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Setting the Bar for Computer Access

Published in Maryland Today Morphic, a new computer operating system extension developed by iSchool researchers, includes an interface feature called the QuickStrip that improves accessibility by adjusting text size or spacing, reading text aloud and more. Information science major Meagan Griffith ’20 spends so much time peering at a computer for her studies that she […]

Faculty Spotlight: J. Bern Jordan, Assistant Research Scientist

Bern’s drive to foster and enhance accessibility technologies led him to his current role as an Assistant Research Scientist at our Trace Center. He transitioned to UMD in 2016 when the Trace Center moved to the UMD iSchool from the University of Wisconsin-Madison’s College of Engineering, where Bern obtained his Ph.D. in Biomedical Engineering. Bern […]

UMD’s Dr. Renee Hill is Recipient of the NFB Accessibility Inclusion Fellowship Award

The University of Maryland College of Information Studies (UMD iSchool) Principal Lecturer Dr. Renee Hill has been named a recipient of the prestigious 2020 Accessibility Inclusion Fellowship Award presented by the National Federation of the Blind (NFB). Through this award, Hill will work with the NFB to develop and enhance curriculum in the areas of accessibility, diversity, and inclusion at the […]

HCIM Students Mentor iSchool Undergraduates on Accessible and Inclusive Design

Master of Science in Human-Computer Interaction (HCIM) students from the University of Maryland College of Information Studies (UMD iSchool) had the unique opportunity to mentor iSchool undergraduates as part of a new initiative established by iSchool assistant professors Hernisa Kacorri and David Weintrop. The HCIM graduate students in Kacorri’s Inclusive Design course served as inclusive design […]

UMD’s Dr. Amanda Lazar Seeks Tech Solutions to Allow People with Dementia to Maintain Autonomy

In the U.S., the right to make decisions for ourselves is something that most people aren’t easily prepared to give up. However, when people lose physical or mental functions due to age or circumstance, they can be forced to give up autonomy if they are seen as no longer able to make their own decisions […]

Dr. Jonathan Lazar Receives the Inaugural Rachel Olivero Accessibility Innovation Award

Dr. Jonathan Lazar, professor in the College of Information Studies (UMD iSchool) at the University of Maryland, is the recipient of the inaugural Rachel Olivero Accessibility Innovation Award, presented by the National Federation of the Blind (NFB) of Maryland during its annual state convention on November 9th. Lazar was honored with this award for his […]

Amanda Lazar Shares Concerns about Healthcare AI for the Elderly and People with Disabilities

Hopes, concerns emerge on healthcare AI for the elderly and people with disabilities Original Story by Dave Pearson, May 22, 2019 AI in Healthcare Physicians considering new technology for their practices tend to ask one or more of four questions before moving ahead: Does it actually work? Will I get paid for it? What are the […]

Visualizing for the Non-Visual

Enabling the visually impaired to access charts on the web using deep learning Original Story by Niklas Elmqvist Sparks of Innovation: Stories from the HCIL The fact that visualization leverages the human visual system to convey data is not only inherent in the name “visualization” itself, it is also endemic to the discipline. A huge part […]

UMD iSchool Professor, Dr. Jonathan Lazar, Receives Google Faculty Research Award

Dr. Jonathan Lazar, UMD iSchool Professor, received a Google Faculty Research Award for the next academic year. Dr. Lazar’s Google faculty research award focuses on the development of new metrics for use in automated accessibility testing tools, for more accurately measuring web accessibility in large organizations. Dr. Lazar is involved in research and teaching in human-computer […]

USPS Kiosks Now Use Trace EZ Access Touch Screen Keypads

The new version of the United States Postal Service’s popular Automated Postal Center includes the updated EZ Access keypad developed by the Trace Center at the University of Maryland College of Information Studies (iSchool). The keypad, along with software techniques developed by Trace, makes it possible for people with low vision, blindness, physical and cognitive disabilities to use touchscreen-based […]

Updated Post Office Kiosks Use Trace EZ Access Keypad

The new version of the United States Postal Service’s popular Automated Postal Center includes the updated EZ Access keypad developed by the Trace Center. The keypad, along with software techniques developed by Trace, makes it possible for people with low vision, blindness, physical and cognitive disabilities to use touchscreen-based public systems. The original APC, which […]

$4.625 million R&D Grant on Inclusive Information & Communication Technology Awarded to Trace Center

The Trace Research & Development Center is the recipient of a $4.625 million, five-year Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center (RERC) grant from the National Institute on Disability, Independent Living, and Rehabilitation Research (link is external) (NIDILRR), part of the Administration for Community Living (link is external), U.S. Department of Health and Human Services (link is external). […]

GPII Unified Listing and DeveloperSpace Launched

Two key components of the Global Public Inclusive Infrastructure (GPII), DeveloperSpace and Unified Listing, are now available online. Both were developed as part of the Prosperity4all project and launched at the 2017 AAATE Congress in Sheffield, UK. The Trace Center collaborated in this effort and is now leading the development and pilot testing of the […]

Telecom RERC Real-Time Text Effort Culminates in FCC Adoption

On December 15, the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) amended its rules to allow phone companies to replace support for TTY with support for real-time text (RTT). This caps a 15 year effort led by the Rehabilitation Engineering Research Center on Telecommunications Access at the Trace Center and Gallaudet University. Adoption of RTT will make communication […]

Trace Center 45th Anniversary

Current and former students, staff, clients, colleagues, and friends gathered on July 8, 2016 at the UW Discovery Building and via teleconference to celebrate 45 years of work focused on technology and disability. David Kelso was recognized for his 43 years as the Trace Center’s technical director. Center Director Gregg Vanderheiden reviewed many of the […]