YSU Senate blasts administration for new disabled mandate

YOUNGSTOWN

A settlement between Youngstown State University and the U.S. Department of Education and the administration’s handling of it has irked some faculty members.

Under the terms of the settlement, reached late last year, the university must make all YSU webpages and materials accessible for people with disabilities. It also must provide training to staff responsible for webpage and content development.

Chet Cooper, chairman of YSU’s academic senate, a body that includes faculty and some students and members of the administration, told members of the body at a meeting Wednesday that faculty have been mandated to produce electronic materials that are compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act.

That mandate, which Cooper said came from the university’s legal counsel, was made without consultation with faculty, he said.

Cooper said it’s an order to do extra work without compensation that “in my opinion, does not fall within my job description and I don’t think falls without your job description.”

Read more about the matter in Thursday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.