Original Manuscript Voices From the Field: Implementing and Scaling-Up Universal Design for Learning in Teacher Preparation Programs Eric J. Moore 1 , Frances G. Smith 2 , Aleksandra Hollingshead 3 , and Brian Wojcik 4 Abstract There is increasing pressure on universities in the United States to meet the needs of diverse learners. This fact increases the urgency for implementation and scaling up of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) in higher education. This qualitative study draws two major insights from interviews with six faculty members from universities and colleges around the United States who have experienced a degree of success (personal to institutional) in implementing UDL. First, successful implementation and scaling up of UDL initiatives often occur when UDL is presented in response to a clear problem, issue, or inquiry rather than more direct approaches. Second, I articulate an emerging conceptualization of “levels” of implementation and apparent aspects that enable an institution or group to move from lower to higher tiers. Keywords higher education, Universal Design for Learning implementation, universal design for learning scaling-up Public school classrooms in the United States have become increasingly diverse, and there is a persistent call to actively and intentionally prepare preservice teachers to meet the chal- lenges that come with teaching heterogeneous student groups (Darling-Hammond, Holtzman, Gatlin, & Heilig, 2005; Horne & Timmons, 2009; Jung, 2007; Sosu, Mtika, & Colucci-Gray, 2010). This growth in diversity stems from social and attitudi- nal changes in the United States that have evolved since the mid-20th century and corresponding legal and policy developments. As more diverse students attend schools, it follows that more diverse classes are graduating and result in increasing diversity in higher education; likewise, this conclusion is somewhat supported by census data for university students. For example, census literature shows moderate gains in the representation of racially diverse students (U.S. Census Bureau, 2016; Zinshteyn, 2013). Raue and Lewis (2011) spoke of the broad presence of students with disabilities. Such inclusion of students with disabilities has even begun to include individuals with intellectual disabilities, a group traditionally excluded from college education (Moore & Schelling, 2015; Gilmore, Schuster, Zafft, & Hart 2001; Hart, Grigal, & Weir, 2010). Despite the fact that diverse individuals, including those with disabilities, now have physical presence in the –12 and higher education general classroom, this physical access has not necessarily translated into access to learning (Jim´ enez, Graf, & Rose, 2007; McGuire-Schwartz & Arndt, 2007; Rioux & Pinto, 2010; Rose, 2000). Following the U.S. Supreme Court decision, Brown v. the Board of Education (1954), five decades worth of educational research has shown persistent achieve- ment gaps for diverse students, including those from racially, economically, or linguistically diverse backgrounds and those with disabilities. This achievement gap grows progressively year by year in schools (Darensbourg & Blake, 2013; Edyburn, 2010). Even for those individuals who graduate from high school and attend college, achievement tends to continue to be stunted, and attrition rates are persistently higher for minor- ity groups compared to their majority group peers (AUTHORS, 2015; O’Keeffe, 2013; Streitwieser, 2014). It has become clear that physical access to the classroom is not enough to ensure fair and equitable access to learning for diverse populations, providing access to materials in isolation is also a shortcoming. In 2007, this point was highlighted as a potential promise of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) at 1 University of Tennessee, Knoxville, TN, USA 2 George Washington University, Washington, DC, USA 3 University of Idaho, Moscow, ID, USA 4 University of Nebraska at Kearney, Kearney, NE, USA Corresponding Author: Eric J. Moore, 821 Volunteer Blvd., Greve Hall 505, Knoxville, TN 37996, USA. Email: drejmoore@gmail.com Journal of Special Education Technology 1-14 ª The Author(s) 2017 Reprints and permission: sagepub.com/journalsPermissions.nav DOI: 10.1177/0162643417732293 journals.sagepub.com/home/jst