of Digital Accessibility and Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services and Associate Director, manage OASID materials conversion (text to alternative format), note-taking technologies, processes for acquiring and creating captioned videos, transcripts of videos, and remote real-time transcription.

Guidance Responsibilities

Serve as accessibility subject matter expert for the College in the area of digital accessibility, accessibility of applications on various platforms, and creating accessible websites and content.
Advise prospective and current students and employees regarding accessibility services, technology, and related resources both within and outside of the College.
Collaborate with Associate Director of Digital Accessibility and Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services to define and carry out ways to keep digital accessibility at the forefront of digital efforts and teach best practices to those working with digital applications.
As needed, provide digital accessibility support and guidance to student groups, organizations, and event planners.

Other Responsibilities

Develop, revise and maintain accessible content on the OASID website, including information about policies, processes, training, events, programming, etc.
Stay abreast of best practices in digital accessibility, including updating web pages and adding new resources in a timely and accessible way.
Participate in ongoing professional development and training to keep current in the disability services and digital accessibility fields and advise on proactive approaches to service and accommodation delivery.
Support with development and delivery of training on digital accessibility, accessible content, and assistive technologies for students, faculty, and staff.
Assist with developing training materials such as documents, PowerPoints, videos, etc. that can be widely distributed to the College community.
Other duties as assigned

Minimum Qualifications

Bachelor's degree in a related discipline
Minimum of three years of related experience including a minimum of 1-year experience focused on Digital Accessibility and Assistive Technology
Familiarity with assistive technologies, accessibility testing, relevant legal requirements, technical standards, and best practices.
Strong knowledge and understanding of assistive technologies for persons with disabilities, including /familiarity with Kurzweil, Dragon Naturally Speaking, JAWS, and ZoomText.
Proficiency with a wide array of assistive technologies and basic computer programs such as Microsoft Outlook, Word, Excel, PowerPoint, Zoom as well as G-Suite.
Knowledge of accessibility auditing and testing tools and strategies.
Strong web accessibility skills, including knowledge of online access issues and means for addressing them.

Preferred Qualifications

Master's degree or certification-related discipline.
Minimum one year working in a higher education disability service setting.
Experience preferred in managing assistive technologies, including alternate format conversions, databases, and websites for disability services, preferably in a higher education setting.
Working knowledge of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) of 1990, its 2008 amendments, and WCAG 2.1 as well as other appropriate laws pertaining to higher education and disabilities.
Proficient in presenting and speaking publicly about digital accessibility to groups of individuals.
Familiarity with inclusive and universal design for learning (UDL) pedagogies and experience researching, evaluating, and troubleshooting technology tools are strongly desired.
Experience working with Accommodate case management database software and Blackboard Ally.

Salary Range

$65,000-$70,000

Competitive Compensation and Benefits

The salary range reflects the College’s good faith and reasonable estimate of the compensation for the position at the time of the job posting. Salary decisions are dependent on several factors including but not limited to market and organizational considerations, experience, and qualifications of a selected candidate as well as internal and external equity.

Our benefits contribute significantly to the total compensation package that includes medical, dental, vision, and supplemental insurance plans; flexible and hybrid work schedules; tuition remission; life insurance; short and long-term disability insurance; an exceptional employer retirement matching program; health savings accounts (HSA), flexible spending accounts (FSA), Public Service Loan Forgiveness eligibility, and a robust Employee Assistance Program (EAP).

If you would like to request any disability related accommodations to complete the job application or to participate in the interview process, please email:oasid@tc.columbia.edu.

Work Modality

Hybrid

OASID generally operates in a hybrid-flex environment. Staff is asked to live within a 150-mile radius of NYC. The office is open to candidates who live beyond this radius based on considerations of the talent market and the responsibilities and duties expected of each position. In instances where talent lives beyond the 150-mile radius, consideration will be given to candidates who live in the states where the College maintains employment registration.

Equal Employment Opportunity

Teachers College is committed to fostering a diverse and inclusive academic community and to providing equal opportunity in employment. All qualified applicants will receive consideration regardless of race, color, sex (including pregnancy, gender identity or gender expression), religion, creed, national origin, age, citizenship, disability, marital status, sexual orientation, veteran status, or any other legally protected status.