Digital accessibility: Help make UO inclusive

Dear colleagues,

At its best, a university is a place where knowledge is openly shared and the widest possible community is invited into inquiry, discovery, and debate. In this digital age, that invitation is only meaningful if our tools, platforms, and content are accessible to all who seek to engage with them.

Ensuring digital accessibility for all students, including those disabilities, is therefore central to our commitment to building the inclusive university that reflects who we are and who we aspire to be.

Over recent years, the university has taken concrete steps to improve the accessibility of our web-based content. Thank you to all the instructors who are already doing this as part of your inclusive teaching work.

At the same time, we know that work remains to be done, and we all share responsibility for it. That responsibility comes into sharper focus this year, as the new Americans with Disabilities Act Title II rule, which requires accessibility in the web-based content produced by public universities, takes effect in April. The rule applies to all the following types of web-based content that you create or provide for your courses and in other work, including:  

  • Web-based documents, such as Microsoft Word documents, PowerPoint presentations, and PDFs;
  • Canvas courses, course websites, and research websites (including sites built in UO Blogs);
  • Web-based exams and quizzes, web-based textbook components/integrations, online forms, mobile applications, and any web-based third-party products (learning platforms and integrations);
  • Videos and other media on the web. 

We have created a number of resources to help faculty understand and apply digital accessibility principles in course content. We encourage you to: 

If you need support enacting digital accessibility in your courses, visit the Digital Accessibility in Teaching page for an overview of resources, such as Pope Tech, an automated accessibility checker for Canvas, and accessible course templates from the Teaching and Engagement Program (TEP) and UO Online.

For faculty members who maintain a UO blog, the UO Service Portal provides tips for creating accessible content on that platform.

We recognize the many demands on faculty time and attention, and we approach this work with that reality in mind. Still, we ask for your partnership in making steady, practical progress toward digital accessibility, knowing that even small, thoughtful steps towards best practices by individual faculty members can make a meaningful difference for our students.

Sincerely,

Christopher P. Long 
Provost and Senior Vice President  

Nicole Commissiong 
Associate Vice President, Chief Civil Rights Officer & ADA Coordinator