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UCLIC Research Seminar Series
Title
Abstract
Technology continues to enrich our lives—we make extensive use of apps and websites to communicate, learn, play, socialize, and work. Digital designers must make these services accessible so as not to exclude a significant percentage of the population who have a disability. However, prior work demonstrates that often apps and websites are inaccessible. We need to take a broad look at all of the factors that can cause inaccessibility. For example, design software not warning about accessibility violations and companies adhering to a culture where the importance of product accessibility is dismissed as unimportant or too costly. In this talk, Dr. Tigwell will reflect on how current design guidelines, methods, and tools continue to fall short of adequately supporting digital designers in creating accessible content and what change is required to address this issue.
Biography
Dr. Garreth Tigwell is an Assistant Professor in the School of Information (iSchool), Golisano College of Computing and Information Sciences (GCCIS) at the Rochester Institute of Technology, where he is a member of the Center for Accessibility and Inclusion Research (CAIR) and the Ph.D. Department of Computing and Information Sciences. He studied at the University of Dundee where he received his PhD, an MSc (with distinction) in User Experience Engineering, and a BSc (Hons) in Psychology. His research interests cover design, accessibility, and human-computer interaction, and he primarily focuses on improving the accessibility of digital spaces for people with congenital, acquired, or situational impairments, through increasing the necessary support that will allow designers to improve the accessibility of their work for end-users. He has published at top-tier conferences and journals such as ACM ASSETS, ACM CHI, ACM CSCW, ACM DIS, and ACM Transactions on Accessible Computing (TACCESS).
Recent Publications
Nuanced Perspectives Toward Disability Simulations from Digital Designers, Blind, Low Vision, and Color Blind People. Garreth W. Tigwell.
https://dl.acm.org/doi/fullHtml/10.1145/3411764.3445620
Accessibility Across Borders. Garreth W. Tigwell, Kristen Shinohara, Laleh Nourian
https://arxiv.org/abs/2105.01488