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Equity and Inclusion Office

National AccessAbility Week 2025 – Celebrating McMaster’s Ongoing Journey Toward Accessibility and Disability Inclusion

From May 25 to May 31, 2025, McMaster University joins communities across Canada in recognizing National AccessAbility Week (NAAW). Originally formed in 2017, NAAW is celebrated each year during the last week of May. It is an opportunity to recognize the contributions of Canadians with disabilities, to promote inclusion and accessibility, and to acknowledge achievements made so far to create a more accessible Canada.

At McMaster, we welcome this time to celebrate the advancements made towards creating a more disability inclusive and accessible University campus. We take this moment to acknowledge the contributions of persons with disabilities, including those with intersectional identities, within our classrooms and workplaces. In the past years there has been a notable increase in persons with disabilities at McMaster, for example, McMaster’s 2023 Employment Equity Census Report indicates that employees with disabilities at McMaster represent 5.7%, a slight increase of 0.7% from the 2021 census. With this increase (yet still a low percentage), it is a reminder that progress towards a fully accessible campus and creating inclusive and psychologically safe environments is essential to ensure inclusion for all members of our diverse McMaster community.

“It is important that as a university we continue to recognize the rights of persons with disabilities to fully participate as members within daily university life and operations, where they can experience independence, autonomy, dignity, equality of opportunities, and learn and work without discrimination. Accessibility and inclusion remain a priority at McMaster, and are a shared responsibility across campus, requiring a collective effort to make all spaces barrier free and welcoming to persons with disabilities.” says Dr. Barrington Walker, Vice-Provost (Equity and Inclusion) and Chair of the McMaster Accessibility Advisory Council.

To celebrate and acknowledge the achievements in accessibility and inclusion at McMaster, the Equity and Inclusion Office is excited to share the release of the 4th Chapter of the Accessibility and Disability Inclusion Update (2023-2024)! This publication is a collection of over 30 submissions from across our campus that highlight the meaningful efforts of students, staff, and faculty. These submissions speak to progress in inclusive teaching and learning, accessible digital environments, and community engagement that strengthens connection and belonging. This update was made possible with the collaboration of the Equity and Inclusion Office, the McMaster Accessibility Advisory Council, and the MacPherson Institute.

Additionally, to accelerate progress of accessibility and disability inclusion, the University has recently released a renewed McMaster University Accessibility Policy. The Accessibility Policy has been significantly updated and offers a roadmap for operationalizing legislative compliance under the Accessibility for Ontarians with Disabilities Act (AODA) within the University, strategically depicting the centralized and distributed responsibilities. Visit the Accessibility Hub to learn more about the upcoming information sessions, and about the training related to the Accessibility Policy.

As part of National AccessAbility Week, the McMaster Accessibility Advisory Council encourages the McMaster community to:

  • Attend an Event: During National AccessAbility Week, various McMaster communities will be hosting free events and initiatives that highlight the perspectives, experiences and achievements of the disability community while continuing important conversations about accessibility and inclusion on our campus and beyond.  Visit McMaster’s Accessibility Hub for a full list of all events taking place during National AccessAbility Week 2025.
  • Learn about the renewed McMaster University Accessibility Policy: Take part in one of the Accessibility Policy Information Sessions to learn more about the Policy, and how it can be applied to you, register here.
  • Become familiar: Learn about the diverse accessibility services and resources on campus by visiting the Accessibility Hub.
  • Take-Action: identify accessibility and inclusion barriers, and potentially ableist practices within your work or academic area and identify solutions and actions to remove these barriers and eliminate these discriminatory practices.

For any inquiries or comments related to accessibility and disability inclusion at McMaster, please email the Accessibility Program within the Equity and Inclusion Office at access@mcmaster.ca.