By SUSAN JONES
The move to elevate Leigh Culley’s role to interim assistant vice chancellor for accessibility is just one more step in increasing the transparency and visibility of disability services at Pitt, said Clyde Pickett, vice chancellor for equity, diversity and inclusion.
Culley has been the director of Disability Resources and Services (DRS) since 2015 and has worked in that office since 2002. DRS was moved into the Office of Equity, Diversity and Inclusion in 2019 from Student Affairs to further raise its visibility, particularly among faculty and staff.
“Leigh has been a champion for this work for a long time,” Pickett said. And while there will be a full search to fill the position at some point, he said it was important to get someone in the role now, and he has “all the confidence in the world in her leadership and ability to help Pitt … take this work to the next level.”
Creating the assistant vice chancellor role, “signifies our further commitment” to disability services, Pickett said.
“I think accessibility has long been a priority for us at the University,” Pickett said. “As we’re thinking about our work around inclusion, around access, around opportunity, I think it’s important for us to prioritize the way in which this work has to be seen as one of the key and essential leadership roles across the University. … I think you really communicate your commitment when you have someone who is prioritizing this work, who it’s their primary responsibility, and they’re directing the efforts across the University.”
The role of the diversity office, Pickett said, is to support the various communities at Pitt and to give them opportunities to voice their concerns and amplify them. Just like with any other group or person on campus, Culley said, the primary pillar of the OEDI work is “creating a more accessible and inclusive environment for all individuals at the University.”
For the disability community, Culley said that work includes minimizing barriers to equal access; creating a sense of inclusion, belonging and engagement for individuals with disabilities; and cultivating disability awareness and education through collaborations with various stakeholders across the campus and with community partners.
Chloe Shearer, who heads the Pitt Disability Community staff and employee resource group, said she’s always been impressed by Culley’s work and thinks she deserves the new title. Shearer, a statistician in the Human Engineering Research Labs, said Pitt has done a good job promoting National Disability Employment Awareness Month in October.
During October 2024, DRS gave out its first-ever ACCESS Award: Advocating Campus Change for Equitable and Supportive Solutions to Tom Armstrong, diversity recruiting and transition consultant in the Office of Human Resources. The award recognizes employees who have shown an exceptional commitment to creating an inclusive and equitable workplace for individuals with disabilities, including veterans. Armstrong helped create Pitt’s Career Transition Project, which actively encourages veterans and individuals with disabilities /to seek careers within the University.
The University also has recently been honored for its work on disability issues.
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Pitt was recognized for the first time with the Leading Disability Employer Seal by the National Organization on Disability in September. Only 59 organizations received the seal for 2024. The University of Pittsburgh was the only institution of higher learning to be honored.
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Pitt received a 2024 Higher Education Excellence in Diversity Award from Insight Into Diversity magazine, the largest and oldest publication dedicated to advancing best practices in diversity, equity and inclusion in U.S. higher education. It’s the eighth year in a row Pitt has earned the national honor, which recognizes outstanding commitment to diversity and inclusion.
One of the big changes Culley has seen over the years is the increase in students and employees seeking accommodations.
The jump in employment-related requests has been significant, she said — from 29 in 2016-17 to 220 in 2023-24. This reflects both increased visibility as part of the diversity office and
“the work that we’ve been doing in terms of allowing individuals to know that we do have that commitment to creating that inclusive and accessible environment for all.”
About 10 percent of students are now registered with DRS, she said, up from 3 to 5 percent previously.
“I think what we’ve seen is that significant shift to more individuals with multiple disabilities, multiple conditions impacting them,” she said. “That sort of adds layers of complexity to how they engage at the University. We’re seeing a significant increase in psychiatric conditions, chronic health conditions, and often they go hand in hand.”
Ongoing initiatives
Culley said one of the areas they are really focusing on is the new Campus Master Plan, which is under development. They are collaborating with the Office of Planning, Design and Construction to develop a campus-wide accessibility strategy.
“We’re really looking at improving accessible building entrances, expanding accessible parking options, enhancing wayfinding, and just really simplifying campus navigation,” she said.
Another pressing concern is ensuring all University websites, apps and digital platforms are fully accessible by the spring of 2027. This is mandated by language added to Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act earlier this year, which includes education, staffing requirements, software recommendations and specific web accessibility standards.
Colleges must fix existing digital content, which includes course materials, to meet the new standards, and also will need to apply the standards to any new content they create or use.
Shearer said this is a big concern for her and others. Enterprise software, like MATLAB, still isn’t as accessible as it should be and there aren’t many other software options to replace it.
The office also will continue to advance the work of the Chancellor’s Advisory Committee on Inclusion and Accessibility for People with Disabilities. One of the committee’s initiatives was to have someone present accomplishments both by and for the disability community to the Board of Trustees. Rory Cooper, founding director of Pitt’s Human Engineering Research Labs, gave a presentation about his and others work at the Dec. 3 board meeting.
Other recommendations to the chancellor include:
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Centralize the costs for accommodation for faculty and staff with disabilities, instead of having programs or departments cover those costs.
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Create a campaign to bring awareness of the talented people with disabilities among Pitt faculty, staff and students.
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Revisit the “Faculty with lived experience with disability” cluster hire idea.
Susan Jones is editor of the University Times. Reach her at suejones@pitt.edu or 724-244-4042.
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