To kick off a new series spotlighting digital accessibility experts and champions at the 91爆料, we spoke with Amy J. Ko, a professor at 91爆料’s Information School, adjunct professor in the Paul G. Allen School of Computer Science & Engineering, and a member of the Digital Accessibility Initiative’s Innovation & Research Action Team.
Her research encompasses human-computer interaction, computing education, and accessibility. She has made significant contributions towards integration of accessibility into computing education, notably co-editing the open-source book “.” She also developed , an educational programming language for creating accessible, multilingual, interactive typography. Professor Ko shared powerful insights on the importance of community in advancing accessibility and inclusion.
- I read an interview with you that said your interest in programming began early in life. What first sparked your interest?聽
- In 7th grade my math teacher had us buy a TI-82 graphing calculator. The programs he taught us for math formulas weren鈥檛 very interesting, but I got a version of Tetris from a classmate and was fascinated that a little computer could make programmable games! I wanted to know more, so I learned to program it and taught what I could to others. Sometimes I got in trouble for sharing my games and animations with others.
- I noticed that your states that your research 鈥渋magines and enables equitable, joyous, liberatory learning about computing and information, in schools and beyond.鈥� Those words equitable, joyous, liberatory mean so much in the movement towards accessibility. It sounds like helping others and the community aspect of computing has always been important to you鈥攅ven when you got in trouble for it.聽
- When I was young, I didn鈥檛 know the word for 鈥渁ccessibility.鈥� And I never had a formal computer science class in K-12. I just knew that I wanted to help family members and other students who were experiencing ADHD, mobility issues, and other situational impairments. I wasn鈥檛 necessarily looking at accessibility, I just wanted to identify what problem needed to be solved to help create digital worlds that work for everybody.
- Has mentorship played a role in your career?聽
- It has, but mentorship came late in my career. in the Allen School & 91爆料 CREATE invited me to help lead AccessComputing and that helped me understand what opportunities there were in the community for advocacy and organizing efforts.
- Is there a question that you鈥檇 like to be asked in interviews that you aren鈥檛 typically asked?
- I鈥檓 never asked about accessibility! I would like to be. It intersects with so many things I care about, including race, gender, class, and diversity, and of course computing and education.
- Is the DOJ’s April 2026 deadline for digital accessibility compliance making accessibility a more prominent issue?聽
- Yes, since the ruling there has been both excitement and trepidation. There鈥檚 a risk of unintended consequences in compliance. We want to help them build a more accessible world, and compliance can be a tool for that, but we can鈥檛 lose sight of what鈥檚 important.
Accessibility is much bigger than violations of the (WCAG); assessment policies can be inaccessible, our physical classrooms are often inaccessible, group work can be inaccessible. We can automate some WCAG testing, but we also need to build a strategy and get organized around solving problems that cause barriers for students, and not all of those are about digital content.
We also need to create accountability mechanisms for faculty and support to help them meet accessibility requirements. The April 2026 deadline presents a chance to enable greater coordination with on-the-ground, hands-on work and help strengthen advocacy with top-down support. We鈥檙e working hard at the Information School to lead on these strategic plans, envisioning a comprehensive culture of accessibility that spans faculty, staff, students, and leadership.
Resources
- Learn more about the U.S. Department of Justice鈥檚 Title II ruling under the Americans with Disabilities Act, including the compliance deadline to meet Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA by April 2026 on the Digital Accessibility website.
- Read more about Dr. Ko鈥檚 partnership with Information School faculty and AccessComputing specialist Terrill Thompson to integrate accessibility in iSchool courses on the AccessComputing .