Web Science and Digital Libraries Research Group

  Figure 1: A virtual slide from Old Dominion University's GAAD 2025 event highlights "Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD)" during a hybrid session on inclusive design. Celebrating Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) , Old Dominion University Libraries successfully hosted " Accessible by Design: Creating Inclusive PDFs Using Adobe Acrobat" in collaboration with the recently established Employees with Disabilities Association ( EWDA ). Led by Dr. Brett Cook-Snell , this hybrid workshop brought together faculty, staff, and students both in person at Perry Library Room 1306 and online via Zoom for a thorough investigation of digital accessibility that went far beyond technical training to address fundamental questions about inclusion, ableism, and universal design. I attended the session virtually via Zoom, and in this blog post, I will share my firsthand experience and reflections. Since its launch in 2021 (Figure 2), when the first event was planne...

Figure: Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) banner Introduction Global Accessibility Awareness Day (GAAD) is a time to reflect, celebrate, and renew our commitment to making sure everyone can access learning and information without physical or digital barriers. This special day highlights the progress and challenges in making digital spaces accessible to everyone, including those with disabilities.  Since 2021, Old Dominion University Libraries have celebrated GAAD with presentations from our Computer Science faculty. This year, ODU Libraries welcome guest speakers Timothy Hackman , dean of the University Libraries , Courtney Gipson, director of ODU’s Office of Educational Accessibility , and Vikas Ashok , Assistant Professor in the Department of Computer Science .Professor Ashok, who leads the Accessible Computing Lab at ODU, has 12 years of experience in accessible computing research. His lab focuses on making computing devices more accessible for people with visual dis...