South Carolina Arts Commission and ABLE South Carolina outline six practices to boost organizational accessibility

The South Carolina Arts Commission and ABLE South Carolina used a statewide webinar on Nov. 6 to urge arts organizations to take concrete, leadership-driven steps to make programs and facilities more accessible to people with disabilities. Mary Reeves, director of community access at ABLE South Carolina, laid out six interrelated practices organizations can adopt: board inclusion, disability‑inclusive advisory committees, written accessibility policies, a designated accessibility coordinator, intentional professional development, and inclusive hiring practices.

Reeves said board-level commitment is essential to lasting change, recommending governance charters explicitly include accessibility and encouraging boards to cultivate an environment where voluntary self‑identification is safe. “You cannot ask a person if they have a disability,” Reeves said, adding that organizations should instead destigmatize disclosure and create ways for people to volunteer that…