VHEAP members across the Commonwealth are providing excellence service, creating ingenious solutions for their clientele, and offering exceptional guidance to peers across the K-12, Higher Ed, and State Agencies landscapes.
The VHEAP Board of Directors would like to recognize this very good work by asking our membership to nominate worthy individuals or groups for the following awards:
- Trail Blazer Award
- This award personifies an individual who is an outstanding example of a mentor or leader who helped “blaze a trail” in accessibility.
- Spotlight Award
- An individual or group who goes above and beyond and excels in their sphere.
- Excellence Award
- Highlighting an individual or group who has shown exceptional leadership, vision, teamwork or contribution to the greater accessibility efforts across the Commonwealth. The recipient(s) of this award will embody the mission of VHEAP:
VHEAP Organizational Mission Statement The Virginia Higher Education Accessibility Partners group (VHEAP) is comprised of professionals within the disability and accessibility fields and directed by an elected Board of Directors. Though focused primarily on higher education, the organization invites participation and membership from all areas within the Commonwealth who work to advance accessibility across all levels of education, and from various state agencies whose mission is to advocate and provide support for individuals with disabilities. The broad mission of VHEAP is to provide guidance and serve an advocacy role to advance greater inclusion and participation of individuals with disabilities in education and employment opportunities throughout the Commonwealth.
The Nomination Process
The nomination process will begin in the May/June time frame each year. Information on how to submit nominations will be made available through the VHEAP membership email address: vheap@virginia.edu
Voting Process
The current VHEAP Board of Directors will review the nominations and make each award based upon the information submitted through the nomination process.
If no nominees are submitted, or none of the nominees meet the stated criteria for the selected award as determined by the BOD, the award will not be given.
Award Presentations
Award winners will be notified after the voting has concluded with the awards being presented at the UnConference or other VHEAP event.
For additional information, contact the VHEAP Board of Directors at info@vheap.org.
Award Recipients
2024 Excellence Award: Virginia Tech Technology-Enhanced Learning and Online Strategies
I am thrilled to nominate the Keep Calm and Choose Accessible Learning Materials (Keep C.A.L.M.) campaign developed by the Technology-Enhanced Learning and Online Strategies (TLOS) group at Virginia Tech. This project has proven to be a blueprint for peers across the country. Starting in 2018, the Keep C.A.L.M campaign presented the creation of accessible content in very digestible chunks and promoted the work through an inventive promotional plan. This campaign has been adopted by other institutions nation-wide. Two of the challenges we in the accessibility field face are creating awareness and helping folks understand the importance of creating accessible materials. I have had the pleasure of attending presentations by Mark Nichols where he explains the campaign, shares successes and challenges, and offers assistance to bring this campaign to other campuses. He is one of the best speakers and workshop leaders I have encountered. With his engaging style, he helps others understand the benefits of the Keep C.A.L.M campaign and how it can be adopted in other venues. I am delighted to submit my nomination of the Virginia Tech TLOS group and Mark Nichols for the VHEAP Board of Directors Excellence Award.
Pictured above are (left to right):
- Quinn Warnick – Assistant Vice Provost for Technology Enhanced Learning
- Dale Pike – Associate Vice Provost for Technology Enhanced Learning
- Cindy Moore – Graphics and Media Designer in TLOS
- Rob Fentress – TLOS: Accessible Technologies
- Scott Chandler – TLOS: Accessible Technologies
- Mark Nichols – TLOS: Accessible Technologies
- Sunayana Mishra – TLOS: Accessible Technologies
- Pearl Xie – TLOS: Accessible Technologies
2024 Spotlight Award: Emily Salmon, SCHEV
Emily is a consummate colleague and leader. She was tasked with implementing SCHEV’s goal of attaining equity and inclusion for students with disabilities in higher education. Acknowledging that this was a realm outside her usual areas of expertise, she has been highly respectful and referential towards the people whom she considers content experts in this field. Emily has spearheaded the Disability Access to Higher Education Advisory group, welcoming many different stakeholders and their perceptions and opinions. It is inspiring to watch Emily absorb the input and feedback she receives and turn it into concrete, actionable steps. As a result of her leadership, the committee has created Accommodations Guidelines for Virginia’s colleges and universities and a tool to measure attainment of those guidelines. Emily has been instrumental in obtaining the attention and support of the Department of Justice for disability service providers and is guiding a study of the colleges’ documentation policies that was mandated by Virginia’s governor. Our profession is fortunate to have Emily on our team.
2023 Spotlight Award: Dr. Scott Chandler, Virginia Tech
We are pleased to endorse the nomination of Dr. Scott Chandler (who goes by Chandler) for the 2023 VHEAP Spotlight Award. In his recent role as the Section 508 Compliance and Digital Accessibility Officer, Chandler has demonstrated an unwavering commitment to improving digital accessibility across our university and has been instrumental in leading numerous collaborations and projects aimed at ensuring that all students, faculty, and staff can access and utilize our digital resources. Chandler has a thorough understanding of the technical aspects of digital accessibility, including the relevant standards, guidelines, and technologies involved. This knowledge enables him to provide informed recommendations for how to design and develop digital resources that are accessible to all individuals. Moreover, Chandler has a comprehensive understanding of the operations of our university, including the organizational structure, policies, and procedures. This expertise allows Chandler to navigate complex institutional processes and to collaborate effectively with stakeholders across all areas of our institution to drive best practices forward. Chandler is deeply involved in several committees and working groups aimed at improving accessibility and inclusivity at Virginia Tech. These include the Campus Accessibility Working Group and Digital Accessibility Subcommittee, the Accessibility Network at VT, the Ensemble (CMS) working group, and the IT procurement working group, among others. Through these committees, Chandler has been able to advocate for the needs of individuals with disabilities and has helped to ensure that digital accessibility remains a top priority across all areas of our institution. Chandler has a strong commitment to ongoing learning and professional development. He always stays on top of emerging trends and best practices in the field of digital accessibility and constantly seeks out new information and resources that can help VT improve accessibility efforts. Chandler is a regular attendee at conferences and workshops related to accessibility and inclusivity and has been able to share this knowledge with others across our institution. It’s also worth noting that Chandler regularly seeks feedback from colleagues and stakeholders and is always looking for ways to improve his own skills and expertise. This enthusiasm for personal growth and development is a testament to Chandler’s leadership abilities. Chandler’s tireless dedication, collaborative spirit, and deep technical expertise make him an invaluable team member at Virginia Tech. For this reason, we believe Chandler would be an outstanding choice for the 2023 VHEAP Spotlight Award.
2023 Spotlight Award: Lori Kressin, University of Virginia
Lori Kressin, the Coordinator of Academic Accessibility at the University of Virginia, has been honored with the 2023 Spotlight Award. It was through Lori’s persistence and dedication that VHEAP came to be – through co-founding the organization, serving as the first chair of the Board of Directors, and providing the vision that crafted VHEAP into the organization it is today.
Her tireless work, creative initiatives and wonderful humor has been a sustaining force of VHEAP. Although she has officially moved off of the Board of Directors, her impact will remain!
Of the many initiatives that she has worked on during her time in VHEAP, here are some highlights of her most recent efforts:
- HB2207 – Lori’s efforts in working with Delegate Tran and her team to advance a final bill (i.e., HB2207) to a final vote was way above and beyond what we all signed up for. We would not have gotten as far as we did without her leadership and willingness to lend many extra hours, emailing Tran’s team, working with the VHEAP Governance Team, and calling around to leadership at UVA.
- ACCS as a Guidepost – Lori’s knowledge of how ACCS started and grew has been a guidepost in how we are currently modeling VHEAP.
- Captioning Contracts – Lori did an excellent job putting in place the existing captioning contracts. Her communication throughout the process, in committee, with vendors, and in updating VHEAP’s web resources to make sure everything is transparent has been remarkable!