Montgomery College Universal Design Center SAtudy Notes

SYSTEMS APPROACH TO CHANGE

Introduction

  • Authors: Paul D. Miller, Michael A. Mills, Stacy Ford

  • Document Focus: Exploring inclusion and accessibility in the context of Montgomery College (MC).

  • Key Concept: Universal Design (UD)

    • Definition: Principles of designing instruction, programs, and services to remove barriers to full participation within the community.

Overview of Montgomery College (MC)

  • Location: Montgomery County, Maryland.

  • Type: Public, fully accredited institution.

  • Annual Enrollment: ~60,000 students.

  • Primary Objectives:

    • Provide access to quality higher education.

    • Empower students for success and meaningful change.

  • Main Campuses:

    • Takoma Park / Silver Spring

    • Rockville

    • Germantown

Demographics and Programs

  • Student Demographics:

    • Four broad groups:

    1. Students seeking a two-year university education.

    2. Students preparing for careers that do not require a bachelor’s degree.

    3. Highly capable juniors and seniors in special programs.

    4. Adults continuing education for job skills or personal enrichment.

  • Recognition:

    • Ranked “#1 Best Community College in Maryland” (Intelligent, 2022).

    • Consistently ranked as one of the top diverse community colleges in the nation (Chronicle of Higher Education, 2019; College Factual, 2021).

Commitment to Accessibility

  • Legal Framework:

    • Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973.

    • Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 (ADA).

    • Amendments of 2009.

    • Related Policies:

    • Equal Employment Opportunity Non-Discrimination (Policy 31006).

    • Equal Education Opportunity Non-Discrimination (Policy 41002).

    • Electronic Information Technology Accessibility (Policy 66004).

  • Goal: Create a nondiscriminatory and inclusive learning environment, including access to ICT.

Accessibility Policy and Gaps

  • well-established Accessibility Policy by MC:

    • Accessibility policies available through QR Code resources.

    • Gaps exist in:

    • Accessibility of developed instructional materials.

    • Accessibility of third-party ICT tools.

    • Current Approach:

    • Splintered and siloed efforts causing inefficiencies in accessibility.

  • Goal for Organizational Structure:

    • Provide a coherent response to competing priorities across organizational units.

Universal Design Center (UDC)

Establishment and Purpose

  • Establishment Reason: Address identified accessibility issues and gaps.

  • UDC Objectives:

    • Remove barriers in working/learning environments.

    • Use accessible ICT and create inclusive physical environments.

    • Promote inclusion, social justice, and cultural competence.

  • Sponsorship: Office of E-Learning, Innovation, and Teaching Excellence (ELITE).

  • Team: Multilevel team of over 20 full-time staff.

  • Focus Areas:

    • Universal Design principles and accessibility.

  • UDC's Approach:

    • Networked and comprehensive approach to policy and process alignment.

Strategic Alignment

  • Connection to MC’s Strategic Plan:

    • Vision emphasized in MC 2025, focusing on equity and access.

    • Six Pillars/Goals tied to UD principles.

  • MC Strategic Plan Access: QR Code linked resources.

Conceptual Design of the UDC

  • Influenced by:

    • Bronfenbrenner’s nested model of ecological systems (1979).

    • Identified supporting factors for accessibility and inclusion.

  • Three primary focus areas:

    1. Design for everyone.

    2. Design for learning.

    3. Design for technology and accessibility.

  • Guiding Principle: Every operational aspect incorporates UD principles to maximize participation.

  • Importance of understanding interactions between operational elements for achieving desired outcomes (General systems theory).

  • The effectiveness of the UDC increases with systemic alignment throughout all departments.

A Systems Approach to Support the UDC

Addressing Barriers to Change

  • Initial Barriers Identified:

    • Educators’ attitudes and beliefs towards UD principles.

    • Concern over potential dips in student achievement during the transition.

  • Systemic Issues: Problems are within the system rather than with individuals.

  • Strategies for Improvement:

    1. Problem awareness and identification.

    2. Understanding the reasons behind problems.

    3. Action planning for maximum impact.

    4. Addressing ineffective leadership.

    5. Commitment to continuous improvement (Duke, 2014).

Tuckman’s Stages of Change

  • Stages of Change outlined by Tuckman (1965):

    • Forming: Initial awareness and decision-making for adopting new programs.

    • Storming: Initial implementation phase, where uncertainty may arise; needs strong support.

    • Norming: Development of established routines and structures in UD, driven by a shared vision.

    • Performing: Achieving desired results with confidence in the system's ability to implement UD principles.

Concerns-Based Adoption Model (CBAM)

  • Elements of CBAM:

  1. Levels of Use (LoU): Describes distinct stages of implementation from nonuse to renewal.

  2. Stages of Concern (SoC): Identifies personal concerns during implementation.

  3. Innovation Configurations: Provides a roadmap for high-quality program implementation.

  • Description of Levels of Use (LoU):

    1. Nonuse: Unawareness of UD principles.

    2. Orientation: Learning about UD requirements.

    3. Preparation: Adoption of UD guiding principles.

    4. Mechanical Use: Initial, clumsy application of UD principles.

    5. Routine: Developing familiarity with UD principles.

    6. Refinement: Focusing on student achievement linked to instruction.

    7. Integration: Collective impact achieved from collaboration.

    8. Renewal: Self-sustaining program functioning aligned with institutional goals.

  • Summary of Stages of Concern:

  1. Awareness: Realizing the principles of UD.

  2. Informational: Learning about UD impact.

  3. Management: Handling logistics of applying UD.

  4. Consequence: Evaluating initial results of UD application.

  5. Collaboration: Working with peers to refine UD application.

  6. Refocusing: Using outcomes to refine best practices.

Innovation Configurations Roadmap

  • Roadmap provided frameworks to enhance program implementation.

  • Adaptation from the Technology Accessibility Playbook established a blueprint for effective UDC operations based on 12 key “plays.”

Key Plays in UDC Implementation

  1. Establish a UDC coordinator.

  2. Assess institutional capacity.

  3. Develop an implementation schedule with goals, objectives, and activities.

  4. Refine institutional policies to reflect UD purpose.

  5. Create a cross-departmental UDC steering committee.

  6. Identify key focus areas for awareness and capacity building.

  7. Build community awareness across MC.

  8. Redesign processes to incorporate UD principles.

  9. Embed UD needs into development processes.

  10. Evaluate UDC purpose with data-informed decision-making.

  11. Establish processes for identifying and applying UD principles institution-wide.

  12. Provide ongoing support through professional development and resources.

Role of the UDC Coordinator

  • Leadership importance: Leading change requires reflection, continuous improvement, and effective collaboration.

  • Focus on relationships between knowledge, student needs, and subject matter as critical to UDC success.

  • Leadership Styles:

    • Authentic Leadership: Transparency and shared accountability.

    • Transformational Leadership: Building alignment and inspiring a shared vision.

Distributed Leadership Model

  • The model enhances shared responsibility in instructional decisions among educators.

  • Characteristics of effective distributed leadership:

    • Trust and collaboration for optimal outcomes.

    • Sustained focus on goals and accountability for implementation fidelity.

Technical Assistance Approach to Support Change

  • Importance of an interconnected, systems approach for UDC support.

  • Technical Assistance (TA): Offers targeted, professional guidance for institutions.

  • UDC's TA approach outlines resources and collaborative efforts to improve institutional performance and employee support.

  • Encouraging awareness of resources among educators is crucial for the UDC's effectiveness.

Key Components of the UDC's Technical Assistance Model

  • Coaching:

    • Promotes professional development through sociocultural theories.

    • UDC coaches assist with meaningful development processes for UDC success.

  • Data-Informed Decision-Making:

    • Aligns data with mission and vision to guide instruction and corrective measures.

    • Addresses UDC effectiveness in supporting marginalized students through targeted strategies.

  • Professional Learning Communities (PLCs):

    • Supports collaboration for decision-making and collective impacts on student performance.

    • Incorporates traits that build community understanding of UD principles.

Conclusion

  • Legislative frameworks guide minimum standards, but MC excels in inclusion and accessibility efforts.

  • UDC’s systematic approach illustrates commitment to established practices, minimizing risks while focusing on equitable educational standards.

  • UDC promotes continuous improvement and awareness through varied engagement practices and resources available to faculty and staff for effective UD implementation.

  • QR Codes provide access to additional resources and continued engagement with UDC efforts.

References

  • Key References:

    • Batt, E. G. (2010)

    • Bennett, N., Wise, C., & Harvey, J. A. (2003).

    • Bronfenbrenner, U. (1979).

    • Fullan, M. (2001; 2007).

    • Hall, G., & Hord, S. (2001).

    • Tuckman, B. W. (1965).

  • A complete list of references is included to support the detailed discussions and findings within the document.