ABLE Summit 2019
“Disability is not a brave struggle or ‘courage in the face of adversity.’ Disability is an art. It’s an ingenious way to live.” Neil Marcus
Speakers
“What was impossible yesterday, is possible today with technology.” - ABLE team
Dr. Fadlo Khuri
President of American University of Beirut
Dr. Yousif Asfour
CIO at American University of Beirut
Dr. Talal Nizammedin
Dean of Student Affairs at AUB
Sam Koplewicz
Former Harvard Human Rights Fellow Human Rights Watch
Paul Abi Ishac
Education and Awareness Manager Arcenciel
Dr. Bassam Farah
Assistant Professor at the American University of Beirut
Humberto Insolera
Executive Committee European Disability Forum
Jennison Asuncion
Co-Founder, Global Accessibility Awareness Day & Engineering Manager, Accessibility LinkedIn
Rami Farran
IT Director at the American University of Beirut
Jeremy P. Seda
IT Accessibility Coordinator - North Idaho College
Dr. Celine Merheb-Ghanem
Senior Lecturer - American University of Technology
Mahmoud Darawsheh
CEO and Founder - MindRockets
Dr. Richard Kouyoumdjian
Ministry of Social Affairs (MOSA)
Patrick McGrath
EdTech Specialist Texthelp Ltd
Dr. Fredrik Larsson
CTO & Founder ReadSpeaker
Beth Watson
Director of Channel and Partner Marketing - Education at Microsoft
Myles Pilling
Council Member and Director British Assistive Technology Association
Hilda Khoury
Director of DOPS MEHE
Souha Bourjeily
Corporate Communications and CSR Manager ALFA
Shadi Abou-Zahra
Web Accessibility Strategy and Technology Specialist - W3C
Jamie Ball
Regional Manager Texthelp Ltd
Press Releases
Check ABLE Summit 2019 Press Releases.
Agenda
ABLE Summit 2019 Agenda. Replay Sessions. Download Slides.
Day 1 - Thursday, April 11, 2019
9:00am – 9:45am
OSB Maamari Auditorium
Opening Ceremony
By LSBD Choir (Lebanese School for the Blind & Deaf), Dr. Yousif Asfour, Dr. Fadlo R. Khuri, President of the Council of Ministers, His Excellency Mr. Saad Hariri, Georges Khabbaz
Opening Greetings
- 9:00 - 9:10 Musical Opening Greeting by LSBD Choir (Lebanese School for the Blind & Deaf).
- 9:10 - 9:15 IT at AUB Welcome Note by Dr. Yousif Asfour, Chief of Information Technology (CIO).
- 9:15 - 9:20 AUB Welcome Note by Dr. Fadlo R. Khuri, President of AUB.
- 9:20 - 9:30 Speech by President of the Council of Ministers, His Excellency Mr. Saad Hariri.
- 9:30 - 9:40 Inspirational Greeting by Georges Khabbaz.
- 9:40 - 9:45 ABLE 2019 Overview.
9:45am – 10:00am
Morning Coffee
Plenary Session
By Dr. Humberto Insolera, Sam Koplewicz, Dr. Yousif Asfour
Innovative Policies Contributing to Accessible Education: European Experience
10:00am - 10:15am by Dr. Humberto Insolera, EDF Executive Committee, European Disability Forum.
Access to Education: the height of the hurdles
10:15am - 10:30am by Sam Koplewicz, former Harvard Human Rights Fellow, Human Rights Watch.
Building a Digitally Accessible Organization
10:30am - 10:45am by Dr. Yousif Asfour, Chief of Information Technology (CIO), American University of Beirut.
10:45am – 11:30am
OSB Maamari Auditorium
Abled Experiences & Success Stories
By Anthony Nahoul, Rima Kaddoura, Lama Joudieh, Dr. Bassam Farah, Ralph Kostantine, Mr. Elias Kassab, Discussion with Maha Zouwayhed.
Success Stories
- 10:45 - 10:50 Anthony Nahoul, B.S. In Computer Science, General Manager, A.M.N International for Software Development.
- 10:50 - 10:55 Rima Kaddoura, Master's of Public Health, Research Assistant at the Department of Emergency Medicine, American University of Beirut Medical Center (AUBMC).
- 10:55 - 11:00 Lama Joudieh, Head designer and Curator, Paintbuckethead.
- 11:00 - 11:05 Dr. Bassam Farah, Professor, Olayan School of Business - AUB.
- 11:05 - 11:10 Ralph Kostantine, Computer Science Student, NDU.
- 11:10 - 11:15 Mr. Elias Kassab, Contact Center Data Support Supervisor, Alfa.
- 11:15 - 11:30, Discussion with Maha Zouwayhed, ABLE Organizer - IT Business Development Manager, AUB.
11:30am – 11:45am
Coffee Break
11:45am – 1:00pm
OSB Maamari Auditorium
Leading Practices and Trends
By Jennison Asuncion, Shadi Abou-Zahra, Dr. Celine Merheb Ghanem, Jeremy Seda, Souha Bourjeily
Three Fundamentals for Improving Digital Accessibility and Inclusion
1:45 - 12:00 Jennison Asuncion, Co-Founder, Global Accessibility Awareness Day, Engineering Manager- Accessibility LinkedIn.
International Standards for Digital Accessibility
12:00 - 12:15 Shadi Abou-Zahra, Web Accessibility Strategy and Technology Specialist, W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI)
Reflection on the impact of techno-pedagogical innovations (AUT- HALAT)
12:15 - 12:30 Dr. Celine Merheb Ghanem, Senior Lecturer, American University of Technology (AUT).
Make Everything 1% better
12:30 - 12:45 Jeremy Seda, IT Accessibility Coordinator, North Idaho College (NIC).
"People with Iron Will" at the Workplace - Alfa's Model
12:45 - 1:00 Souha Bourjeily, Corporate Communications and CSR Manager, Alfa
1:00pm – 2:30pm
Lunch and Exhibition
Innovation and Assistive Technologies
By Myles Pilling, Beth Watson, Dr. Fredrick Larson.
Towards a More ABLE Society Using Assistive Technology
2:30 - 2:55 Myles Pilling, Council Member and Director, BATA
The Inclusive Classroom
2:55 - 3:20 Beth Watson, Director of Education Partner Marketing, Microsoft Corp
Innovations for Non-visual Computer Access - My ICT Journey
3:20 - 3:40 Dr. Fredrick Larson, CTO & Founder, Readspeaker
3:45pm – 4:00pm
Coffee Break
Innovation and Assistive Technologies continued
By Patrick McGrath, Dr. Soha Maad, Malek Zuaiter.
How innovation can ensure student engagement with Assistive Technology
4:00 - 4:25 Patrick McGrath, Education Technology Specialist, TextHelp
Challenges and Opportunities of Building Infrastructure For Massive Open Online Education Resources
4:25 - 4:50 Dr. Soha Maad, Founder and Manager, IGROW EEIG, Dublin Ireland.
Overcoming Challenges With Assistive Technology (Access to information, Social Media, and Services)
4:50 - 5:15 Malek Zuaiter, Business Development Executive, MindRockets.
Day 2 - Friday, April 12, 2019
9:30am – 10:15am
OSB Maamari Auditorium
Status and Challenges in Higher Education in Lebanon
Panel Discussion moderated by Dr. Yousif Asfour, CIO - AUB
Panel
- His Excellency Mr. Akram Chehayeb, Minister of Education and Higher Education.
- His Excellency Dr. Minister Richard Kouyoumdjian, Minister of Social Affairs
- Georges Xanthopoulos, Head of Accessibility & Mobility Program, Arcenciel, Member of the National Committee for People with Disability
- Dr. Talal Nezameddin, Dean of Student Affairs, AUB
- Amer Makarem, Local Coordinator of Inclusive Public School Model Project Manager of the Youth Association of the Blind (YAB)
- Nadine Ismail, Head of the Early Intervention Program The Learning Center for the Deaf (LCD)
10:15am – 10:30am
Coffee Break
10:30am – 12:30pm
OSB Maamari Auditorium
Digital Accessibility Tracks - Collaborative Sessions
4 Tracks.
Track 1 – Special Student Success | Powered by AUB Office of Student Affairs (OSA)
10:30am - a. Skills and Resources. OSB Room 340.
- T1S1-Inclusive Education Concept ,Structure and Practice
- Dr. Basma Frangieh and Dr. Robert White
- T.I.E.S (Together for Inclusive Educational Systems) Workshop
11:30am - b. Organizational Readiness. OSB Room 233 - OSB Room 236.
- T1S2.1-Inclusive Public School Model Project
- Hilda Khoury
- Director of DOPS ( Counseling and Guidance Department at Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE))Presentation
- T1S2.2-Inclusion Manual
- Paul Abi Eshak, Education & Awareness Manager, Arcenciel. Presentation
Track 2 – Governance and Regulations | Powered by GCNL
10:30am - a. Policies and Governmental Programs
- T2S1-Policies and Governmental Programs
- Panel Discussion, moderated by: Dr. Hasan Youness, Strategic Advisor of Global Compact Network Lebanon (GCNL).
- H.E. MP Nadim Gemayel, Chairman of the ICT Committee, Lebanese Parliament.
- H.E. Former Minister of Telecom & MP Nicolas Sehnaoui, Chairman, UK-Lebanon Tech Hub.
- H.E. MP. Dr. Inaya Ezzeddine, Minister of State for Administrative Reform, Lebanese.
- Angela Zettler, Disability Focal Point, Inclusive Social Development Section/Social Development Division, United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Western Asia.
1:10 pm - b. Institutional Policies, Challenges and Priorities
- T2S2-Institutional Policies, Challenges and Priorities
- Panel Discussion, moderated by Sylvana Lakkis, Chairperson, Arab Regional Office, Lebanese Physical Handicapped Union (LPHU)
- Tanya Chapuisat, UNICEF Representative in Lebanon
- Aline Karam, Chief Communications Affairs, Alfa
- Joe Rahal, Advisor to the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Emigrants,Founder of Joe Rahal Foundation
- Yasmina El Khoury Raphael, Head of Business Environment and Innovation, Presidency of the Council of Ministers
Track 3 – E-Accessibility | Powered AUB IT Academic Services
10:30am - a. Assistive Technologies
- T3S1.1 - Microsoft - O365 Accessibility
- Aly Harakeh, Microsoft MEA Education GTM Lead, Microsoft Workshop
- T3S1.2 - Building a Technology Action Plan for Accessibility
- Jamie Ball, Regional Manager, TextHelp Workshop
- T3S1.3 - Disability & Accessibility in Simple Words
- Spiro Haber, Business Development Manager, ReadSpeaker Workshop
- T3S1.4 - Integrating Sign Language Avatar Interpreters into Organizations
- Mahmoud Darawsheh, CEO and Founder MindRocketsPresentation
- T3S1.5 - Capti : Visualizing through Infographics
- Mira El Koussa, Research & Infographic Design Levtude Presentation
- T3S1.6-Using Alternative Means of Recording
- Myles Pilling, Director, British Assistive Technology Association (BATA) Workshop
11:30am - b. Standards, Integration & Inclusive Design
- T3S2.1-The Dynamic Saw
- Jeremy Seda, IT Accessibility Coordinator, North Idaho College (NIC)
- Jennison Asuncion Co-Founder, Global Accessibility Awareness DayEngineering Manager- Accessibility LinkedIn Presentation
- T3S2.2-Introduction to Web Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG)
- Shadi Abou-Zahra, Web Accessibility Strategy and Technology Specialist, W3C Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) Presentation
- T3S2.3 - Standards, Integration & Universal Design
- Oracle Demo
- T3S2.4 - How Digital Transformation lays the foundations for Digital Accessibility
- Sara Dbeisy, Senior Account Manager, BMB Demo
Track 4 – Independent living | Samer Sfeir
11:30am - a. Employment
- T4S1-Inclusive Employment - Strategies Towards Accommodating Equal Opportunities for All Needs
- Panel Discussion, moderated by: Sergio Moukarzel, Consultant, ProAbled
- Wissam Moubarak, Vice President for Human Resources, Indevco
- Paola Kurdy, Human Resources Director ,Alfa
- Elie Rahbany, Jbeil Acting Store Leader, Alfa
- Joe Azar, Area Manager, Shtrumpf
- Jocelyne Makhlouf, Senior Delivery Operator , Shtrumph
- Abdallah Sakka, Quality Assurance Manager, Pepsi
- Dr. Bassam Farah, Professor
12:30pm – 2:00pm
Lunch and Exhibition
Digital Accessibility Tracks - Collaborative Sessions continued
4 Tracks.
Track 1 – Special Student Success | Powered by AUB Office of Student Affairs (OSA)
2:00 pm - c. The specially Abled Student Journey
- T1S3-The specially Abled Student Journey
- Panel Discussion, moderated by Dr. Talal Nezameddin, Dean of Student Affairs - AUB
- Josephine Khoueiry, Inclusion Responsible, LSBD
- Tonie Mikhael, LSBD Graduate - Law Student / Trainee at a law office
- Paul Abi Eshak, Education & Awareness Manager Arcenciel
- Carole Haber, Manager, Testing Programs, AMIDEAST
- Stephanie Srour, Clinical Psychologist, SKILD
- Amer Makarem, Manager, Youth Association of the Blind (YAB)
- Nadine Ghalayini, Accessibility Coordinator, AUB
- Johnny El-Khoury Gebrael, NDU Alumnus
- Marianne Hakim, NDU Graduate and founding member FALA Maamari Auditorium
Track 2 – Governance and Regulations | Dr. Dima Jamali
2:00pm - c. The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
- T2S3-ADA Compliance
- Jeremy Seda, IT Accessibility Coordinator North Idaho College (NIC). Presentation.
OSB Room 236
Track 3 – E-Accessibility | Jeremy Seda
2:00pm - c. User Experience & Inclusive Design
- T3S3.1 - Building Accessible Web User Experience
- Rami Farran, Director- IT Academic Services, AUB. Workshop.
- T3S3.2 - How to Make Design Thinking More Inclusive
- Marie Trudelle, Inclusion Strategist & Visual Impairment Specialist, Empowerment Through Integration. Workshop.
- T3S3.3 - Hearing Assistive Technologies - Accessible Educational Settings
- Sama AlKhreisha, Medical Audiology Sciences
- Tatiana Al-Hajj, Medical Audiology Sciences
- Jason J. Hamden “How hearing aids helped my education", Medical Audiology Sciences Department , AUBMC.
- T3S3.4 - Accessible Authoring
- Ibrahim Chaaban, Microsoft Trainer, Chief Technology Officer (CTO), EIT. Workshop.
Track 4 – Independent living | Powered by ProAbled
2:00 pm - b. Organizational Readiness
- T4S2-Inclusion at the Workplace
- Sergio Moukarzel, Consultant, ProAbled. Workshop.
OSB Room 333
3:00pm – 3:15pm
Coffee Break
3:15pm – 4:00pm
OSB Maamari Auditorium
Roadmap to Digital Accessibility in Higher Education in Lebanon
Panel Discussion, moderated by Rami Farran, Director IT Academic Services, AUB
Panel
- Dr. Yousif Asfour, CIO, AUB
- Fadi Yarak, Director General of Education, Ministry of Education and Higher Education (MEHE), Representative of MOSA, Ministry of Social Affairs (MOSA)
- Sergio Moukarzel, Consultant, ProAbled
- Dr. Hasan Youness, Strategic Advisor, Global Compact Network Lebanon (GCNL)
- Dr. Talal Nezameddin, Dean of Student Affairs, AUB
- Dr. Fawzi Baroud, CIO, NDU
- Camille Abu Naser, CIO, LAU, Lebanese University
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