Biography

Gregg Vanderheiden is a professor of Industrial and Biomedical Engineering, and director of Trace R&D Center at the University of Wisconsin-Madison and co-directs Raising the Floor, an international consortium of over 50 companies and organizations building the Global Public Inclusive Infrastructure (GPII). Has worked in technology and disability for over 45 years; was a pioneer in Augmentative Communication (a term taken from his writings in 1979) and computer access. Most of the initial access features for both Windows and MacOS came from his Center. His can be in a wide range of products including computers, phones, Automated Postal Stations, Amtrak ticket machines, and airport communication terminals. He co-chaired both WCAG 1.0 and 2.0 working groups, and has worked with over 50 companies and numerous government advisory & planning committees including FCC, NSF, NIH, GSA, NCD, Access Board and White House. (Dr. Vanderheiden will be joining the faculty of the iSchool at University of Maryland – College Park the fall.)