{"id":149925,"date":"2025-11-17T09:37:36","date_gmt":"2025-11-17T14:37:36","guid":{"rendered":"https:/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925///news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925//www.ucf.edu/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925//news/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925//?p=149925"},"modified":"2026-01-07T16:14:31","modified_gmt":"2026-01-07T21:14:31","slug":"how-ucf-uses-assistive-technology-to-help-people-with-disabilities","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925///news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925//www.ucf.edu/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925//news/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925//how-ucf-uses-assistive-technology-to-help-people-with-disabilities/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925//","title":{"rendered":"How 166su Uses Assistive Technology to Help People with Disabilities"},"content":{"rendered":"

Tucked inside the 166su Health Communication Disorders Clinic in Research Park is a bustling facility that could perhaps be described as part library, part factory, and part lifeline./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/n

Shelves, cabinets and bins are stocked with a wide range of technology, tools and gadgets. A visitor to the center will see hundreds of products that range from specially designed kitchen equipment and gardening tools to computerized utensils, iPads and adaptive gaming consoles. There/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/u2019s a robotic feeding device compatible with switches that enables users with physical disabilities to independently feed themselves and a Control Bionics wearable system that empowers a person with limited movement to use small muscle contractions to accomplish activities of daily living through electromyography (EMG)./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/n

There are also a wide range of traditional building tools and a set of 3D printers always at the ready for the faculty and students employed at the facility /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/u2014  the Florida Alliance for Assistive Services and Technology (FAAST) Center /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/u2014 to modify and personalize /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/u201cout of the box/news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/u201d products to meet the specific needs of individual clients with their communication, recreation, transportation and activities of daily living./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/n

This year is the 20th anniversary of the center, which has aided thousands of children, seniors and families by connecting them with assistive devices; trained caregivers and future clinicians; and served as a key partner in research initiatives designed to find long-term gains in the application of augmentative and alternative communication (AAC)./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/n

The FAAST Center is led by highly experienced speech-language pathologists and faculty researchers in the School of Communication Sciences and Disorders, all of whom are certified as Assistive Technology Professionals: Senior Associate Dean Jennifer Kent-Walsh, Associate Instructor Carolyn Buchanan /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/u201912MA, Senior Instructor Nancy Harrington, and Instructor Punam Desormes /news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/u201902./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/n

Their shared goal: improve the quality of life for people with disabilities./news/wp-json/wp/v2/posts/149925/n