4-12.1 Procedure - Digital Content Accessibility

To support the effective implementation of the Digital Content Accessibility Policy at Greenville Technical College, the following procedures outline the necessary steps and practices for ensuring compliance and promoting accessibility across digital content. These procedures ensure that faculty, staff, and departments understand their responsibilities and know how to create, evaluate, and improve accessible digital content.

  1. Digital Content Creation Procedures
    1. Faculty and Staff Responsibilities
      1. Faculty are responsible for ensuring that all course materials provided to students are accessible. This includes but is not limited to:
        • Designing accessible syllabi, reading materials, handouts, and assignments.
        • Creating or sourcing accessible multimedia resources.
        • Ensuring that all required reading materials (e.g., PDFs, articles) are accessible and usable by students with disabilities.
        • Running an annual accessibility review of documents under their responsibility
        • Staying up to date with accessibility requirements and expectations usually through GTC-provided professional development)
      2. Staff are responsible for ensuring that all digital content provided to students, faculty, staff, and visitors, regardless of disability, are accessible. This includes but is not limited to:
        • Designing accessible websites, web applications, and digital content.
        • Creating or sourcing accessible multimedia resources.
        • Creating accessible versions of all internal and external documents.
        • Running a periodic (as determined by department leadership) accessibility review of documents under their responsibility
        • Staying up to date with accessibility requirements and expectations (usually through GTC-provided professional development)
    2. Guidelines for Accessible Digital Content
      1. Web Content: Ensure all content on the college websites and web applications meets WCAG 2.1 Level AA standards. Key practices include:
        • Use semantic HTML (headings, lists, tables) for proper document structure.
        • Provide alternative text (alt text) for all images, charts, and infographics.
        • Ensure sufficient color contrast between text and background for readability.
        • Ensure that navigation is keyboard-friendly (e.g., menus, links, forms).
        • Provide clear, descriptive link text that explains the destination of the link.
      2. Documents and Course Materials: Create accessible versions of all electronic materials and documents. This includes:
        • Using accessible formats such as accessible PDFs, Word documents, or HTML for web-based content.
        • Avoiding the use of scanned images of text (unless they are OCR-enabled).
        • Structuring documents with appropriate headings and lists to enhance navigation.
        • Providing accessible math and science content, including accessible charts, equations, and diagrams.
      3. Multimedia Content:
        • Ensure that videos are captioned and have transcripts available. Use professional captioning services or automatic captioning with manual review for accuracy.
        • Provide text-based alternatives for audio content, such as transcripts for podcasts and lectures.
        • Use audio descriptions for videos when critical visual information is required for understanding the content.
  2. Accessibility Review and Testing Procedures
    1. Manual and Automated Testing
      1. Automated Tools: Use automated accessibility testing tools to identify potential accessibility issues. These tools can help quickly identify common issues like missing alt text, low contrast, and missing form labels.
      2. Manual Testing: Conduct routine spot-checks on any resources that cannot be reviewed with an automated tool, including:
        • Ensuring screen reader compatibility (e.g., using NVDA, JAWS).
        • Testing keyboard navigation to ensure that all interactive elements (links, buttons, forms) can be accessed via keyboard.
        • Reviewing multimedia content for proper captions, transcripts, and audio descriptions.
      3. Routine Audits: The Director of Institutional Quality will schedule periodic accessibility audits of all college digital platforms, including the website, LMS, and digital library resources. Audits will include both automated and manual testing to ensure ongoing compliance with accessibility guidelines.
    2. Feedback and Issue Resolution
      1. Reporting Accessibility Issues: Provide a clear and accessible feedback mechanism for faculty, staff, students, and visitors to report accessibility issues. This could be an online form, email address, or a hotline dedicated to accessibility concerns.
      2. Tracking and Resolving Issues: Once an issue is reported:
        1. The Director of Institutional Quality will assess the issue and work with the relevant departments (e.g., IT, academic departments) to implement corrective actions.
        2. If content is found to be non-compliant, the department or individual responsible for the content will be notified and required to make changes within a reasonable timeframe.
  3. Training and Professional Development Procedures
    1. Orientation: New faculty and staff will receive accessibility training materials as part of their onboarding process. These materials will cover the basics of digital accessibility, including how to create accessible documents, multimedia, and web content.
    2. Ongoing Training: The college will offer workshops, webinars, and online modules on digital accessibility. Topics may include:
      • How to create accessible PowerPoint presentations.
      • Using accessible features in word processing tools.
      • Creating and editing captions for videos and multimedia.
      • Using the college’s Learning Management System (LMS) and other digital platforms in an accessible way.
  4. Procurement Procedures for Third-Party Digital Tools
    1. Vendor and Tool Accessibility Requirements
      1. Procurement Review: All third-party digital tools, platforms, and services (e.g., learning management systems, video conferencing tools, external content providers) must be evaluated for accessibility before purchase or adoption. The following steps should be taken:
        • Review vendor documentation for accessibility claims and conduct accessibility testing (or request a VPAT-Voluntary Product Accessibility Template).
        • Ensure that tools meet WCAG 2.1 Level AA standards and are compatible with assistive technologies.
      2. Contractual Obligations: The college will ensure that accessibility requirements are incorporated into contracts with third-party vendors. This includes specifying expectations for ongoing accessibility compliance and updates.
    2. Post-Purchase Monitoring: Once a third-party tool or service is adopted, it must be periodically tested for compliance with accessibility standards. The OIT Department, in collaboration with the Director of Institutional Quality, will oversee this testing and remediation process.
  5.  Continuous Improvement and Policy Review Procedures
    • The Digital Content Accessibility Policy and related procedures will be reviewed annually or whenever significant changes occur in legal requirements, technology, or educational practices.
    • Feedback from faculty, staff, students, and external stakeholders may be collected and will be considered during policy revisions.
    • Based on audit results, feedback, and emerging best practices, the college will work to continuously improve digital content accessibility.