Our toolbox is full of guides about how to create accessible content.

We offer a number of accessibility cheat sheets as well as in-depth guides to understand the digital accessibility guidelines for different types of content, including:

• Modern Campus CMS Websites
• Documents & PDFs
• Video & Audio

Automated testing tools are a great place to start with verifying the accessibility of digital content. Some automated tools include:

• Blackboard Ally
• Microsoft Accessibility Checker
• Siteimprove

However, automated tools can't catch all accessibility issues. You can schedule a manual accessibility review with us to gain a more robust understanding of your web content's accessibility.

Third-party vendors who contract with us should provide an up-to-date VPAT (Voluntary Product Accessibility Template) to demonstrate their product's conformance with our IT 5.00 Policy [pdf] and WCAG 2.1 Level AA.

If you are using a free third-party product, you should check to see if the company provides an accessibility statement about their product.

 The following generally count as exceptions to the final rule, as long as the digital content is not actively being used for our programs and services at the university:

1. Archived web content
   1. Created before June 24, 2024, AND
   2. Kept only for reference, research, or recordkeeping (so any web content still actively used for programs or services at the university do not count), AND
   3. Kept in an area marked as archived content, AND
   4. Has not been changed since it was archived
2. Preexisting conventional electronic documents
   1. Created and posted digitally before June 24, 2024, AND
   2. The documents are word processing, presentation, PDF, or spreadsheet files.
3. Third-party content
   1. Does not include content that is posted as part of a contract or license with the university; third-party vendors who contract with us do need to provide an up-to-date VPAT (Voluntary Product Accessibility Template) to demonstrate WCAG 2.1 Level AA conformance.
4. Individualized, password-protected documents
   1. These documents must be about a specific person, property, or account; password-protected course content does not meet this exception and should be made accessible.
5. Preexisting social media posts
   1. Posted before June 24, 2024

The point of the exceptions is to help us prioritize. If you aren’t sure if certain digital content might meet an exception, contact us. Even if certain digital content does meet an exception, there still needs to be a way for people with disabilities in our community to request that the content be made accessible to be compliant with ADA.

Both public-facing digital content as well as password-protected course content (i.e., in Blackboard or another learning management system), need to be accessible so that people with disabilities in our university community can access the content.

Students with disabilities are not required to register with the Student Disability Resource Center, nor are they required to disclose their disability to their instructors. Many students, faculty, or staff may have invisible or hidden disabilities, but still face challenges if digital content is not created with accessibility in mind.

Consequences could include lawsuits and loss of funding, in addition to providing an inaccessible experience for people in our community with disabilities.  Digital accessibility is simply the right thing to do.

• Examples of legal consequences
• Examples of barriers for people with disabilities

Understanding how the accessibility guidelines apply to your work and understanding the exceptions is a great place to start.

From there, focus on the digital content that receives the most traffic or is the most necessary for providing our programs or services. Any digital content needed to apply for a program or participate in a class should be a high priority. For websites created on sc.edu, Siteimprove's marketing analytics can help you determine which web pages receive the most traffic. 

Our team of 3 is here to help how we can. Some of our top services include:

• Accessibility reviews of websites
• Meeting with areas that need accessibility assistance
• Tailored presentations to groups (by request)

We are hard at work to provide more guides in our toolbox and additional training materials very soon.