In this webinar, participants will get a broad introduction to types of disabilities as well as a brief examination of disability theory. There will also be a longer discussion about how Universal Design can be used to increase accessibility in services, spaces, and interactions, with an emphasis on including accessibility in the planning stages rather than as a value add or required retrofit.

About the Speaker: JJ Pionke (he/him/his) is the Applied Health Sciences Librarian and an Assistant Professor at the University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign. He has a BA in English and History and a MA in English from Truman State University. He got his MSI at the University of Michigan where he spent his internship in Singapore and Uganda. He is currently on the Journal of the Medical Library Association Editorial Board. His research focuses on disability and accessibility in libraries.