Sady Paulson & Mark Coppin | Full Sail University

Digital Cinematography graduate Sady approaches video-editing headfirst. Unlike other editors, Sady controls FinalCut Pro using a switch access scanning system.

​Sady, who was born with cerebral palsy, has two switches situated on either side of her wheelchair headrest. She controls those switches by moving her head to make a selection on her main computer. The system is hooked up to all of her devices – from her wheelchair to her iPhone. Once she selects which device she wants to control, she’s presented with a list of functions and shortcuts that allow her to control each device or program. Using this system, she can text, ​email, talk on the phone (through automated voice software), and much more.

Sady was introduced to scanning systems by Mark, a 2012 graduate of Full Sail’s Education Media Design & Technology master’s degree program.

“Everything you and I can do with a keyboard or a mouse, Sady can do with those two switches. She has a very select keyboard that makes her as efficient as possible. So something that might take you or I 25 keystrokes and a couple of
mouse actions, she can do in one macro action. “When I was going through the Digital Cinematography program, nobody on the other end knew I had a disability,” says Sady, who attended classes online. “All they saw was my work, and as a result,
my ability.”

Mark has spent over two decades working with students like Sady, assessing their unique access issues and building accessibility solutions based on their needs. In 2009, he was named an Apple Distinguished Educator, and currently gives workshops all over the world on the latest accessibility solutions. He says the biggest change he’s seen is the demand for accessibility technology to be adapted to other industries.

“In a lot of ways, people like Sady are driving the industry. “Their hands slow them down, so they’re looking at eye movement technology that tracks gazes, and things that allow them to go hands-free like voice activation. All of these technologies have been around in the accessibility community for years, but now they are being priced at an average consumer level.”