Knowbility

What does it mean to approach digital accessibility through an ethics lens—and how can that change the way we design technology and public services?

This September session, “Digital Accessibility Ethics: A New Tool to Advance Disability Inclusion in Tech,” features Lainey Feingold, Jess Moore Matthews, and Erin Brown. Drawing from the new book Digital Accessibility Ethics: Disability Inclusion in All Things Tech, they’ll introduce the Digital Accessibility Ethics Framework and explore how its values, actions, and questions can help advance disability inclusion across technologies and sectors.

You’ll hear how the Framework can be applied to real-world accessibility challenges, including barriers faced by disabled voters and the risks created when emergency preparedness systems are not designed with accessibility in mind. The speakers will also share practical ways you can apply the Framework in your own work to identify and prevent disability exclusion in technology.

Thursday, September 17 · 3:00–4:00 pm CT · Live on Zoom

Register Today: https://bit.ly/4r8RNur

How can disability rights disappear without a single law being repealed? Federal agencies can withdraw guidance, delay deadlines, or simply stop enforcing existing protections.

This special September session, “How Federally-Protected Disability Rights are Disappearing – and How to Oppose It,” features former U.S. Justice Department Senior Trial Attorney Ken Nakata. Ken will break down how federal disability protections are being narrowed, why the legal arguments behind these rollbacks fall short, and what advocates can do about it.

You’ll also learn how to use AI to monitor the Federal Register and OMB’s Unified Agenda, catch proposed changes early, and file effective public comments before rulemaking closes.

Thursday, September 3 · 3:00–4:00 pm CT · Live on Zoom

Register Today: https://bit.ly/4A4sIVV

Do accessibility overlays actually work? The answer is more complicated than the marketing wars would have you believe.

This month’s AccessU Monthly session, “What Should an Accessibility Overlay Actually Do?”, brings together Knowbility’s Jan McSorley and Allyable’s David Adi to cut through the noise: what these tools really are, why the false-claims problem persists, and what you should expect before you buy.

Thursday, August 20 · 3:00-4:00 pm CT · Live on Zoom
Register Today: https://bit.ly/45y7Fgm

🔎 Free Webinar: Conducting Accessibility Testing

Thinking about how to test your site, app, or product for accessibility — but not sure where to start? Join accessibility expert Gian Wild this Thursday for a practical, no-fluff session.

Gian will cover:
WHO should do the testing — experts, trained staff, consultants, people with disabilities, or an in-house team
WHAT to test, based on WCAG2's Evaluation Methodology
HOW to test it — automated tools, manual testing, and testing with people with disabilities
HOW to present results so your team actually acts on them
You'll also learn why testing with people with disabilities should never happen first, why automated testing alone falls short, and why you need to plan for fixes and re-tests — not just the testing itself.

🗓️ Thursday, July 16 🕐 3:00 PM CT
Register: https://events.zoom.us/ev/AheexP7ebEFBi0cqtCudvHIS04MAfk7OIe2xVrt8tH8vr3Ui4-8M~Aqt3oOgIPVHUFT2r69cCGIR-4ZV6BMvpTgEaN0kLWbJITu06YLj7gYTyKQ

See you there!

Most accessibility audits find the problems. They don’t fix the culture that created them.

That’s the gap Ela Gorla has spent 15+ years closing—inside major corporations and government departments across Australia and the U.K.

This Thursday, she's joining us for Be a Digital Ally to break down the 5 most common pitfalls organizations hit when implementing accessibility—and exactly what to do instead.

Here is what we're covering:
- Spotting where implementation quietly breaks down
- Ditching the "quick fix" tools that promise compliance but don't deliver
- Building habits that make accessibility stick (not just survive the audit)

Thursday, June 18 at 3:00 PM CT. Free to attend.
Link to register: https://knowbility.org/programs/be-a-digital-ally/june-2026

📅 Join us for Knowbility's, Be a Digital Ally session on Thursday, June 18 at 3:00 PM CT!

Accessibility consultant and UX research expert Ela Gorla will lead an essential deep dive into Implementing Accessibility: Five Common Pitfalls (and What to Do Instead). With 15+ years of experience spanning major corporations and government departments across Australia and the U.K., Ela brings real-world insight into what actually works.

In this session, we will:
Identify common pitfalls organizations encounter when implementing accessibility
Evaluate tools that promise quick fixes but fail to deliver meaningful results
Adopt practical habits that foster long-term, sustainable accessibility

Register here: https://knowbility.org/programs/be-a-digital-ally/june-2026

The May edition of the Knowbility newsletter is out!

Read the latest updates about Sharron's farewell, our community programs including the AccessU recap, The Accessibility Internet Rally, Be a Digital Ally and more:

Knowbility Newsletter: May 2026 This is my last message to our community as Executive Director (ED). It’s with great joy that I hand the reins over to the incoming ED Jillian Fortin Burtnett. She is exactly the leader Knowbility needs to scale and strengthen our programs and services.

The Shawn Lawton Henry, W3C WAI 2026 Update Town Hall is now available on Knowbility's youTube channel for everyone to watch.

Catch up on the latest news from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) with this in depth conversasion:

W3C WAI 2026 Update Town Hall Session SummaryGet the latest news from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI). In this interactive session you can ask quest...

Join Dr. Stephanie Cawthon and an expert panel including Melissa Gholson, Meagan Karvonen, Cara Cahalan Laitusis, and Jan McSorley, for the webinar, "Beyond Compliance in the Era of AI: The Future of Accessibility in State Assessments." Sponsored by Accessible Teaching, Learning, and Assessment Systems (ATLAS) The University of Kansas. The event takes place on June 1st from 2–3 PM ET.

Register today at: https://kansas.zoom.us/meeting/register/X7dBhfbIRbm_oqd7r42Drg #/registration

In celebration of Global Accessibility Awareness Day, we are officially releasing the Knowbility Sight Sound Soul music video! 🌍

Observed annually on the third Thursday of May, is a worldwide movement driving digital inclusion for the 1+ billion people living with disabilities.

Aligning with this mission to break down barriers, Sight Sound Soul (a collaboration by Knowbility and Art Spark Texas) was a fully accessible, multi-sensory performance. By blending American Sign Language, human captioning, audio description, and real time painting with live music, it ensured everyone could experience the show together.

The video also celebrates the passing of the leadership torch from founding Executive Director Sharron Rush to the exciting future we anticipate with our incoming ED Jillian Fortin Burtnett.

We hope you enjoy it:

AccessU 2026 - Sight Sound Soul music video (Official) How do you describe a beehive? At Access U, we’ve been busy as a be...