Creating an Accessible Scholarly Community
Meet the ASHE 2026 Accessibility Consultant, Dr. Autumn Wilke
As the Associate Chief Diversity Officer for Disability Resources at Grinnell College, Autumn is the ADA/Section 504 Officer for the institution and oversees campus-wide accessibility initiatives. Autumn also oversees the Disability Resources office, including supervising the work of the coordinator of student disability resources, the neurodiversity support specialist, and the disability resources operations manager. In addition to being a resource to individuals with disabilities, Autumn provides guidance to the campus on issues of compliance, universal design, accessibility, and best practices in accommodation.
As the returning Accessibility Consultant for ASHE, Autumn has partnered with the ASHE staff to review, update, and add to the resources and information available to ASHE members and conference attendees around accessibility. Autumn will also be available during Virtual Conference Day on October 22 as well as the on-site conference in San Juan to assist with questions and support related to accommodations and general accessibility.
Accessibility During the Conference
ASHE is committed to offering an accessible learning and socializing environment for attendees. Accessibility is for everyone and includes multiple moving parts, which means creating accessible spaces requires a partnership between everyone sharing space.
With the intent to increase accessibility for all ASHE attendees, we have outlined current guidelines and offerings below and will be adding additional resources as planning for the conference continues.
We recognize that there are additional ways in which we can make events accessible for individuals. We will work with each attendee should they choose to submit an accommodation request, to ensure we provide the best possible support.
Learn More about Conference Accessibility
Creating Accessible ASHE Presentations
ASHE is pleased to offer the following resources to presenters in preparation for the conference this year. If you have any questions or comments while accessing the information, please email conference@ashe.ws.
- 2026 Presenter Guide: includes important information to consider when developing presentations and presenting at the ASHE General Conference, Pre-Conferences, and Virtual Conference Day
- ASHE PowerPoint Template: this editable slide deck includes accessibility features, formatting, and the ASHE logo.
- Instructional Video - Using Accessibility Features in PowerPoint and Google Slides: Dr. Wilke walks viewers through how to use PowerPoints’ Accessibility Checker, and reviews accessibility features & limitations in Google Slides, which you can use on any existing or future presentations.
Requesting Accommodations
Accessibility Accommodation requests can be made via the registration process for both Virtual Conference Day and the in-person conference. If you need to check on your accommodation request, or need to update the information, please email Alicia Castillo Shrestha, ASHE Director for Conference & Professional Development at alicia@ashe.ws or call (202) 660-4106
Childcare Services in San Juan
In an effort to increase the accessibility of the annual conference for caregivers, we are pleased to offer on-site childcare. For this year, ASHE is able to offer 36 hours total of childcare and have prioritized coverage of session blocks during the pre-conferences and general conference. If you need childcare outside of the hours offered, please indicate your interest on your registration form so we can put you into contact with potential service providers and/or resources.
Childcare requests must be received by Wednesday, October 7 to be considered for services.