Cornellians with print disabilities have new tools to independently access and engage with printed material. The university has purchased a campuswide license for SensusAccess, an online service that provides users with accessible copies of documents they upload.

SensusAccess can, for example, convert a text document into an audio file, or create a file that can be printed in Braille or output through a refreshable Braille display (a mechanical device that arranges small pins to create Braille characters). Other possibilities include extracting the text of PowerPoint files or converting image-based PDFs into a form that can be accessed by a screen reader. Users can enter a URL and obtain an accessible version of a webpage.

The service is also available to faculty and staff to make it easy to create accessible course material. They can upload documents and use the service to convert them to accessible versions to put on Blackboard or distribute in class.

Instructions for using SensusAccess, and a link to begin using it, are available at http://accessibility.cornell.edu/sensusaccess-intro.cfm. The service can be used by anyone with a Cornell NetID. An information session will be held from 9 to 10:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 2, in the Stone Computing Lab in Mann Library.

“This is a next step in digital accessibility,” said Cyrus Hamilton, assistant director of Student Disability Services, who emphasized the idea that the university continues to further its “Any Person … Any Study” mission as applied to students with disabilities.

“This service does not replace any accommodations a student receives from our office,” he added, but rather, enhances their ability to independently get course material in an accessible format.

Even when course material is provided in accessible format, he said, new material may come up along the way. “A large part of learning and teaching is how things change rapidly,” he explained. An instructor might want to incorporate current events into the class with a quick handout. A student can now scan the print handout and upload the file to SensusAccess to get an accessible version. Or even take a high-quality picture with a smartphone and send it to the service.

Students registered with SDS receive a variety of accommodations, such as receiving accessible course material, including textbooks, or services to enable deaf/hard of hearing students to participate fully in lectures.

“What I hope will come out of this is that people will begin having conversations about what it means to create accessible content, and how that translates to today’s diverse learner,” Hamilton said.