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This webinar will focus on challenges to accommodating deaf or hard of hearing employees in virtual meetings. Individuals who are deaf or hard of hearing express varying preferences for accommodations and support in virtual meetings. Factors that can impact the effectiveness of the range of potential accommodations include the individual’s unique hearing needs which may be influenced by age of onset; use of assistive equipment such as hearing aids; compensation using alternate sensory pathways such as vision; ASL fluency and lip-reading skills. Understanding reasonable accommodation and assistive technology options and other resources can improve productivity, morale, and equal access to employment opportunities. This webinar will include real-life examples of accommodation scenarios involving employees who are deaf or hard of hearing and will provide information regarding reasonable accommodation, the interactive process, assistive technology options including video remote interpreting, and other technology-based communication supports, as well as other resources.
Objectives
Upon completion of this webinar, participants will be able to:
- Identify 3 accommodation options to ensure effective communication in virtual meetings.
- Describe 2 strategies for identifying effective accommodation options
- Identify the 6 steps of JAN’s interactive process
About the presenter:
Teresa Goddard joined the Job Accommodation Network (JAN) staff as a Program Assistant in March 2008, joined the JAN Motor Team as a Consultant in August 2008, and then transitioned to JAN’s Sensory Team. Teresa now provides expert-level consultation and team leadership as a Lead Consultant on JAN’s Sensory Team. In this role, Teresa fields questions from employees and employers regarding their rights and responsibilities under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and assists in identifying accommodation solutions for individuals with sensory impairments. Teresa’s professional experience includes work as an Educational Speech-Language Pathologist and as an English as a Foreign Language (EFL) instructor in Aichi Prefecture, Japan, where in addition to classroom teaching, she led continuing education workshops on collaborative instructional techniques and cross-cultural understanding. Teresa earned a Master of Science degree in Speech Pathology and a Bachelor of Science degree in Speech Pathology and Audiology from West Virginia University (WVU). Teresa’s research interests include assistive technology, trauma-informed practices, and cross-cultural perspectives on disability services.
