Senior Accessibility Consultant, Campus Built Environment

Company Description

By working at Harvard University, you join a vibrant community that advances Harvard's world-changing mission in meaningful ways, inspires innovation and collaboration, and builds skills and expertise. We are dedicated to creating a diverse and welcoming environment where everyone can thrive.

Why join Harvard University Central Administration?

Harvard University's Central Administration (CADM) is a 5,000+ employee organization that supports the university's overall excellence by understanding and serving the needs of its schools, students, faculty, staff, alumni, and surrounding communities. Through dynamic and collaborative partnerships, CADM provides high-quality and efficient services to the schools to help them achieve their goals.

Job Description

University Disability Resources (UDR) provides leadership to university efforts to ensure an accessible, welcoming working and learning environment for individuals with disabilities while ensuring compliance with federal and state regulations. UDR serves as a central resource on disability-related information, procedures and services for the University community and provides expertise in the development, implementation, and acquisition of standard disability-related University practices, procedures, and resources.

Reporting to the Sr. Director of UDR, the Senior Accessibility Consultant, Campus Built Environment, is a subject matter expert on programmatic and physical accessibility, as related to the built environment. The Senior Accessibility Consultant, Campus Built Environment, leads University efforts on compliance as well as best practices and promoting inclusive design.

Job-Specific Responsibilities:

The Senior Accessibility Consultant, Campus Built Environment, plays a pivotal role in the design, implementation, and ongoing refinement of the University-wide Barrier Removal Framework Plan, driving multi-year, campus-wide strategies to identify, prioritize, and remove physical accessibility barriers. The position provides expert guidance to planners, designers, and facilities staff to support a campus environment compliant with the Americans with Disabilities Act and its amendments (the "ADA"), Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 ("Section 504"), and the regulations issued by the Massachusetts Architectural Access Board ("MAAB"). The Senior Accessibility Consultant, Campus Built Environment, may also consult on various topics, including accessibility of furniture and equipment, and developing and delivering disability related training. The person in this position will inform work by Accessibility Consultants as they facilitate accommodation requests and consult related to the built environment, including for events.

The Senior Accessibility Consultant, Campus Built Environment also applies their expertise in inclusive design/universal design and promotes its use University-wide. The Senior Accessibility Consultant, Campus Built Environment, consults with other subject matter experts to make recommendations regarding practice, process, and strategies supporting the mission of UDR.

Additional job-specific responsibilities include:

• Plays a critical leadership role in the University's campus-wide accessibility audit data management efforts; evaluation and assessment of barrier removal targets; oversight of plan implementation; and oversight of tracking progress towards a barrier-free campus. Defines data standards and workflows that enable consistent documentation, tracking, and reporting of barrier removal efforts.
• Engages with campus partners whose roles are critical in supporting physical accessibility, with the goal of designing and advancing a multi-year, University-wide strategy for barrier removal. This includes Harvard University Planning and Design, Capital Projects, and administrative staff whose work focuses on planning, operations and facilities at each of the University's schools and units.
• Supports periodic evaluation of the Barrier Removal Framework Plan (e.g., at the end of initial implementation phases), recommending adjustments to targets, methodologies, and processes based on data and stakeholder feedback.
• Is a core member of the Harvard Capital Projects Review Committee (CPRC), supporting reviews of capital projects to assure accessibility is a prioritized consideration in new construction and major renovation.
• Is a core member of the University Accessibility Committee's Facilities Working Group, that seeks to promote physical accessibility across the University.
• Guides Accessibility Consultants in their engagement with built environment accessibility consultations, including (but not limited to) academic facilities; residential facilities; commercial facilities; athletic venues; entertainment spaces; libraries; museums; recreational spaces; research laboratories; dining spaces; offices; and places of assembly.
• Conducts site visits as appropriate.
• Assesses training/educational needs for internal partners and develops training materials and customized curricula related to barrier removal and accessibility in the built environment.
• Tracks and synthesizes changes to relevant federal, state, and local accessibility regulations and standards and advises on implications for University projects.
• Conduct continuous research to remain current in technology, tools, and design solutions that increase accessibility in built environments and advance the principles of inclusive design/universal design.
• Provides other related services, as needed.

Qualifications

Basic Qualifications are the minimum requirements a candidate must meet to be considered for this role.

• Bachelor's degree with 7+ years of progressive experience with accessibility in the built environment
• Current knowledge of the ADA and MAAB requirements for accessibility in the built environment

Additional Qualifications and Skills:

• Degree in Facilities Management, Architecture or related field is strongly preferred.
• Experience working with facilities data systems, capital planning platforms, or similar tools; ability to interpret and communicate data and metrics to nontechnical stakeholders.
• Ability to read and correctly interpret construction documents.
• Familiarity with the planning, design, and construction process.
• Understanding of inclusive/universal design principles.
• Ability to perform site reviews at various buildings and in various spaces, including climbing steps, grasping, bending, viewing, and lifting.
• Superior communication skills; that is, the ability to write, speak, and present information effectively and persuasively to various audiences.
• Able to manage competing priorities and timelines while bringing initiatives to completion.
• Ability to navigate in a decentralized environment.
• Familiarity with assistive technology, resources, and indications for utilization.