The Alliance for Person-Centered Accessible Technologies (APAcT), an Integrative Graduate Education and Research Traineeship (IGERT) project funded by the National Science Foundation (NSF), was established in 2011 under a collaboration by Arizona State University (ASU) and California State University, Long Beach (CSULB). Since its inception, the goal of the project was to train doctoral students to become leaders in the design, development, implementation, and policy of person-centered technologies and practices to ensure individuals with disabilities are included as fully participating members of society. Twenty-seven trainees (21 from ASU and 6 from CSULB), 45 faculty (28 from ASU and 17 from CSULB), and 14 associates have since participated in the program. Their expertise spans the areas of computer science, bioengineering; mechanical and aerospace engineering; human evolution and social change; education and policy; law, and ethics. Of the 27 trainees, 13 were women; 3 were black/African American; 2 were Hispanic/Latino, and 6 had a disability.

Cutting-edge, interdisciplinary, collaborative research on person-centric accessible technology has been a primary objective of this project. The efforts of its trainees and faculty have resulted in over 200 publications in journals, conferences and other platforms. IGERT trainees and faculty have participated in collaborative research, applied internships and service learning experiences with over 78 partners: 12 in industry, 2 in government, 36 in academia, and 28 in other sectors. Major research achievements by the program’s faculty and trainees include the development and publication of a novel computing paradigm based on person-centeredness, the development of advanced manufactured person-centered medical devices for amputees, breakthrough scientific progress in the understanding of neural mechanisms for complex grasping, and cutting-edge research aimed at combining virtual reality, neuromodulation and rehabilitation robotics to address post-stroke proprioceptive deficits. To strengthen collaborations between the many IGERT trainees and faculty from ASU and CSULB, an annual research symposium was held throughout the project’s duration wherein trainees presented their research, prepared detailed posters, and held collaborative roundtable discussions with faculty, associates and their fellow trainees.

To prepare its trainees to become leaders in their respective fields, IGERT faculty, Principal Investigators, and associates collaborated on the successful development of a multi-disciplinary educational program. This included the development of four 3-credit core courses including “Community Inclusion: Introduction to People with Disabilities”, “Human Factors and Systems Design”, “Assistive Technologies” and “Disability Technology, Ethics, Policy”. Furthermore, an interdisciplinary certificate in Applied Disability Studies was successfully developed by IGERT faculty from the College of Education at CSULB, with three other certificates in process at ASU. In addition to coursework, IGERT trainees participated in over 18 applied internships or service learning experiences, which allowed them to both apply and develop their skills, often in areas outside of their primary discipline. Trainees also traveled to 11 countries throughout the world for interaction with international partners and for presentation and publication at international conferences and events. To empower trainees with the ability to transition their work from the research stage into the development and application stage, the concepts of entrepreneurship, commercialization and global leadership were incorporated through participation in the NSF I-Corps program, ASU’s Venture Catalyst Program, and two entrepreneurship workshops developed by APAcT and held at both ASU and CSULB.

This IGERT project has achieved success in creating a lasting impact in its associated field. Of the 27 trainees who received funding within the program, 3 have had their research featured in media outlets, 12 led and organized events and coursework related to their research, and 18 participated in, organized, and assisted with the 156 outreach activities with which APAcT has been involved. These trainees have demonstrated a thoroughly-developed sense of teamwork through the formation of a student committee, for which 9 of the trainees have served as chair or co-chair. The committee’s tasks included conducting weekly meetings wherein trainees would present their research to one another and invited over 15 guest speakers to present to the group, including IGERT and non-IGERT faculty in addition to visiting national and international experts. IGERT trainee graduates have successfully advanced their careers as highly-skilled leaders in both industry and academia, serving in positions including Assistant Professorships at Bridgewater State University, Missouri University of Science and Technology and Hiroshima University; Adjunct Professorship at ASU Online and Harrisberg University of Science and Technology; Research Physiologist at the National Institute of Neurological Disorders and Stroke; and R&D Biomedical Engineer at Viveve, Inc.

For the past seven years, this IGERT project achieved success in meeting its objectives in person-centered accessible technology and has made global impacts through its interdisciplinary accomplishments and outreach in research, education, international interaction, entrepreneurship initiatives, and individual achievements of its trainees, faculty, principal investigators, associates, and partners.

Last Modified: 08/16/2018
Modified by: Sethuraman Panchanathan