We want to ensure all our visitors will be able to participate fully at the festival. Whether they are attending in person or experiencing any virtual components. The following is a list of resources and guidelines to assist in achieving that purpose.
Marketing materials for your showcases can include communications to guests, ahead of your event, on how to reach out to your department for more information regarding accessibility. For additional support, the Office of Services for Students (SSD) can be reached via ssd@colum.edu, or by phone: 312-369-8296.
For guests with mobility issues, it would be helpful for them to have access to floor layouts for a specific event, distances / dimensions and locations of accessible bathrooms in the building.
The location of accessible and gender-neutral bathrooms in the buildings would be helpful information for many. This link provides a list of those spaces in campus buildings.
ASL Interpreters from SSD are available upon request. For all ASL interpreting requests and needs, contact Duriyah Wilborn, Manager of Interpreting Services by email: dwilborn@colum.edu. For all other questions about accessibility, check out SSD's website.
Day of, be sure to block off seating or designated areas for attendees that need sight lines to ASL interpreters and for attendees who use wheelchairs, where appropriate.
For audio/visual materials, such as student films, be sure to incorporate captioning. A guest watching an interpreter may miss the visual component of any film. This step can benefit many people beyond those who are deaf or hard of hearing. Some tips on how to caption media can be found in our Marketing Best Practices page under Accessibility Best Practices, item #4.
For printed materials, whenever possible include a QR Code that links the reader to accessible electronic versions of your materials. (SSD has received requests in the past from students who could not access many printed flyers and handouts.) This link provides helpful guidance regarding the creation of printed materials for varying needs of people with disabilities.
