Universal Design for Learning
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is an educational approach that prioritizes making learning accessible for all students. CTL supports faculty who wish to introduce or expand their use of UDL in their classrooms.
Resources:
- CAST is an excellent resource for learning about UDL. They publish the UDL Guidelines, which are a useful set of concrete practices that faculty can adopt. Their higher education page “UDL on Campus” addresses all the aspects of course design and includes multi-media examples from real faculty teaching.
- DO-IT’s AccessCollege Initiative hosts additional online resources and pays practical attention to the needs of students with physical and sensory disabilities.
- Johns Hopkins University also has a resource page with numerous useful links.
Related Presentations
Learner Variability and UDL Implementation: Practical Pathways to Create More Equitable, Justice-Oriented Classrooms
The talk at the Center for Teaching and Learning focused on Universal Design for Learning (UDL) as a framework for creating equitable and accessible post-secondary environments. Participants shared existing UDL strategies, explored ways to enhance their use, and defined strategies for ongoing improvement. The session included interactive lectures, reflections, and discussions, and addressing rigor in UDL. View Gabbie Rappolt-Schlichtmann’s 2025 on-campus presentation here.
Accessibility and Universal Design for Learning: Small Changes that Matter
Facilitated by Michelle Kovarik & Sheila Reagan
When should we remove a barrier for one student, and when should we redesign learning for everyone? Using the Accessible Dartmouth Initiative’s Practicing UDL in Higher Education workbook, this session will explore the relationship between accessibility and UDL. We will highlight manageable strategies and ed tech tools that improve access without requiring a complete course overhaul. Co-sponsored by Academic Technology.
View introductory slides and academic technology slides from our Sept 10, 2026 event on accessibility and UDL:
Books in the CTL Library
- Reach Everyone, Teach Everyone: Universal Design for Learning in Higher Education advocates for the rights of people with disabilities have worked hard to make universal design in the built environment “just part of what we do.” We no longer see curb cuts, for instance, as accommodations for people with disabilities, but perceive their usefulness every time we ride our bikes or push our strollers through crosswalks.
- UDL Navigators in Higher Education: A Field Guide shares strategies and resources for introducing UDL to postsecondary systems.
- Universal Design in Higher Education: From Principles to Practice is a comprehensive, up-to-the-minute guide for creating fully accessible college and university programs. The second edition has been thoroughly revised and expanded, and it addresses major recent changes in universities and colleges, the law, and technology
