Accessibility Efforts

To help make the Jackson College website a positive place for everyone, we’ve been using the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1. These guidelines explain how to make web content more accessible for people with disabilities, and user-friendly for everyone. The guidelines have three levels of accessibility (A, AA and AAA). We’ve chosen Level AA as the target for the Jackson College website.

Guidelines and Testing

Jackson College uses Siteimprove to monitor and test website content for compliance with WCAG 2.1 Level AA and Section 508 standards. The platform performs both automated and on-demand accessibility checks. Additional tools used include WAVE (WebAIM), browser developer tools and manual reviews.

Website Training

Marketing staff train web content editors on accessibility best practices, including alt text, accessible documents, descriptive links, captions, and proper heading structure.

All webpage updates go through a publishing workflow review to identify and fix accessibility issues before going live. Ongoing training is provided as needed.

Document Accessibility

We are actively reviewing and updating our PDF documents to improve accessibility, prioritizing those with the highest usage based on analytics. This approach ensures the most frequently accessed content is addressed first. Beginning April 26, all new documents will be reviewed for accessibility and must meet accessibility standards before being published to the website.

Jackson College supports accessible course design in Canvas, our learning management system, ensuring course materials are usable and accessible for all learners. Tools, training, and ongoing monitoring help faculty create inclusive learning experiences.

Accessibility Tools

Jackson College uses tools within Canvas to support accessibility.

Anthology Ally helps instructors:

• View accessibility scores for course content
• Receive guidance to improve accessibility
• Provide students with alternative file formats
• Support institutional accessibility reporting

Training & Faculty Support

Faculty are supported through training and resources to create accessible course content.

Training opportunities include:

• Annual accessibility training
• Fix Your Content Day
• Ally training sessions

Additional support is available through the Center for Innovation, including course design training and instructional resources.

Faculty also have access to the Canvas Training Portal with on-demand and in-person learning options.

Monitoring & Continuous Improvement

Jackson College regularly reviews accessibility within Canvas to support continuous improvement.

Efforts include:

• Semester accessibility reporting
• Institutional dashboards through Ally
• Ongoing review of course accessibility

These efforts help ensure accessibility remains a priority in course design and delivery.

Jackson College is committed to ensuring that audio and video content is accessible to all users.

Standards include:

• Captions for video content
• Transcripts for audio when applicable
• Clear audio quality and readable visuals

Accessibility is considered during the creation and publishing of all multimedia content.

Jackson College evaluates the accessibility of third-party platforms, systems, and tools used across the institution.

Expectations include:

• Conformance with WCAG 2.1 Level AA
• Submission of accessibility documentation (such as VPATs)
• Cooperation in resolving accessibility issues

Accessibility is considered during procurement and ongoing use of all third-party tools.

All employees who create or manage digital content are responsible for ensuring accessibility and completing required training.

An annual required training program is being developed to ensure all employees are aware of accessibility guidelines and the college’s digital accessibility policy. In addition, on-demand training is available through a Canvas course, where employees can learn how to create and remediate accessible content across platforms.