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The Intercollegiate Assistive Technology Hackathon (IATH) is a week-long hybrid collaborative event each spring that connects Boston-area college students with co-designers to iterate, design, reiterate and fabricate assistive technology devices to help address a variety of needs to help people participate in life to their fullest.
Our co-designers are individuals with disabilities living in the community who have volunteered to partner with our student teams to develop a simple assistive technology device.
In 2022, Team Trebuchet worked to develop an adapted device to support 1-handed circular knitting.
The IATH is intercollegiate and interprofessional: We welcome students with a common interest of designing a solution to promote participation and independence. Past students have come from occupational therapy, mechanical engineering, human factors engineering, assistive technology, physics, and cognitive sciences programs. The IATH is also ideal for those studying physical therapy, speech and language pathology, health and behavior, nursing, computer science and more. Experience not necessary! We can connect you with a team, or you can assemble your own team. Stipends are available to support purchase of supplies.
The IATH began in 2021 as the Tufts AT Hackathon (TATH). A collaboration with Tufts University and Cecropia Strong, the TATH ran successfully for 2 years, growing to include more co-designers, colleges and students. In 2023, the Hackathon expanded to include other Boston-Area colleges and universities.
The IATH continues to grow and is now co-chaired by three Boston-area faculty from occupational therapy programs:
Jennifer C. Buxton, MA, OTR/L, ATP, MEd (she, hers)
Lecturer, Department of Occupational Therapy at Tufts University
Loren Fields McMahon, OTD, OTR/L, ATP (she, hers)
Lecturer, Department of Occupational Therapy at Tufts University
Kevin Berner, OTD, OTR/L, ATP (he, his, him) | kberner@mghihp.edu
Assistant Professor, Department of Occupational Therapy at MGH Institute of Health Profession
We look forward to Hacking together!
Read about the Intercollegiate Assistive Technology Hackathons!
Nash, S., Catapang, R., DeRoche, G., Tiwari, N., Mahesh, A. & Morton, P. (2025, July 1). One-of-a-kind solutions: The 2025 Boston-Area intercollegiate AT hack. Cecropia Strong Blog. Retrieved from: https://cecropiastrong.org/one-of-a-kind-solutions-the-2025-boston-area-intercollegiate-at-hack/
McAvoy, L. (2025). Hacking Assistive Technology. MGH INstitute of Helath Professions News & More. Retrieved from: https://www.mghihp.edu/news-and-more/news/hacking-assistive-technology
Berner, K., Buxton, J., C., & McMahon, L. F. (2024). Outcomes from an intercollegiate client-centered interprofessional occupation-based assistive technology hackathon: A pilot program evaluation. Journal of Occupational Therapy Education, 8(4). Retrieved from: m https://encompass.eku.edu/jote/vol8/iss4/16
Berner, K. (2024, June 23). The intercollegiate assistive technology hackathon in April 2024. [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://cecropiastrong.org/the-intercollegiate-assistive-technology-hackathon-in-april-2024/
Tufts News. (2024, January 24). Learning by doing: Lecturer and Founder of the Tufts Assistive Technology Hackathon Jennifer Buxton, MA ’03, is championing technical innovation and service learning on campus. Tufts University News. https://as.tufts.edu/occupationaltherapy/news-events/news/learning-doing
Kurzman, M. & Robichaud, A. (2021, April 23). Tufts' First TATHack. [Blog post]. Retrieved from https://cecropiastrong.org/tufts-first-tathack/
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