Committee Charge
UW System policy Nondiscrimination on Basis of Disability (RPD 14-10) states that the committee shall “provide information and recommendations [to the President of the UW System] relating to individuals with disabilities.” The committee is charged with providing recommendations in three major areas:
- Policy and guideline implementation;
- Procedures for periodic reporting of data regarding disabilities; and
- Disability related issues raised by UW System Administration, universities, or units.
Recent Activity
Over the past few years, PACDI’s primary focus has been on digital accessibility. With support from the president and chancellors, PACDI facilitated a systemwide Digital Maturity Self-Assessment Project with the following goals:
- To provide benchmarking summaries and recommendations to each UW university to help them establish a foundation for continuous improvement in digital accessibility.
- To identify themes and recommendations that emerged across the Universities of Wisconsin that would benefit from system-level training and support.
Meetings
Meetings occur in the fall and the spring. Both meetings have historically been held face-to-face in Madison, although virtual meetings were held in Spring and Fall 2020 due to the COVID-19 pandemic. On occasion, meetings take place in conjunction with Disability Issues conferences held in Wisconsin.
Membership
The committee has 9-12 members appointed by the President of the University of Wisconsin System, two of which are students selected by student senates.
- Ruben Mota, ruben.mota@wisc.edu, ADA Coordinator, UW-Madison (Committee Co-Chair)
- Elizabeth Watson, watsonea@uwm.edu, Director, CITEE Projects, College of Community Engagement and Professions, UW-Milwaukee (Committee Co-Chair)
- John Achter, jachter@uwsa.edu, Senior Director, Student Success and Wellbeing, Universities of Wisconsin Administration (Staff Consultant)