ASSETS

Céad míle fáilte - a hundred thousand welcomes to the 20th International ACM SIGACCESS Conference on Computers and Accessibility (ASSETS 2018) in Galway, Ireland. The ASSETS conference is the premier computing research conference exploring the design, evaluation, and use of computing and information technologies to benefit people with disabilities and older adults. In our 20th conference since the first meeting in 1994, ASSETS continues its tradition of presenting innovative research on mainstream and specialized assistive technologies, accessible computing, and assistive applications of computer, network, and information technologies.

We are delighted to welcome Judy Brewer, Director of the Web Accessibility Initiative at the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), as our keynote speaker for 2018. Ms. Brewer is the recipient of the 2018 SIGACCESS Award for Outstanding Contribution, an award that recognizes individuals who have made significant and lasting contributions to the development of computing technologies that improve the accessibility of media and services to people with disabilities. This year's award to Judy Brewer is in recognition of her life-long dedication to creating policies and guidelines related to making the world wide web accessible and inclusive for people with disabilities.

This year's technical papers program features 28 papers selected through peerreview by a distinguished international program committee. We received 108 submissions. The 28 accepted papers (a 26% acceptance rate) span a variety of topic areas relevant to computers and accessibility. This includes technology by and in support of individuals with diverse motor, cognitive, and sensory abilities. Following on from last year, we included a track within technical papers for short papers, which are for more succinct research contributions. Three of the 28 papers this year are from the short papers category.

The program committee was also involved in reviewing for the poster and demonstration program, chaired by Tiago Guerreiro and Graham Wilson. These 42 presentations were selected from 72 submissions (a 58% acceptance rate) and provide an opportunity for showcasing late-breaking results and hands-on demonstrations of authors' technological innovations.

The value of accessible and assistive technology is measured ultimately by the experience of people who use it, and this year's three experience reports (selected from eight submissions) reflect these experiences first-hand. The experience reports track was chaired by Annalu Waller. We are delighted that this year's program also includes a user experience panel, chaired by Dónal Fitzpatrick and Emma Murphy, in which invited panelists will discuss their personal experiences and points of view on accessibility for living.

ACM SIGACCESS is committed to developing the next generation of researchers in the field of accessible computing. This year's ASSETS continues a tradition of supporting and showcasing the work of student researchers. The doctoral consortium, chaired by Shiri Azenkot and Keith Vertanen, brought together eight doctoral researchers to discuss their work with a panel of established researchers in a one-day workshop the day before the main conference. A special edition of the SIGACCESS newsletter will feature extended abstracts from these doctoral students. We thank the U.S. National Science Foundation and SIGACCESS for their generous support of the doctoral consortium. The ACM Student Research Competition (SRC), sponsored by Microsoft and chaired by Hernisa Kacorri and Kotaro Hara, offers a unique forum for undergraduate and graduate students to present their original research before a panel of judges, and also a chance to meet other students and to get direct feedback on their work from experts. This year, eight entries have been selected as SRC finalists to give poster presentations, with selected participants also giving oral presentations at the conference. Winners from the ASSETS 2018 SRC will go on to compete in the ACM-wide grand finals. ASSETS also extends a warm welcome the 2018 ACM SIGACCESS Travel Scholars. SIGACCESS travel scholarships provide support for practitioners, researchers, members of advocacy groups, and individuals with disabilities who are interested in the field of computers and accessibility to actively participate in the conference.