Accessibility at Harold Washington College is largely driven by the Access Center. Their Mission Statement follows:
"The Harold Washington College Access Center exists to ensure equal accessibility be provided to all our students needing academic accommodations. In accordance with the ADA Amendments Act of 2008, we foster a more inclusive learning environment through specific service provisions in order for our students to gain equal access to our college’s programs and activities. This is accomplished by implementing appropriate accommodations at the beginning of every semester, training in the use of adaptive programs/technologies, and conversion of all academic materials to requested alternative formats. By eliminating potential barriers we continue to empower our students with disabilities in achieving their current and future educational goals.
The Access Center (AC) serves as City Colleges of Chicago's point of contact and coordination for students with disabilities. The DAC provides a wide range of services and assistance to ensure students with disabilities are able to achieve their maximum potential."
The Access Center's services include:
Powell, William. "Access Center," HWC, https://www.ccc.edu/colleges/washington/departments/Pages/Access-Center.aspx. Accessed 13 April 2023.
While the Access Center spearheads accessibility issues around campus, they are widely supported.
In 2014, there was a shift towards updating furniture for ease of use. Per the Chancellor's Recommendation for accessible classroom furniture, "The replacement of existing tablet chairs in classrooms with more modern furniture will help create dynamic learning environments that reflect our commitment to ensure student success. Selected during the District Wide survey and standardization process, the new furnishings meet the needs of the CCC students, faculty, and staff. The universal design of the furniture accommodates the diversity of our student body, promotes collaboration, and is more flexible and comfortable" (BOT 2).
Additionally, and more recently, at the 2021 Innovate Conference the College hosted training on Universal Design to help guide faculty and staff in creating and maintaining online formats that are accessible to all students.
The HWC library also supports the Access Center by hosting machine readers and computers with specialized software to assist students.
Board of Trustees of Community College District No. 508. "Classroom Furniture Replacement," CCC, 1 May 2014, https://apps.ccc.edu/brpublic/2014/may/32277.pdf. Accessed 13 April 2014.