11 Fellows will Continue to Promote and Grow Accessibility Practices Across SUNY that Build in Flexibility and Support for Students
SUNY Serves More Than 41,000 Students with Disabilities
State University of New York Chancellor John B. King Jr. today announced the second cohort of the SUNY Accessibility Advocates and Allies Fellowship Program. A total of 11 faculty fellows, including Alfred State Architecture and Design Professor Kevin Hofmann, from across the SUNY System will work to expand digital accessibility and Universal Design for Learning (UDL) practices across their campuses, which is crucial for student success. The new cohort of fellows will build on the lessons learned from the work done by the inaugural SUNY AAA fellows who started in January 2025.
“There is a place at SUNY for everyone and we work tirelessly to ensure our campuses are inclusive and welcoming for every student,” SUNY Chancellor King said. “The work of the Accessibility Advocates and Allies faculty fellows is essential to ensuring SUNY faculty have the resources they need to foster a supportive and accessible environment for students with disabilities. Congratulations to the faculty fellows selected for this year’s program, which will help advance accessibility throughout the SUNY System.”
SUNY Trustee Camille Joseph Varlack and SUNY Trustee Marcos Crespo, Co-Chairs of the Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion Committee, said, “Thanks to the support of Governor Hochul and the State Legislature, SUNY is leading the way in providing a welcoming and inclusive environment for all students. The work of this year’s Accessibility Advocates and Allies faculty fellows will play a key role in assisting faculty as they continue to incorporate accessibility and inclusivity policies to support students with disabilities.”
The second cohort of the SUNY Accessibility Advocates and Allies Faculty Fellowship Program are:
- Emma Ben Ayoun, Fashion Institute of Technology
- Kelly Ficner, SUNY Canton
- Kevin Hofmann, Alfred State College
- Melissa Johnson, Cayuga Community College
- Alexandra Kay, SUNY Orange
- Robert Koble, SUNY Corning Community College
- Janita Moricette, Tompkins Cortland Community College
- Efekona Nuwere, SUNY Downstate Health Sciences University
- Emily Riddle, SUNY Oneonta
- Margaret Schedel, State University of New York at Stony Brook
- Bridget Whearty, State University of New York at Binghamton
SUNY serves more than 41,000 students with disabilities — and the largest group of these students report having a neurodevelopmental disability. SUNY has taken several actions to support students with disabilities and ensure they are able to succeed, including allocating $10 million in annual recurring State funding to support State-operated campuses in increasing support for students with disabilities. SUNY campuses have utilized their portion of the state investment to expand services for students with disabilities in a variety of ways, including hiring staff to mitigate barriers and support students with disabilities, purchase new accessibility technology equipment for student and faculty use, and make physical space improvements to increase accessibility.
Last week, Chancellor King also launched the SUNY Disability Support Leadership Institute to bolster the success of emerging campus leaders in supporting students with disabilities.
The SUNY Accessibility Advocates and Allies Faculty Fellowship Program is co-led by the SUNY Office of Student Success in partnership with the Provost’s Office. This year's faculty fellows will build on the success of last year's program to continue establishing a community of faculty leaders and champions committed to promoting and growing digital accessibility practices in and out of the classroom on their campuses. During this year’s program, fellows will:
Explore models and strategies to build and expand a culture of access on their campuses;
Share their expertise and experience as they identify obstacles and work towards solutions to broaden adoption of accessibility practices;
Connect with other communities of practice and campus leaders with a shared vision, including but not limited to: Disability/Accessibility Directors, Electronic and Information Technology (EIT) Accessibility Officers, Chief Diversity Officers, Chief Information Officers, Teaching Center Directors, Directors of Online Learning, SUNY Faculty Advisory Council on Teaching and Technology, and Instructional Designers;
Grow as faculty leaders as they coordinate with campus leadership to design and execute a plan to engage their campus community in the work of access.