UATP director elected Chair of the U.S. Access Board

The U.S. Access Board unanimously elected Sachin Dev Pavithran as its new Chair on March 11. Pavithran of Logan, Utah is Program Director of the Utah Assistive Technology Program at Utah State University's Center for Persons with Disabilities. He was named to the Access Board by President Barack Obama in 2012.

Sachin Pavithran, newly elected as chair of the Access Board.

"It is an honor to chair an agency that has done so much over the years to make equal access for people with disabilities a reality," Pavithran stated. "Our buildings, transit systems, and information and communication technologies are more accessible and inclusive because of the work of the Board and the guidelines and standards it has established."

In addition to his membership on the Access Board, Pavithran directs the Utah Assistive Technology Program, and serves on the Association of Assistive Technology Act Programs National Board, Senator Orrin Hatch's (President Pro Tempore) Disability Advisory Committee, the Research and Development Committee of the National Federation of the Blind, and the National Multicultural Council of the Association of University Centers for Disabilities.

The Board is structured to function as a coordinating body among Federal agencies and to directly represent the public, particularly people with disabilities. Half of its members are representatives from most of the Federal departments. The other half is comprised of members of the public appointed by the President.