News

Filtered by: Accessibility and Inclusive Design

A wide shot of a multi-ethnic group of adults seated around tables in a library with large windows. A woman at the center is speaking and gesturing with her hands while others listen and take notes in notebooks or on tablets.

This image was generated using AI (Google Gemini)

News Release: New Field Guide Available for Libraries to Prepare to Serve Their Communities During Crises

January 14, 2026 | Laurie Robinson

Offering libraries a powerful framework for proactive, community-centered crisis preparedness

A high-tech library with digital book retrieval systems and interactive learning tools.

Photo licensed by Adobe Stock via Ashi

Emerging Voices: INFO’s Doctoral Scholars Shape the Future of LIS Education

January 6, 2026 | Laurie Robinson

Four PhD students are part of the 2025 cohort of ALISE Emerging Scholars

Head shot of HCIM alum Kaush Ganesh Portrait of a woman wearing glasses and a maroon sweater, standing inside a gondola with soft pink and red tones and a blurred cityscape outside.

Kaush Ganesh, HCIM '20

Alumni Profile: The Human Firewall: Why Cybersecurity Needs UX

January 6, 2026 | Laurie Robinson

A profile of HCIM alum Kaush Ganesh

A woman with a prosthetic leg performs a side stretch on a blue yoga mat in a bright living room while following a workout on a laptop placed on a nearby coffee table.

AI Coach Transforms Physical Therapy at Home

December 18, 2025 | Laurie Robinson

MD-based startup and INFO researchers are helping to solve the problem of compliance with physical therapy through a human-like AI coac …

Overhead view of volunteers organizing canned goods into cardboard boxes on a metal table at a food pantry.

A new UMD study offers approaches for food banks to strengthen both community well-being and local food systems while giving clients more and better meal choices. (Photo by iStock) via Maryland Today.

Maryland Today: UMD Study: Food Pantries, Clients and Growers Can All Take Steps to Address Hunger

November 10, 2025 | Maryland Today Staff | UMD

INFO’s Vanessa Frías-Martínez co-leads a UMD study outlining data-driven reforms to improve food pantry access, equity, and nutriti …

A variety of nonperishable food items, including canned goods, pasta, grains, nuts, cooking oil, and jars of preserves, arranged neatly on a light countertop.

Photo licensed by Adobe Stock via Mikhailov Studio

AGNR News: Setting Food Pantries Up for Success (ft. Vanessa Frias-Martinez)

November 7, 2025 | Graham Binder & Caroline Boules | AGNR

INFO’s Dr. Vanessa Frias-Martinez co-leads research to make Maryland’s food charity system more just and accessible

Two male students are seated at a table in a classroom. The student in the foreground, wearing a dark baseball cap, is smiling while knitting with red yarn. The student seated behind him is also smiling and watching.

Chandler Colman ‘28 (left) and Samir Nazar ‘28 work on their final projects for “Knitting = Algorithms + Coding," one of 10 Maker Movement Approach to Computing classes offered this fall. The one-credit courses are designed to make it easier for students of all majors to learn about computing. (Photos by Dylan Singleton)

Maryland Today: Courses Bring Comfort to Learning Computing

October 23, 2025 | Karen Shih ’09 | Maryland Today

INFO faculty bridge creativity and computing, teaching hands-on AI, coding, and design through the Maker Movement at Maryland

A student wearing a virtual reality headset stands in front of a chalkboard covered with coding notes, while another student in the foreground types on a laptop during a classroom technology activity.

Photo licensed by Adobe Stock via InfiniteFlow

Building Trust in AI, One Block at a Time

October 23, 2025 | Laurie Robinson

A unique partnership is closing the digital divide by creating community-led AI literacy programs for underserved youth and families

A person demonstrates an AAC (Augmentative and Alternative Communication) app on a tablet while two others observe, one smiling and wearing a red shirt with a name tag. The interaction appears to take place at a research or technology event.

Assistant Professor Stephanie Valencia² (center) shows the Spoken app, a commercial AAC tool to help users of speech-generating devices. Photo by Craig Taylor.

The AI That Tells a Joke With You

October 20, 2025 | Laurie Robinson

New research explores how AI can help speech-generating device users reclaim timely, humorous comments —without losing their own voic …