Virginia Higher Education Accessibility Partners, or VHEAP, was established in 2018 to promote collaboration and partnership between accessibility-focused professionals throughout the Commonwealth of Virginia. Looking at accessibility from a holistic perspective, events and resources supported and offered by VHEAP are broad, encouraging collaborative solutions. Our focus is on offering shared opportunities for those who are tasked with improving access to information and communications technology resources, those who focus on the built environment, and those who provide services for Virginians with disabilities. Our membership is comprised of individuals in higher education, public school systems, and executive branch offices reporting to the Governor.
Upcoming Events…
Summer 2023
Date TBD! We are bringing the UnConference back bigger than ever! Make plans now to head to the University of Virginia in Charlottesville. Although we had hoped to host this event in March, it just wasn’t possible. More information will be coming as plans finalize. Stay tuned!!
Need more info?
Please visit our Events page to access more information and resources for upcoming and past VHEAP events.
Latest News…
Through a combined effort of the VHEAP Captioning Committee, the Virginia Higher Education Procurement Consortium (VHEPC), and the University of Virginia (UVA), a new set of captioning agreements are now in place. Building on the initial work by George Mason University, these agreements offer advantageous pricing to participating state agencies, K-12 schools and districts, and post-secondary institutions.Services offered through the Initiative include live captioning (remote), live captioning (on-site), post-production captioning/transcription, and audio description.
We’ll get ’em next time!
HB 2207 did not pass through the House, defeated along party lines. You can download a list of delegates and how they voted from the 2023 VA Legislative Initiative page. The VHEAP Legislative & Governance Committee intends to continue working on these amendments and updates to current law so that another bill can be introduced next year. If you are interested in participating in this effort, send email to the VHEAP Board of Directors.
IT Security Folks Join the Accessibility Bandwagon
HECVAT 3.0x now includes accessibility language! (12/17/2021)
Interested in learning more about VHEAP?
- Membership in VHEAP is FREE and occurs any time you attend one of our events. You can also join by simply subscribing to our membership mailing list.
- For more information about the VHEAP organization, our goals, and mission, visit VHEAP Bylaws.
- For information on how to contact members of the Board of Directors, visit the About VHEAP section of this website.
Join Our VHEAP Membership Email List
VHEAP encourages the use of this list by professionals across the Commonwealth to discuss accessibility questions, solutions, and opportunities. We do not allow vendors to sell or promote any products or services through this list. To send email to the list you must be a member of the list. To send an email to the list, use vheap@virginia.edu
The VHEAP Board of Directors has the authority to unsubscribe any list member who is deemed inappropriate or shares/discusses inappropriate content. Be kind to each other in your discussions.
To Subscribe:
- Using your Web browser, navigate to UVA Sympa Lists: Subscribe VHEAP.
- Enter your primary email address (similar to mst3k@virginia.edu) and name in the fields provided.
- To confirm your identity, you will receive a confirmation email from SYMPA (sympa@virginia.edu) at the address provided.
- Follow the instructions and confirm your request to subscribe to the VHEAP discussion list.
To Unsubscribe:
- Using your Web browser, navigate to UVA Sympa Lists: Unsubscribe VHEAP.
- Enter your email address, select “Unsubscribe for list vheap” and confirm on the next screen.
- You will receive a confirmation email from SYMPA (sympa@virginia.edu) at the address provided.
- Follow the instructions and confirm your request to unsubscribe from the VHEAP discussion list.
