Access by Design: Building Courses Where Every Student Can Show Up and Succeed

Location

Founders Room

Start Date

9-3-2026 9:00 AM

About the Author

Dr. Laura Romeo is a higher education accessibility strategist and consultant who works with institutions nationally on WCAG 2.1 auditing, LMS course design, compliance training, and faculty professional development. She holds a PhD in Teacher Education and Learning Sciences from NC State University, with research focused on inclusive content design, assistive technology, and Universal Design for Learning. Before moving into higher education consulting, Dr. Romeo spent years in elementary education and curriculum development — and that practitioner background shapes everything she does. Her approach centers people over policy and practical strategy over abstract compliance frameworks.

Description

Higher education is at a turning point with digital accessibility. With ADA Title II updates bringing WCAG 2.1 compliance requirements to public institutions, the conversation is shifting and faculty are increasingly at the center of it. But compliance alone doesn't create access. That takes intentional design.

In this keynote, Dr. Laura Romeo makes the case that accessibility is one of the most meaningful things a faculty member can invest in, not because the law requires it, but because students deserve it. Drawing on her background as a classroom teacher, curriculum specialist, and higher education accessibility strategist, she brings a practitioner's perspective to what accessible course design actually looks like in practice and why it is inseparable from good teaching.

This session moves beyond policy language and checklists to ask a bigger question: what kind of educator do you want to be? Faculty will leave with a renewed sense of purpose, a clearer understanding of the landscape, and a mindset shift that makes accessibility feel less like a burden and more like an opportunity.

Learning Outcomes

By the end of this session, participants will be able to:

  • Articulate why accessibility is a teaching value, not just a compliance requirement
  • Recognize the gap between how institutions frame accessibility and what students actually experience
  • Connect accessible design to their own identity and practice as educators
  • Leave with a renewed sense of purpose and a clear understanding of why this moment in higher education matters

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Sep 3rd, 9:00 AM

Access by Design: Building Courses Where Every Student Can Show Up and Succeed

Founders Room

Higher education is at a turning point with digital accessibility. With ADA Title II updates bringing WCAG 2.1 compliance requirements to public institutions, the conversation is shifting and faculty are increasingly at the center of it. But compliance alone doesn't create access. That takes intentional design.

In this keynote, Dr. Laura Romeo makes the case that accessibility is one of the most meaningful things a faculty member can invest in, not because the law requires it, but because students deserve it. Drawing on her background as a classroom teacher, curriculum specialist, and higher education accessibility strategist, she brings a practitioner's perspective to what accessible course design actually looks like in practice and why it is inseparable from good teaching.

This session moves beyond policy language and checklists to ask a bigger question: what kind of educator do you want to be? Faculty will leave with a renewed sense of purpose, a clearer understanding of the landscape, and a mindset shift that makes accessibility feel less like a burden and more like an opportunity.