Keynote speaker announced for 2025 ADCET UDL Symposium
ADCET is delighted to announce that Dr Seán Bracken, a principal lecturer at the University of Worcester (UW), UK, is the keynote speaker for the 2025 UDL Symposium.
Seán is the Doctoral Programme Lead for the College of Education, Culture and Society. Seán holds an Ed.D., a M.Phil. in Applied Linguistics, and a M.Ed. in School Leadership. He is a Principal Fellow of the Higher Education Academy and, as part of the ACSES fellowship programme, he is currently an Adjunct Professor at Curtin University.
A cornerstone of Seán’s work is his dedication to inclusion and UDL. He has been instrumental in promoting inclusivity through various leadership roles and research initiatives. As the founder of the Inclusion by Design Research Group at UW, he has fostered an interdisciplinary community focused on improving learning outcomes and social experiences for diverse learners.
Along with Dr Richard Jackson, he was the co-founder, and subsequent chair, of the International Collaboratory for Leadership in Universally Designed Education (INCLUDE) 
. This transnational network connects learners, student service professionals and researchers dedicated to inclusive instructional design. INCLUDE recently launched the International Journal for Universal Design and Universal Design for Learning (IJUDUDL) , for which Seán acts as one of the Deputy Editors. IJUDUDL is hosted by the Ministry of Higher Education in Morocco and aims to provide a robust research basis for charting future directions for UD and UDL.
Seán’s research projects, often funded by prestigious organisations such as the British Council and the British Academy, focus on strengthening inclusion in higher education. Notable projects include co-constructing UDL modules with learners and colleagues in Indonesia and the UK, as well as exploring the use of Lesson Study in Brazil as an enabling action research strategy for enhancing inclusion. Seán’s research, and advocacy have significantly advanced educational practices, making him a highly respected thought leader in the field.
Further information and registration details for the 2025 UDL Symposium