Office for Civil Rights Compliance and Prevention Education recognizes S.B. Chandler, digital accessibility officer

According to the Merriam-Webster dictionary, impact is defined as “the strong influence of one thing on another; a significant or major effect.” And that is exactly what the Office for Civil Rights Compliance and Prevention Education  (CRCPE) team has set out to honor with the annual Impact Award. This year, the office recognized S.B. Chandler, deputy ADA coordinator and digital accessibility officer, for his outstanding contributions to digital accessibility across Virginia Tech's Blacksburg campus.

Leader in digital accessibility 

With more than 38 years on campus, three degrees including a Ph.D. in curriculum and instruction specializing in distance learning — and a variety of teaching and administrative roles — Chandler executes a campuswide digital accessibility compliance program, providing leadership, compliance oversight, and overall coordination of the university’s efforts in evaluating and recommending accessibility policies, procedures, and best practices. 

“Chandler has worked diligently to develop a comprehensive digital accessibility compliance framework to bolster how Virginia Tech evaluates, procures, and maintains accessible technologies,” said Kelly Oaks, associate vice president for civil rights and prevention education. “By standardizing the university’s accessibility testing process, he has created a scalable, repeatable system for assessing a wide range of platforms, which has ensured that digital resources are usable and inclusive for all campus stakeholders.”

Chandler’s position works across all types of digital assets, which includes websites, software procurement, course materials, social media, and apps; and collaborates with university partners, leadership, Technology-enhanced Learning and Online Strategies (TLOS), the division of IT units, external vendors, and individuals with disabilities to provide IT guidance, promote appropriate support resources, and establish accountability plans that foster inclusivity and accessibility compliance. 

Most recently, Chandler led the Title II Working Group and oversaw the seven subcommittees: Documents and Media; Teaching and Learning, Marketing websites; Procurement and Policy; Training and Communication; and Web and Native application. These groups involving partners from across the university tackled compliance areas. 

“Never before have I seen committees so willing to roll their sleeves up and tackle the work,” Chandler said. “As just one example, the apps subcommittee identified almost 3,000 applications in use around the university.”

He said the campus would not have been remotely ready for Virginia’s Information Technology Act deadline in April or the Title II deadline in 2027 without the work of these groups. 

“It also includes specific requirements for procuring accessible digital products — something Virginia Tech has been improving on for over five years,” Chandler said. 

A collaborative effort

CRCPE created the departmental annual Impact Award to recognize the efforts of the team to promote a learning and working environment free from harassment and discrimination for employees and students. It recognizes, rewards, and acknowledges outstanding contributions of a CRCPE employee or units within the department, engaging in activities that have had a positive impact on the department or university as a whole or have improved CRCPE’s ability to meet the goals of the department, division, or the university more effectively. 

Employees are nominated for the Impact Award during a four-week period in late winter by peers in the office and across campus for their contributions to development or revision of a system or program that resulted in enhanced service delivery; increased efficiencies; decreased organizational risks; and enhanced work environment or student experience. This May, the CRCPE selected Chandler for its 2026 Impact Award.

“The success of our accessibility initiatives hinges on collaboration across teams and departments across the university,” Chandler said. “The Impact Award is a collective effort that involves working closely with a variety of talents to keep our digital spaces accessible across the board.”  

This includes accessibility team members Emily Hilgendorf, lead accessibility developer; Navya Rao Somolu, accessibility developer; and Christa Miller, accessibility analyst.

Over the last year, Chandler’s accessibility team delivered 32 seminars and presentations, many through TLOS’s Professional Development Network, which included another 30 TLOS-based trainings, a documentation series from WebAIM, and 40 trainings from Deque University. 

“The Impact Award may have my name on it but it is because of the work they all are doing,” Chandler said. “I’ve been so lucky to work with Emily. She has been so valuable in getting things done and reviewing products — so much so that I no longer worry about where we are in the review process. When she was out, it was incredibly clear that she contributes in ways that we don’t even see.

“[Another team member] Navya has increased our capacity and given us capabilities we just didn’t have before,” he said. “And Christa has so much expertise, institutional knowledge, and connections, and she never took off her director’s hat or her laser focus. Thanks to them for the ways that they contribute and keep our efforts professional.”