2024 Accessibility Leader Certification Ceremony

On March 17, Institute of Science Tokyo held an award ceremony at Hisao & Hiroko Taki Plaza on Ookayama Campus to present certificates to 35 students and faculty members newly certified as “Level 2 Accessibility Leaders.”

After the ceremony, a workshop for certified students was also held to help familiarize them with sign language and experience using actual support equipment to reinforce what they had learned by putting it into practice.

The Accessibility Leadership Program (ALP) aims to give individuals the knowledge of how to promote accessibility in a society of diverse needs. The course is offered in an on-demand format, and trainees may also choose to take the certification exam on-line.
The Institute offers ALP training at Student Accessibility Services, where students can obtain certification to become “Level 2 Accessibility Leaders.” In 2024, a total of 35 students (14 students and 21 faculty and staff) became certified.

At the award ceremony, Riko Okada (1st year master’s student, Mechanical Engineering), who participated in the Accessibility Leader Camp, a nationwide training session for certified students, gave a report on her experience at the camp.
Nobuhide Hirai, the Head of the Student Accessibility Services who presided over the ceremony, expressed his high hopes for the first accessibility leaders to be certified after the establishment of Science Tokyo.

Ten students participated in the workshop after the award ceremony. In the first half, Ms. Hozuki Kurosawa (1st year, Life Science and Technology) taught them some simple expressions in sign language. For the second half, the workshop relocated to the central staircase of Taki Plaza, where students practiced using the Airstretcher device, a self-inflating universal stretcher for transporting mobility-impaired individuals up or down stairs.

• It was a good opportunity for me to learn something completely different to add to what I have learned so far in high school, university and my daily life. It can be hard to admit your own ignorance, but I’m glad I was able to learn something through this program, even if it was only a little bit.
• I learned that there are still many initiatives in areas I am not aware of, and also learned about disabilities I did not know about before. I felt that we should consider different environments and users from the start. I also learned that many things we use on a daily basis are made with users with various backgrounds in mind.
• I discovered that there are various perspectives on accessibility. I also learned a lot about where the term “accessibility” and other related words come from, which was very informative.
• By learning about accessibility, I became better at clearly visualizing the various ways to support people with disabilities, which I wasn’t aware of or hadn’t noticed before. I feel like the world I can see has vastly expanded. I am very grateful for this wonderful learning opportunity, which will definitely be useful in my future work.
• The fact that the program was entirely on-line, both the course and the exam, which meant I could learn at home during my off-hours, also encouraged me to take the course. Being able to study at my own pace made it easy to learn.

2024 marks the fifth year of the ALP at the Institute, with more than 200 participants to date. The ALP aspires to foster interest and awareness in individuals about what is considered “accessible” and “inclusive,” regardless of language, culture, environment, gender, age, or disability, and create a campus where people from diverse backgrounds can feel comfortable and included.

• ALP website
• Student Accessibility Services website