Training and Tools for Employees (including instructors)

MYAP:

1. For Procurement in particular, a resource guide will support the consideration of accessibility features and design when contracting with third parties to provide goods, services, and facilities on behalf of Waterloo.
2. Tools and resources to increase awareness of accessibility, universal design for learning principles, and development of accessible information and educational materials (including tools and resources to increase capacity for digital accessibility within the online learning environment) will be developed by Waterloo for instructors of students.

G1. Resource Guide for Procurement

Status: completed
Progress: completed

The Council for Ontario Universities has released an Accessible Procurement Guide to support universities in their mandate for accessible procurement under the AODA. Waterloo has leveraged this guide within our internal practices. This guide is referenced in our Procurement and Contract Services website and recommends all University representatives to consider its contents as part of the overall acquisition of goods and services.

With increasing amounts of information and communication being delivered digitally, Waterloo recognized the need and value to centralize efforts in sourcing external accessibility services that can support our work. A working group comprising departments that use virtual platforms for communication was formed to determine common requirements. Through this collaboration, Procurement and Contract Services is able to negotiate service agreements with single source providers to address departmental needs. This centralization removes the need for each department to research and source service providers on their own, while ensuring providers meet the legislative and principle requirements the University has for our partners. It also creates collective purchasing efforts to negotiate the most reasonable pricing for service, reducing the financial strain for departments. Procurement and Contract Services have successfully put in place service agreements for virtual conference platforms and live captioning services. Over the next year, we will look to other services such as document remediation and American Sign Language interpretation.