Access Amplified™
Accessibility event: Flipping the script on coding
Bridging innovation and usability for all
Access Amplified™ — presented by University of Phoenix as part of its Summit of Change™ — is a free virtual event focused on advancing digital accessibility in web development.
Join engineers, developers, designers and tech enthusiasts for practical insights, real-world strategies and dynamic conversations that address the gap between coding practices and how users with assistive technology experience the web.
Equip yourself with tools that help you reshape how technology is built—one accessible solution at a time.
Date: Wednesday, Dec. 17, 2025
Time: 9 am – 1 pm AZ
Location: Virtual | Zoom Events
Cost: Free
Who should attend
- Web developers, software engineers, UX/UI designers
- Content authors and digital strategists
- Anyone ready to shape technology with empathy, innovation and measurable impact
What to expect
- Gain insights from industry leaders driving digital accessibility forward at every stage
- Explore human-centered solutions to address accessibility challenges in digital experiences
- Discover actionable techniques to move beyond institutional compliance to true usability for all
Our keynote speakers
Ed Summers
Head of Accessibility, GitHub
Ed Summers empowers people with disabilities to create, collaborate and contribute to the technology that drives human progress. As a blind developer and accessibility executive, Ed has a burning passion to use technology to level the playing field for people with disabilities globally. When his hands aren’t on a keyboard, Ed is on the go with Loki — his trusty seeing-eye dog.
Karl Groves
Digital Accessibility Consultant & Founder, AFixt
With 20 years of experience in web development, usability and accessibility, Karl Groves is widely regarded as a pragmatic solution-finder and thought leader in the accessibility industry. In his role as accessibility consultant at AFixt, Karl focuses on pragmatic and efficient ways of improving the accessibility of websites and software.
Agenda
Continuous AI for Accessibility (Ed Summers, Head of Accessibility, GitHub)
How do you leverage AI and automation to accelerate accessibility throughout the software development life cycle (SDLC)? With continuous AI for Accessibility.
Join GitHub’s Head of Accessibility for a brief review of how AI has changed the discipline of software development to date, an introduction to the emerging practice of Continuous AI, and a demonstration of examples that your team can use to accelerate accessibility when building on GitHub.
- Practical Accessibility Mechanics (Sara Soueidan, Inclusive UI Engineer/Frontend Developer)
- Accurate ARIA Integration: How HTML, CSS, JavaScript and ARIA Work Together (Jon Farrell, Software Technical Lead, Perkins School for the Blind)
- Strategies that Reshape Digital Experiences (panel discussion)
What Can We Do Today so that We're Not Doing the Same Thing in 20 Years? (Karl Groves, Digital Accessibility Consultant, AFixt)
Two decades ago, digital accessibility was just beginning to find its footing — shaped by early WCAG standards, grassroots advocacy, and a growing recognition that the web should work for everyone. Today, we’ve made undeniable progress: more awareness, better tools, stronger laws, and a global community driving change. Yet many of the same challenges persist — from systemic barriers in design and procurement to the stubborn myths that accessibility is optional, expensive, or someone else’s job.
In this talk, we’ll take a candid look at what’s truly improved, what hasn’t, and why. More importantly, we’ll explore what we can do now — as designers, developers, organizations, and advocates — to ensure that 20 years from today, we’re celebrating new breakthroughs rather than repeating old conversations.
Questions?
Please reach out to us for questions or more information about the Access Amplified™ event.