ITKAN
@itkan-chicago.bsky.social
Information Technology Knowledge and Abilities Network | Developing Professionals with Disabilities into Passionate Technology Leaders to Support the Aggressive Adoption of Deep Diversity.
Let's celebrate, today is Ada Lovelace Day! Known for creating the first machine algorithm for Babbage's Analytical Engine, Ada Lovelace is widely celebrated as the first programmer. Ada Lovelace at PG: www.gutenberg.org/ebooks/autho... #books #womeninstem
Tomorrow evening @chihacknight.org is online for an open hack. Learn more > chihacknight.org/events/2026/...
Online: Open Hack - Chi Hack Night
There will be no presentation this week. Instead, we're going to have an Open Hack. Join our 7pm open Zoom call for introductions, socializing, announcements and breakout groups.
chihacknight.org
If your design system ignores cognitive accessibility, who exactly is it designed for? People are the point. zeroheight.com/blog/... #Accessibility #CognitiveAccessibility #InclusiveDesign #DesignSystems #UX #DigitalAccessibility #A11y
People are the point: Why cognitive accessibility needs to be part of your design system - zeroheight
Nathania Gilson explains why cognitive accessibility belongs in design systems, and how better documentation and governance can create more inclusive experiences.
zeroheight.com
Our next meeting is this evening. Andres Ramirez of the AI Safety Awareness Project The Bet on Scaling: Datacenters & the Future of AI. Learn more & register > www.eventbrite.com/e/itkan-octo...
ITKAN October 2026 - The Bet on Scaling: Datacenters & the Future of AI
Join us on 10/8 from 5:30-7PM CST in Teams as Andres Ramirez of the AI Safety Awareness Project discusses our AI future.
eventbrite.com
A #WordPress site isn't automatically accessible out the box. On #WPA11yDay, we share workarounds for your theme to ensure your site is inclusive. Learn more about landmarks and the available tools to assess the #accessibility of your site: zurl.co/i0gTK #DigitalAccessibility @wpaccessibility.day
Our next meeting is tomorrow. Andres Ramirez of the AI Safety Awareness Project The Bet on Scaling: Datacenters & the Future of AI. Learn more & register > www.eventbrite.com/e/itkan-octo...
ITKAN October 2026 - The Bet on Scaling: Datacenters & the Future of AI
Join us on 10/8 from 5:30-7PM CST in Teams as Andres Ramirez of the AI Safety Awareness Project discusses our AI future.
eventbrite.com
A powerful reminder of how technology can support independence. 💙 eastersealshouston.org/navigating-l...
Navigating Life with Low Vision: A Client Success Story from BridgingApps - Easter Seals Greater Houston
Our BridgingApps program introduces clients to digital assistive technology and digital literacy. Our client has a great story on how using technology has made his life simpler
eastersealshouston.org
This evening @chihacknight.org is Online: Chicago Public Media - chicago.com. Learn more > chihacknight.org/events/2026/...
chicago.com
Local guides, community conversation, and news from every Chicago newsroom, gathered in one place.
chicago.com
Join us on 10/8 from 5:30-7PM CST in Teams as Andres Ramirez of the AI Safety Awareness Project The Bet on Scaling: Datacenters & the Future of AI. Learn more & register > www.eventbrite.com/e/itkan-octo...
ITKAN October 2026 - The Bet on Scaling: Datacenters & the Future of AI
Join us on 10/8 from 5:30-7PM CST in Teams as Andres Ramirez of the AI Safety Awareness Project discusses our AI future.
eventbrite.com
Update to our 10/8 meeting: The Bet on Scaling: Datacenters & the Future of AI. Andres Ramirez, Director of Partnerships at AI Safety Awareness Project, will help us think through what a good AI future looks like for our community. Learn more & register > www.eventbrite.com/e/itkan-octo...
ITKAN October 2026 - The Bet on Scaling: Datacenters & the Future of AI
Join us on 10/8 from 5:30-7PM CST in Teams as Andres Ramirez of the AI Safety Awareness Project discusses our AI future.
eventbrite.com
What happens when disability becomes AI training data? Nicolas Steenhout asks questions accessibility cannot afford to ignore. buttondown.com/nic-s... #Accessibility #Disability #AI #AIEthics #DataEthics #DigitalAccessibility #DisabilityRights #InclusiveDesign
Disability, Meta glasses, datasets, and MAiD
Here's another single-article newsletter. The topic matters, and there was no way I was going to do it justice in a few hundred words. I first heard about...
buttondown.com
Join us on 10/8 from 5:30-7PM CST in Teams as Andres Ramirez of the AI Safety Awareness Project discusses our AI future. Learn more & register > www.eventbrite.com/e/itkan-octo...
ITKAN October 2026 - AI Safety Awarenes
Join us on 10/8 from 5:30-7PM CST in Teams as Andres Ramirez of the AI Safety Awareness Project discusses our AI future.
eventbrite.com
This evening @chihacknight.org is Online: Open Hack. Learn more > chihacknight.org/events/2026/...
Online: Open Hack - Chi Hack Night
There will be no presentation this week. Instead, we're going to have an Open Hack. Join our 7pm open Zoom call for introductions, socializing, announcements and breakout groups.
chihacknight.org
Accessibility rarely gets removed. It gets lost in the handoffs. If your workflow doesn't carry a11y forward, it's not really built in. buttondown.com/nic-s... #Accessibility #DigitalAccessibility #A11y #InclusiveDesign #AccessibilityLeadership #ShiftLeft
Accessibility getting dropped in the process
This newsletter is a bit different than previous ones. Rather than my usual collection of shorter articles and updates, it’s devoted to one longer piece. The...
buttondown.com
AI Projects keep related conversations, files, and instructions together, giving AI the context it needs to support your ongoing work. Join us Thursday, October 1 at Noon ET for "Get Organized with AI Projects." ACVREP credits available. Register: us06web.zoom.us/webi... #JAWS #ScreenReader
Tomorrow evening @chihacknight.org is In-person and Online: Cook County Assessor (700th Chi Hack Night!) Learn more > chihacknight.org/events/2026/...
In-person and Online: Cook County Assessor (700th Chi Hack Night!) - Chi Hack Night
In 2019, at his first Chi Hack Night, Cook County Assessor Fritz Kaegi committed to building a fairer, and transparent property assessment system. Seven years later, join Fritz for a look at how data ...
chihacknight.org
New Chicago Community Dashboard project: chicagocommunitydashboard.org, might be of interest to folks! Made by @datamade.us
Home | Chicago Community Dashboard
Free, annually updated data on demographics, health, economics, and education across Chicago's community areas, wards, and school board districts.
chicagocommunitydashboard.org
Tomorrow evening @chihacknight.org is In-person and Online: Chicago Community Dashboard. Learn more > chihacknight.org/events/2026/...
In-person and Online: Chicago Community Dashboard - Chi Hack Night
Join for a presentation around the Chicago Community Dashbaord, built by DataMade and the Robert R. McCormick Foundation
chihacknight.org
This is a good article in today's @liberalcurrents.com - The leading #civictech answer to this has been to deliver better services but I don't think that works anymore. We have to deliver services, while ensuring privacy *and* addressing tech harms. www.liberalcurrents.com/what-comes-a...
liberalcurrents.com
Accessibility isn't a score or a checkbox. This week's reading list asks tougher questions about conformance, AI, governance, and real users. reading-lists.kc.vis... #DigitalAccessibility #Accessibility #A11y #WCAG #InclusiveDesign #AccessibilityLeadership
This evening join us from 5:30-7PM CST for our next virtual meeting. David Douglas will demo Anchor, a confidential AI check-in app used to increase job retention. Register > www.eventbrite.com/e/itkan-augu...
ITKAN August 2026 - AI for Job Retention
Join us on 8/13 from 5:30-7PM CST in Teams as David Douglas demos Anchor, a confidential AI check-in app used to increase job retention.
eventbrite.com
Join David Sloan and Cvent's Stephen Cutchins on September 10 at Noon ET for a practical and engaging fireside chat on what a meaningful accessibility baseline looks like and how to move forward with confidence. Register: vispero.com/lp/under...
Join us tomorrow from 5:30-7PM CST for our next virtual meeting. David Douglas will demo Anchor, a confidential AI check-in app used to increase job retention. Register > www.eventbrite.com/e/itkan-augu...
ITKAN August 2026 - AI for Job Retention
Join us on 8/13 from 5:30-7PM CST in Teams as David Douglas demos Anchor, a confidential AI check-in app used to increase job retention.
eventbrite.com
Summer Internship Program alum HuáHuī Samuel Vogel wrote a beautiful reflection about how his adoption story and medical journey inspired their passion for advocacy. Read it: https://ow.ly/eBKF50ZyZgg
Interested in getting your hands on raw data, but not sure where to start? Tonight @chihacknight.org is online: FOIA 101 from Muckrock. Learn more > chihacknight.org/events/2026/...
Online: FOIA 101 from Muckrock - Chi Hack Night
FOIA 101: Interested in getting your hands on raw data, but not sure where to start? Need documents or other information from a government agency, but not sure how to ask? MuckRock has worked with jou...
chihacknight.org
Join us on Thursday from 5:30-7PM CST for our next virtual meeting. David Douglas will demo Anchor, a confidential AI check-in app used to increase job retention. Register > www.eventbrite.com/e/itkan-augu...
ITKAN August 2026 - AI for Job Retention
Join us on 8/13 from 5:30-7PM CST in Teams as David Douglas demos Anchor, a confidential AI check-in app used to increase job retention.
eventbrite.com
Next week us for our next virtual meeting. David Douglas will demo Anchor, a confidential AI check-in app used to increase job retention. Learn more > bit.ly/4wsGShl
August 2026 Meeting – AI for Job Retention - ITKAN
Register for the August 13 meeting. More than 4 in 10 people placed through vocational rehabilitation lose the job in the first year, usually for reasons no one caught in time. Anchor is the confident...
bit.ly
Partial accessibility can create false confidence. Inclusion requires accessible experiences from start to finish, not barriers halfway through. buttondown.com/acces... #Accessibility #DigitalAccessibility #InclusiveDesign #WCAG #A11y #UserExperience #AccessibilityMatters
Partial Accessibility Is Sometimes Worse Than No Accessibility at All
Doors closing that dissolve around the edges Claude responded: To people who do not use assistive technology, partial accessibility sounds like a reasonable...
buttondown.com
Join us on 8/13 from 5:30-7PM CST for our next virtual meeting. David Douglas will demo Anchor, a confidential AI check-in app used to increase job retention. Learn more > bit.ly/4wsGShl
August 2026 Meeting – AI for Job Retention - ITKAN
Register for the August 13 meeting. More than 4 in 10 people placed through vocational rehabilitation lose the job in the first year, usually for reasons no one caught in time. Anchor is the confident...
bit.ly
