Accessibility and Your College

One in seven people. About 1.85 million Ontarians have a disability. As the population ages over the next 20 years, that number is expected to rise to one in five Ontarians. In less than two years, all private businesses in Ontario will be required to comply with the accessibility standards for customer service. Under the Ontarians with Disabilities Act 2005, the new standards will be required by January 1, 2012. The customer service standards recently came into effect for public sector organizations, which were required to comply by January 1. It’s all part of a broader push to make the province barrier-free by 2025.                                  

“It’s important to recognize our responsibilities as employers when it comes to preventing barriers to accessibility,” said Paul Kitchin, Executive Director of the Ontario Association of Career Colleges.                    

OACC is making it a bit easier by devoting a conference session to “Accessibility and Your College” on April 22. Guest Speaker Linda Markowsky will make a presentation that touches on the Act, the upcoming customer service accessibility standards and your responsibilities as an employer.  Markowsky is the Manager of Compliance Assistance Training in the Accessibility Directorate of Ontario at Ministry of Community and Social Services. She has spent the last ten years working for change from the inside of the Ontario government, most recently to help promote universal accessibility for people with disabilities. The Ontarians With Disabilities Act focuses on five different pillars, including access to service, employment, information and communications, transportation and building accessibility.

What: Accessibility and Your College. OACC’s 37th Annual Conference.

When:   Thursday April 22,  1:30 to 2:30 p.m.

Where: The Village at Blue Mountain Conference Centre, 242 Jozo Weider Blvd. 

www.oacc.ca/conference2010