Skip to Main Content

Library Accessibility Alliance Standing Committee (LAASC)

This guide is designed for and to provide information on the Library Accessibility Alliance Standing Committee, a part of FLVC's Members Council for Library Services..

Agenda and Minutes for 2025

No Meeting Jan 2025

February 5, 2025 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Richard)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Kristina)
  • Other Business
    • SUNY Interest in Joining LAA
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items

 

MINUTES

Meeting Purpose
Discuss updates from LAA committees and share information about SUNY's interest in joining the LAA.

Key Takeaways

  • LAA committees are actively working on accessibility initiatives, including webinars, vendor questionnaires, and newsletters
  • SUNY has expressed interest in joining the LAA; they will be invited to the March meeting
  • Vendors are showing increased responsiveness to VPAT requests and accessibility roadmaps
  • Discussion on controlled digital lending (CDL) and Adobe accessibility tools for document scanning

Topics
Committee Updates

  • Training and Professional Development:

Resumed webinar hosting with AI Media for sign language interpreting and captioning
Upcoming webinar tomorrow; aiming for monthly webinars
Committee members have specific roles (e.g., Q&A monitoring)

Vendor Relations:

Working on accessibility compliance and product questionnaire for vendors
Addressing ADA Title II changes
Finalizing questions in February meeting

  • Communications and Outreach:

Newsletter planned for "coming months"
Received document with edits from Sarah (William and Mary)

  • Accessibility and DEI
    • Accessibility being added to DEI policies on a federal level
    • Consensus: Underlying laws still apply even if federal funding support is removed
    • State laws often include accessibility requirements
    • Libraries committed to accessibility
  • SUNY Interest in LAA

SUNY reached out to learn about LAA membership
Will be invited to March meeting
Topics of interest: time commitment, benefits, member experiences

  • Vendor Accessibility Progress

Increased vendor responsiveness to VPAT requests
More up-to-date VPATs and accessibility roadmaps available
Some vendors require direct contact for information

  • Controlled Digital Lending (CDL)

FGCU starting CDL project, focusing on scanning and machine readability
Seeking resources on making scanned documents fully accessible (e.g., adding alt text, proper framework)
Discussion on Adobe Accessibility tools and potential training needs

  • Anatomy Visualization Resources

Discussion on Primal Pictures vs. Visible Body databases
Visible Body noted as expensive but compliant
Primal Pictures more affordable but less clear on VPAT information
Brief mention of VR programs for anatomy classes

  • Next Steps

Invite SUNY representatives to March LAA meeting
Consider presenting or writing articles about LAA efforts and experiences
Explore potential Adobe Accessibility tool training for member institutions
Continue monitoring federal and state accessibility requirements

 

March 5, 2025 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Richard)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Kristina)
  • Other Business
    • SUNY Interest in Joining LAA
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

Minutes

 

Meeting Purpose

To discuss updates from various Library Accessibility Alliance (LAA) committees and explore potential membership for SUNY.

Key Takeaways

  • LAA is considering structural changes, including a new part-time position for financial management and community engagement
  • SUNY representatives expressed interest in potentially joining LAA, citing benefits of broader impact and shared expertise
  • LAA committees continue work on accessibility initiatives, vendor relations, and professional development

Topics

LAA Structural Updates

  • Steering committee discussing potential separation of program and financial commitments in MOU
  • Considering hiring part-time treasurer/community manager to handle finances and determine annual costs
  • Exploring prorated costs for new consortia joining mid-year

SUNY Interest in LAA Membership

  • SUNY representatives (Carli Spina and Maureen Clements) inquired about joining process and requirements
  • SUNY has 66 campuses with existing system-wide library accessibility groups
  • Main interests: expanding network, sharing expertise, and increasing impact on accessibility initiatives
  • Questions raised about legal implications, technical requirements, and commitment expectations

Committee Updates

  • Vendor Relations Committee: Finalized accessibility commitment and product complaint questionnaire
  • Training and Professional Development: Planning future events, working on post-production tasks for recent webinars
  • Communications and Outreach: Seeking more active engagement opportunities

LAA Membership Process

  • Requires signing an MOU (legal status varies by institution)
  • Typically join at the start of fiscal year (July 1st), but exceptions possible
  • Onboarding process includes welcome training for new representatives
  • Minimum of 6 people expected to volunteer for committee work

April 2nd 2025 @3pm 

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Richard)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Kristina)
  • Other Business
    • Zoom License? Amber

  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

Minutes: 

Meeting Purpose
To discuss updates, committee work, and address ongoing matters for the FLVC LAA Standing Committee.

Key Takeaways

  • Three committee members' terms (Amber, Krista, Rachel) end in June 2025; reapplication necessary for continuation
  • Successful implementation of webinar workflow, including recording, uploading, and accessibility features
  • Need for broader access to Zoom licenses for committee members to facilitate larger webinars
  • Opportunity for committee member to co-present with Rebel on ADA regulation at an upcoming consortium

Topics
Committee Membership Updates

  • Three members' terms (Amber, Krista, Rachel) ending June 2025
  • Amber plans to reapply; will email others to confirm information
  • Christina's term corrected to 2026 (previously listed as 2025)
  • Several members' terms ending in 2025

Subcommittee Progress

LA Training and PD subcommittee:

  • Second successful webinar completed
  • Established workflow for recording, uploading to DTAA Vimeo
  • Amber gained permissions to upload videos to LA website
  • Successfully booked AI media sign language translator and captioner
  • Now better positioned for consistent, professional content delivery

MCLS Meeting Report

  • Susan attended; no presentation required
  • No questions asked about the committee's work
  • Described as a "fly on the wall" experience

Webinar Facilitation Challenges

  • Limited number of committee members able to set up large Zoom meetings
  • Explored possibility of using FLVC Zoom license (not available)

Suggestions:

  • Check with BTAA facilitator (Elaine) for potential license access
  • Consider equipping future LAA community manager with necessary license
  • Raise issue at next LAA steering committee meeting for broader input

Outreach and Collaboration

  • New survey from University of South Carolina shared
  • Susan distributed QR codes to librarians and adaptive services department
  • Amber to forward survey information to FLVC ALL Listsserv

Presentation Opportunity
Rebel seeking co-presenter for ADA regulation presentation at consortium

Online presentation in June (exact date TBC)

Slides and notes already prepared from previous presentation with Amber

Susan expressed interest; Rebel to send more information

Next Steps

  • Amber to email members with expiring terms (Krista, Rachel) to confirm information
  • Amber to forward University of South Carolina survey to LIVES mailing list
  • Rebel to send presentation details to Susan for potential co-presenting opportunity
  • Raise issue of Zoom license access at next LAA steering committee meeting
  • Continue efforts to streamline webinar facilitation and expand committee capabilities

 

No May Meeting

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)- No Updates
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)- No Updates
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)- The committee is working to petition the LAA to purchase a Zoom license to facilitate smooth workflows for webinars. 
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)- No Updates
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)- We have received feedback from the Steering Committee about the Accessibility Commitment and Product Compliance questionnaire. We are meeting today to discuss and incorporate feedback. Finally, we have established the list of vendors for a focus group to test the questionnaire: Elsevier, Sage, ProQuest, EBSCO, and JSTOR.
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Richard)- No Updates
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Kristina)- No Updates

Agenda & Minutes for 2024

January 3, 2024 Agenda

  • Standing Committee Resources
  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee 
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Kristina)
    • Library Assessment Standing Committee (Kristina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

February 7, 2024 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Lee)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Christina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

March 6, 2024 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Lee)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Christina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

April 3, 2024 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Lee)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Christina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

May 1, 2024 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Lee)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Christina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

June 5, 2024 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Lee)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Christina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

July 3, 2024 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Lee)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Christina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

August 7, 2024 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Lee)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Christina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items

 

August 7th 2024 Minutes

Amber Arroyo elected as new chair 

Rebel announces that Amber has been nominated and elected as the new chair of the FLVC LAA Standing Committee. The group agrees to move forward with Amber as the new chair.

Seeking a new secretary

Rebel notes that the committee still needs to elect a new secretary, and encourages the group to volunteer for this role, which could lead to the chair position in the future.

Updates from committee members 

The group takes turns providing updates on their work and activities related to the Library Accessibility Alliance (LAA):

  - Amber discusses her role on the LAA Training Subcommittee, including the transition to new leadership and ongoing work to finalize vendors and speakers.

  - Susan shares that she is working with her institution's legal counsel on ADA 2.0 compliance and licensing terms, and plans to attend the upcoming webinar on legal updates.

  - Krista provides an update on the Vendor Relations Committee's work on a "dear vendor" letter, which is being finalized and will be distributed.

Coordinating LAA's response to legal updates 

Rebel discusses LAA's plan to present on the recent Title II regulation changes at the upcoming FLVC Members Council meeting in September. She encourages the group to volunteer to help with the presentation, and notes that Amy Drayer may be a good resource to involve given her expertise on the topic.

Ongoing committee membership and reporting 

Rebel addresses some outstanding membership and reporting items, including the need to extend Susan's term on the committee and coordinate with Amber and Christina on providing an update to the FLVC Members Council at the September Quarterly Meeting.

Sharing resources and tools

Rebel invites the group to share any accessibility-related resources, guides, or tools they have found useful, so they can be added to the LAA LibGuide to benefit the broader community.

 

Contact Amber.Arroyo@fscj.edu to access recording above.

September 4, 2024 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Lee)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Christina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

Sept 4th 2024 Meeting Minutes

ADA Title II Update Presentation

Amber and Rebel are preparing a presentation on the ADA Title II updates to be given at the NCLS meeting on 9/5. The presentation will cover important information about the new accessibility requirements, which many smaller institutions may not be aware of yet. They plan to share the slides with the group afterwards to help spread awareness.

LAA Training Subcommittee Update

The LAA Training Subcommittee is meeting with a vendor, SignGlasses, to demo their services for hosting large webinars with accessibility features like sign language translation and captioning. The subcommittee will practice their roles in running these webinars to develop best practices they can share with the broader LAA.

LAA Vendor Relations Committee Update

The Vendor Relations Committee recently sent out a "Dear Colleague" letter to vendors outlining expectations for accessibility compliance, including setting WCAG 2.1 goals, providing accessibility statements, and submitting conformance reports. They plan to follow up with an accessibility commitment and product compliance questionnaire. The committee is also exploring distributing materials about the ADA Title II changes at the Charleston Conference.

Onboarding and Participation in the LAA

 Newer members like Richard and Kristina shared their experiences getting up to speed with the LAA structure and activities. Amber recommended attending the monthly LAA Action Committee meetings to gain broader context, in addition to participating in subcommittees. The LAA has also developed an onboarding packet to help new members get oriented.

Potential for Galileo to Join the LAA

John from Galileo in Georgia expressed interest in potentially joining the LAA to gather more information and insights from the group. Amber and Rebel provided an overview of the benefits of LAA membership and the advocacy work the organization does, encouraging John to advocate for Galileo to join.

Recap and Next Steps

 Amber and Rebel offered to share the presentation slides and the invite to the LAA Action Committee meetings with the group. They also noted that the ADA Title II presentation the next day would likely raise additional questions, and encouraged the group to reach out with any follow-up inquiries.

 

October 2, 2024 Agenda
  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee 
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Kristina)
    • Library Assessment Standing Committee (Kristina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  
Minutes 

Committee updates -
Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan) - last meeting was in August, next meeting is on November 18th

  • Approved the Dear Vendor Letter
  • Voted on a 1 year trial with AccessiBlu
  • Discussed LAA hosting the BTAA digital accessibility learning course. It was discussed who should update the content
  • Brainstormed future actions to spread the word about ADA Title II and getting more consortium to join the LAA. Discussion of possibly letting individual libraries join.
  • We are all asked to review the Testing committee’s email to the vendors.

E-Resource Testing Action Committee 

  • No Update

Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)

  • After our test session we agreed to pursue a contract with SignGlass for sign language interpretation and captioning to provide services for upcoming webinars. 
  • We determined that 2 interpreters will be needed for each webinar
  • We are pursuing options for post production editing 
  • We have discussed our webinar schedule and we have two potential presenters who we are approaching to see if they are available to present a webinar in late fall. 
  • We also agreed that upcoming webinars will rotate between theoretical presentations and practical workshops in an effort to meet the needs of large and small libraries, specialists and non-specialists. 

Impact & Analysis Action Committee 

  • No update

Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)

  • No update

Communications and Outreach Action Committee 

  • No update

Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Kristina)

  • No update

Other Business

Make sure to give Rebel feedback on her call to review the following: 

The Member Relations committee has requested your review and feedback of new content developed to onboard (and offboard) LAA members.  As recent members, I hope this provides more information on the LAA and you will be a great group to provide feedback on these items:

November 6, 2024 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Lee)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Christina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

Minutes

FLVC LAA Standing Committee Meeting - November 06
 

Amber Arroyo opened the meeting by asking participants to provide updates from their respective committees. Susan Bernier noted the Library Consortium Steering Committee had not met in 3 months. Amber mentioned the E-Resources Testing Action Committee may not have an active representative, and Rebel Cummings-Sauls agreed to follow up with Yadeline and potentially add Sherry Edwards to that committee.

 

Amber provided an update on the Training and Professional Development Action Committee, noting they are working to line up speakers for a new speaker series and exploring options to compensate speakers. They are also working to establish contracts for sign language interpreters and captioning services.

 

Krista Biasella shared that the Vendor Relations committee had finished editing their Accessibility Commitment and Product Compliance Questionnaire to better align with the Dear Colleague letter. They plan to send the updated ACPC to vendors as a follow-up.

 

Amber and Rebel discussed the challenges of ensuring vendor content is WCAG compliant, including the ambiguity in vendor claims of "substantial" or "striving for" compliance. They reviewed strategies for prioritizing accessibility, such as focusing on content used in active learning activities versus research/reference materials. Amber shared her institution's efforts to assess and remediate LibGuides and gather VPATs from vendors.

 

Amber concluded the meeting by noting the next meeting is scheduled for December and encouraged participants to have a nice Thanksgiving.
 

 

December 4, 2024 Agenda

  • Committee updates - Please add your notes to the Running notes Google doc
    • Library Consortium Steering Committee (Susan)
    • E-Resource Testing Action Committee (Yeidilene)
    • Training & Professional Development Action Committee (Amber)
    • Impact & Analysis Action Committee (Rachel)
    • Vendor Relations Action Committee (Krista)
    • Communications and Outreach Action Committee (Lee)
    • Steering Committee MCLS Liaison (Christina)
  • Other Business
    •  
  • Open Discussion
    •  
  • Action items
    •  

Agenda & Minutes for 2023

October 16, 2023 Agenda

  • First, kick-off meeting held October 16th at 1:00 pm EST
  • Introductions
  • Discussion of role of LAASC
  • Future meetings

 

December 6, 2023 Agenda

  • Call for Chair and Secretary
  • Committee updates (for future meetings)
  • Open Discussion
  • Action Items