Among the highlights for our Center this summer was members’ participation in the Conference for Research on Equitable and Sustained Participation in Engineering, Computing, and Technology (RESPECT) at the New Jersey Institute of Technology. Mentoring Program Coordinator Carla Strickland served as program co-chair, and post-doctoral associate Dr. Alexis Cobo, served as accessibility chair on the organizing committee. The conference theme, “Designing an Accessible Future for Equitable Computer Science,” directly aligns with CS Everyone’s mission to meaningfully include all in computer science education.
Several research papers by our members were accepted to the conference for publication and presentation. Doctoral candidate Andrew Bennett and Center Director Maya Israel presented their paper, “Teachers’ POUR Analysis of Computer Science Technologies” which earned an exemplary paper award in the Research Paper track. Drs. Jessica Williams , Joanne Barrett, Maya Israel, and colleague Debra Kelly Thomas from Broward County Public Schools presented their paper, “Breaking Barriers to Inclusion: Empowering Special Education Teachers with CS Professional Learning.” This paper promoted research aimed at better understanding CS learning for special education teachers, enabling them to provide more effective scaffolded supports for their students and classroom environments. It also received an exemplary paper award in the Perspectives Paper track.
Each day, plenary sessions featuring invited speakers engaged attendees in discussions focused on designing with accessibility, particularly timely as July marks the 50th anniversary of the Individuals with Disabilities Education Act (IDEA). Dr. Alexis Cobo, alongside colleague Terrill Thompson from the University of Washington, delivered a plenary talk titled, “Moving Beyond Mandate: A Conversation on Accessibility in Higher Education.” Their session explored the process of ensuring accessible digital proceedings by requiring all authors to follow accessibility guidelines, discussed challenges in achieving this goal, and fostered a conversation about sustaining accessibility within the broader CS community at conferences and beyond.
