Skip to Main Content
Donate

Onsite, online - the same great content
AccessU at a Glance

Accelerate your Accessibility Career at AccessU

John Slatin AccessU 2025 is a hybrid conference that allows you to gain practical digital accessibility skills and connect with the community of experts and emerging leaders in the field. This year AccessU coincides with GAAD and introduces a track of Flipped Learning sessions that are shaped by community input. Knowbility has served the digital access needs of disabled people for more than 25 years and AccessU is a fundamental part of that mission driven service - thanks for your active participation and support creating the agenda for 2025!

Welcome and thanks for joining AccessU!

AccessU is a hybrid conference, offering attendees the option to join us onsite or attend via Zoom. Whether you are joining in person or virtually; hold an Instructor, Premier, or General Conference ticket; are joining for just one day or the whole AccessU experience - we're glad you're here.

Please watch for the Zoom Event invitations, updates on ways to actively participate, and other notes from us. Join the AccessU Slack workspace to chat with other attendees and keep up with announcements.

If you have any questions please post to the #help channel of the AccessU 2025 Slack or email accessu@knowbility.org and we'll get right back to you!

Looking forward to a great week of learning together, celebrating GAAD, and charting a course forward in the changing ploitical environment.

Schedule Overview

We have provided a few highlights for each day below. AccessU utilizes two main buildings of the St. Edward’s Campus, Trustee Hall and Ragsdale Hall.

Please refer to the Full Conference Schedule for details on Keynotes, Plenary and General conference sessions. As well as building and specific room locations.

Monday, May 12th: Preconference Deep Dives, Opening Keynote Reception

These full-day workshops are a great opportunity to dig deep into accessibility best practices with experienced leaders in the field. A Premier ticket includes your choice of any of the sessions below. To reserve a seat for just the one-day Deep Dive, select "Pre-Conference" on the ticket sale page.

Schedule highlights:

  • 7:00 - 8:30 AM: Registration and breakfast in Trustee Hall.
  • 9:00 AM - 4:00 PM: Deep Dive Pre-Conference classes
  • 12:00 Noon - 1:00 PM: Lunch in Trustee Atrium (Trustee Hall, 2rd floor)
  • 5:30 PM - 8:00 PM: Welcome Reception and Keynote talk at the Austin Hyatt Regency on beautiful Town Lake. Meet and greet old and new friends at a Drinks and hors d'oeuvres reception.
    • 7:00 pm Karl Groves kicks off the conference with his thoughts on current trends and opportunities for the future of digital accessibility.
      Bonus – Early Badge pickup at the reception

May 13 - 15 General Conference

AccessU general conference features three days of in-depth learning from accessibility experts with hands-on practice and peer discussion. All sessions hybrid and are categorized under the following learning tracks:

  • Design & User Experience (Visa Track)
  • Development (AARP Track)
  • Documents & Templates
  • NEW for 2025 - Flipped Classroom Challenges (in partnership with Accessible Community)
  • Interactive & Emerging Technologies (Google Track)
  • Marketing and Advocacy
  • Organizational Strategy (IAAP Track)
  • Testing (Salesforce Track)

Tuesday May 13th: Live Sessions and Keynote by Eve Hill

  • 7:30 AM: Breakfast in Cafeteria (Ragsdale Hall, 2nd floor)
  • 8:30 - 11:45 AM: Instructional Classes
  • 8:30 - 11:45 AM: Flipped Classroom Challenge 1: How do we use and shape AI to benefit disabled people? - review materials in advance, attend for discussion.
  • 12:00 noon: Lunch in Mabee Ballroom (Ragsdale Hall, 3rd floor)
  • 1:00 - 2:00 PM: Keynote: The 2025 AccessU Legal Update by Eve Hill
  • 2:15 - 5:30 PM: Instructional Classes
  • 2:15 - 5:30 PM: Flipped Classroom Challenge 2:  Where does digital accessibility “belong” within organizations and how does that affect career decisions and pathways to leadership? - review materials in advance, attend for discussion.
  • 6:00 PM - 8:00 PM: Austin on Your Own - Or - Optional self-funded BBQ field trip to the Salt Lick, with an accessible shuttle bus sponsored by AFixt.
    • Tickets to the Salt Lick BBQ Trip are $50 and can be selected as an add on with your conference ticket.
    • Didn't purchase a ticket when you registered? You can still join the adventure, purchase a ticket to the BBQ today!

Wednesday May 14th: Live Sessions and Keynote by Zuby Onwuta

  • 7:30 AM: Breakfast in Cafeteria (Ragsdale Hall, 2nd floor)
  • 8:30 - 11:45 AM: Instructional Classes in Trustee and online/Flipped learning sessions
  • 8:30 - 11:45 PM: Flipped Classroom Challenge 3:  What defines “Success” in digital accessibility? - review materials in advance, attend for discussion.
  • 12:00 noon: Lunch in Mabee Ballroom (Ragsdale Hall, 3rd floor)
  • 1:00 - 2:00 PM: Keynote: Disability Sparks Innovation, with Zuby Onwuta in Jones Auditorium (Ragsdale Hall, 1st floor)
  • 2:15 - 3:45 PM: Instructional Classes
  • 2:15 - 3:45 PM: Flipped Classroom Challenge 4:  What have we left out? - review materials in advance, attend for discussion.
  • 4:00 - 5:30 PM: Plenary Session in Jones Auditorium - Advancing Digital Accessibility with W3C WAI, by Shawn Henry and Kevin White.

Thursday May 15th - GAAD! Training sessions, Unconference Exploration, Closing Keynote Panel

We have 1-Day Tickets to join us to Celebrate GAAD at AccessU including classes, a keynote panel led by Crystal Preston-Watson of Salesforce, and the Unconference sessions that YOU have suggested and chosen in the previous days.

  • 7:30 AM: Breakfast in Cafeteria (Ragsdale Hall, 2nd floor)
  • 8:30 - 10:00 AM: Instructional Classes in Trustee Hall and online
  • 8:30 AM - 5:00 PM - IAAP Certification Testing in Trustee Hall
  • 10:15 - 11:45 AM: Closing Keynote Panel: From Today to Tomorrow: Navigating the Shifting Landscape of Digital Access led by Crystal Preston-Watson with Natalie Patrice Tucker, Howard Kramer - in Jones Auditorium, Ragsdale Hall 1st floor)
  • 12:00 PM - Lunch in Mabee Ballroom (Ragsdale Hall, 3rd floor)
  • 1:15 PM - 2:45 PM: ­Unconference Sessions in Trustee Hall

Shuttle Service back to Hotel and thanks for another great year!

For More Information

Plenary and Keynote sessions are freely open to the public via Zoom. Use the links below for more information about John Slatin AccessU.

Thanks to our AccessU 2025 Sponsors!

    AARP, Google, Visa, IAAP, Level Access, Salesforce, TestParty, St. Edwards University, Nelnet, MaYapinion, Monkee-Boy, and exhibitors WebAIM, Eliquo Training