About us / A personal beginning
Common Ground Accessibility grew from lived experience, a parent’s perspective, and a belief that everyone deserves a chance to take part in the world around them.
Meet the founder
Founder, Common Ground Accessibility
Laurie Kamrowski-Fick is the founder of Common Ground Accessibility, helping small nonprofits, schools, startups, and community organizations make digital information easier to access and use. Her work includes accessibility screenings, document remediation, accessible document creation, and practical education for teams.
Laurie’s commitment to accessibility is rooted in both personal and professional experience. Navigating life with a brain injury and supporting her son’s vision needs shaped her understanding of how barriers affect everyday participation. Her accessibility work at Mid Michigan College further strengthened her commitment to helping people access information, learning, and opportunities.
Through Common Ground Accessibility, Laurie brings a thoughtful, collaborative approach to organizations with limited budgets. She emphasizes clear explanations, manageable improvements, and respect for the people who use each website or document. Her goal is to help organizations build the knowledge and confidence to make accessibility part of their everyday work.
The story behind Common Ground
I started working with accessibility because of my own brain injury. Accessibility became personal: something connected to everyday life and the ability to participate.
That experience gave me a reason to pay attention to barriers - and to care about what it takes to remove them.
As I worked through my son’s vision issues with him, accessibility took on another dimension. I was approaching it as a parent, as well as through my own experience.
It strengthened my belief that access needs to make room for different people and different needs. No one person’s experience tells the whole story.
Those experiences led to accessibility work at Mid Michigan College, bringing my personal commitment into my professional life.
Accessibility became work I wanted to keep doing - work rooted in care for the people on the other side of a website, a document, or a learning experience.
My path eventually led to my own accessibility work and Common Ground Accessibility. I want to help small organizations take practical steps toward access, even when their budgets are limited.
I work in this industry because I care. Everyone should have a shot at an accessible world, and I want my work to help make that possible.
Everyone deserves a chance to learn, connect, contribute, and belong. Accessibility helps make room for that possibility.
Care, put into practice
My experience is part of why I care. It is not a substitute for listening to yours. Understanding your organization and the people you serve is a place to begin.
Initial digital accessibility screenings and findings reviews are free. The standard paid support rate is $75/hour, with scope and estimated time agreed in advance.
We support website improvements, document remediation, and accessible document creation. Your screening findings are yours to keep, share, or take to any other provider. There is no obligation to hire us.
There’s room to start small
You don’t need to have every answer before reaching out. Tell us what you’re working on, and we can find a practical first step together.
Explore the free screening