Digital Accessibility

Digital accessibility is the practice of ensuring our online tools, documents, and course materials are usable by everyone, regardless of how they navigate the world. At Western Oregon University, this is more than just a technical checklist; it is a core component of our commitment to equity. We follow the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), which is the global standard for digital inclusion, ensures that content is easy to see, hear, and navigate for all students, including those using assistive technologies like screen readers.

While new federal updates to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) now require public universities to meet these standards by 2026, our goal at the CTL is to help you view accessibility as a powerful teaching tool. When we design for accessibility, we reduce barriers for everyone, from students with permanent disabilities to those balancing coursework on a mobile phone or in a noisy environment. The resources below are designed to help you navigate these requirements through simple, practical steps that enhance the learning experience for every student in your classroom.

Join the CTL in our commitment to inclusive teaching through this self-paced digital accessibility course. This resource guides you through the ‘why’ and ‘how’ of accessible design at Western, covering everything from inclusive text and image descriptions to video captioning, all aimed at creating a barrier-free learning environment for all Wolves.

Text Accessibility

This workshop is a hands-on guide for folks creating text-based content so that they produce clear, inclusive, and accessible text for all audiences, including those using assistive technology like screen readers. Topics will include: Accessible Structure, Link Text, Visual Presentation, Readable Fonts, and more, across a variety of applications. Please bring your content items that have text that you want to ensure is accessible.

Audio & Video Accessibility

This workshop is a hands-on guide for folks creating video and audio content so that they produce clear, inclusive, and accessible video and audio for all audiences. Topics will include: Captioning of pre-recorded video in Youtube and ScreenPal, real time captioning with Zoom or Google Meet, and transcripts for audio only content, such as podcasts. Please bring your content items that have audio or video or presentation materials that you want to ensure are accessible.

Image Accessibility

This workshop is a hands-on guide for folks creating content that include images so that they produce clear, inclusive, and accessible alternative text descriptions for all audiences. Topics will include: the general purpose of alternative text; basic images; images with text; and complex images such as graphs, charts, and diagrams. Please bring your content items that have images that you want to ensure are accessible.

April: The Digital Accessibility Intensive

Missed a session earlier this term? In April, we are offering a final opportunity to attend all three of our core accessibility workshops, Text, Image, and Audio/Video, at separate times to ensure everyone has a chance to participate. These hands-on sessions are designed to help you proactively meet new federal standards by mastering accessible document structures, captioning workflows, and effective alternative text. Please bring your own course materials to these workshops so you can apply these inclusive design techniques to your content in real-time with CTL support.

To access recordings of our accessibility trainings, please visit this link to our videos page in Canvas. This will be updated regularly: Digital Accessibility Workshop Recordings