Portland Community College | Portland, Oregon

Aligning with Accessibility Requirements: Updates to the ADA

Posted by anne.grey

Presenters: Kaela Parks, Jennifer Gossett, and Andy Freed.

Summary

In this presentation, Kaela Parks, Jennifer Gossett, and Andy Freed explain what updated accessibility requirements mean for faculty and digital course materials at PCC. The session emphasizes the difference between accessibility and accommodation. Accessibility is proactive and designed to remove barriers before a student needs to request help, while accommodations respond to the needs of an individual student after a barrier has already been identified.

The presenters connect these expectations with PCC’s Accessible Technology Policy and the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, or WCAG. Digital course materials, including documents, multimedia, websites, third-party tools, and instructional technology, should meet accessibility standards. When a resource cannot meet those standards, faculty can work with PCC accessibility specialists to develop an Equally Effective Alternate Access Plan, or EEAAP.

The session offers practical guidance for creating accessible materials. Faculty are encouraged to use logical heading structures, properly formatted lists, meaningful link text, alternative text for images, sufficient color contrast, structured tables, captions, audio descriptions when needed, and accessible approaches to equations. Presenters also demonstrate why the structure of a digital document matters, especially for people who use screen readers, magnification, read-aloud tools, alternate formats, or other assistive technologies.

Faculty are introduced to accessibility tools available at PCC, including built-in Microsoft accessibility checkers, Grackle for Google Docs and Slides, D2L Brightspace accessibility tools, and Panorama. The session also covers accessible PDFs, presentation reading order, library materials, technology reviews, training opportunities, consultations, and other resources. The overall message is that accessibility is a shared responsibility, and faculty do not have to address these requirements alone. PCC provides tools, training, and staff support to help instructors create and select materials that provide more equitable access from the beginning.

Slides: Aligning with Accessibility Requirements: Updates to the ADA

Presentation Outcomes

• Distinguish between proactive accessibility and individual accommodation and explain why accommodations alone cannot remove all barriers to learning.
• Describe PCC’s Accessible Technology Policy and understand how WCAG Level AA requirements apply to digital content and course materials.
• Explain when an Equally Effective Alternate Access Plan, or EEAAP, may be needed for a resource that cannot fully meet accessibility requirements.
• Apply accessibility practices such as heading structures, meaningful links, alt text, appropriate color contrast, structured tables, captions, and accessible multimedia.
• Recognize accessibility issues that can occur in scanned PDFs, Google documents, PowerPoint and Google Slides presentations, library resources, and third-party courseware.
• Use tools such as Grackle, Microsoft accessibility checkers, D2L accessibility tools, and Panorama to identify and address accessibility barriers.
• Use PCC’s technology review process when adopting digital courseware and work with accessibility specialists when barriers or alternate access needs are identified.
• Locate PCC training, consultation, accessibility review, and professional development resources that can support accessible course design.

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