Accessibility – Center for Teaching and Learning /ctl Mon, 13 Apr 2026 15:56:09 +0000 en-US hourly 1 /ctl/wp-content/uploads/sites/88/2024/01/cropped-android-chrome-512x512-1-32x32.png Accessibility – Center for Teaching and Learning /ctl 32 32 馃捇91桃色 Accessibility Workshops for Staff /ctl/%f0%9f%92%bbumpi-accessibility-workshops-for-staff/ Thu, 26 Mar 2026 13:38:46 +0000 /ctl/?p=5695 Join the Center for Teaching & Learning for this interactive workshop that introduces staff to the updated Title II regulations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and their implications for digital accessibility in higher education. You will explore key principles of digital accessibility, usability, and universal design, with an emphasis on meeting WCAG 2.1 AA guidelines.

]]> Join the Center for Teaching & Learning for this interactive workshop that introduces staff to the updated Title II regulations under the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and their implications for digital accessibility in higher education. You will explore key principles of digital accessibility, usability, and universal design, with an emphasis on meeting WCAG 2.1 AA guidelines.

Through guided examples and hands-on activities, your will learn how accessibility barriers may affect users and how to identify and address common issues in digital materials. You will have opportunities to practice applying accessibility techniques, evaluate sample content, and make improvements using accessibility tools and checkers. By the end of the workshop, you will leave with a stronger understanding of compliance requirements and concrete skills you can apply immediately to create more accessible digital content.

Session #1 March 23, 2026

Session #2 March 30, 2026

Session #3 April 6, 2026

Session #4 April 13, 2026

]]> Accessible & Safe Technology /ctl/accessible-safe-technology/ Wed, 25 Mar 2026 20:14:42 +0000 /ctl/?p=5634 Did you know that Maine law requires that all technology developed, procured, or provided by publicly funded organizations must meet the accessibility requirements of Section 508 and WCAG 2.1 AA? There are also policies intended to protect student data privacy and security, even for free apps and services. But, do you really have time to read through all of the fine print on the website of a new technology platform to determine if it is acceptable?

]]> Did you know that Maine law requires that all technology developed, procured, or provided by publicly funded organizations must meet the accessibility requirements of Section 508 and WCAG 2.1 AA? There are also policies intended to protect student data privacy and security, even for free apps and services. But, do you really have time to read through all of the fine print on the website of a new technology platform to determine if it is acceptable?

If you ask your students to use a tool or input their data or intellectual property into a tool that is not available on the MyCampus Portal, please ensure that it has received approval from IT who will investigate these issues for you. You can submit a Technology Review Request by following these steps:

  1. Go to the聽聽on the IT services website.
  2. Click the big聽Start a Technology Review Request聽button to access the form.
  3. Fill out the fields to the best of your ability and click聽Submit.
  4. You will receive an email confirmation with a link to your IT ticket.
  5. Keep an eye out in your email for updates to this request as IT investigates the accessibility of the tool and the data and privacy features.
  6. Do not use the tool with students or their work until you receive approval from IT.

If you need assistance with this, please reach out to CTL at umpi-ctl@maine.edu.

]]> Title II–where do I start? /ctl/title-ii-where-do-i-start/ Wed, 18 Mar 2026 20:18:02 +0000 /ctl/?p=5663 The deadline for compliance with the new Title II regulations on digital accessibility is approaching. We don't anticipate that everything will be perfect by then, but there is a lot of work to do and you may feel overwhelmed or not sure where to start. Here are our recommendations:

]]> The deadline for compliance with the new Title II regulations on digital accessibility is approaching. We don’t anticipate that everything will be perfect by then, but there is a lot of work to do and you may feel overwhelmed or not sure where to start. Here are our recommendations:

  1. Ensure that you have read and signed letters in Accommodate and are providing the approved accommodations.
  2. Use the Ally Course Accessibility Report under the Tools menu to identify and prioritize issues.
  3. Use Grackle Docs under the Extensions menu to identify and fix issues in your Google files.
  4. Use the Accessibility tools on the Review tab in Office to identify and remediate issues.
  5. Start with the major barriers first, such as scanned pdfs, as these are completely inaccessible.
  6. 鲍蝉别听available resources聽to learn how to make content accessible.
  7. Use the 15-minute rule: if you are spending more than that to fix an issue,聽submit a support request.
  8. Set aside time for this work.
  9. Reach out with questions by emailing聽umpi-ctl@maine.edu.
]]> Webinar Recording: Quick Fixes to Provide Alternate Formats for All Learners /ctl/webinar-recording-quick-fixes-to-provide-alternate-formats-for-all-learners/ Wed, 04 Mar 2026 20:42:35 +0000 /ctl/?p=5466 … Read More]]> The Universal Design for Learning research suggests that providing multiple modalities of content will improve student learning outcomes, but it can be time-consuming to develop multiple formats of your course content. The new Ally tool will do this for you if you content meets basic accessibility requirements.

In this webinar, you will learn about the Ally Alternate Formats tool available to your students, as well as how to make quick edits to your content to ensure that students can choose their preferred format for engaging with the content. If you type content into a page in Brightspace, upload PowerPoint slides, or upload a reading in a pdf file, your students will have the option to read the content directly in Brightspace as usual, or download an mp3 version to listen to while they read or go for a walk or download an immersive reader version that helps them more deeply engage with the reading improving comprehension.

Join us to learn about some quick fixes you can make to your Brightspace content to take advantage of the Ally Alternate Formats tool to improve the learning experience for all of your students.

]]> Instructive Alt Text /ctl/instructive-alt-text/ Wed, 25 Feb 2026 22:09:17 +0000 /ctl/?p=5511 All images in your files need to have alternate text that describes the purpose and important information for those who cannot see the image. While we used to just consider this as an accessibility issue for people who use screen readers, there are additional uses for alt text: people with low internet bandwidth may turn off images to speed up page loads, descriptions of images will display if the image does not load because of broken links or technical issues, and these verbal descriptions will be included for those using the MP3 audio file created by Ally Alternate Formats. The fundamental purpose of Universal Design for Learning is to design for learner variability which then benefits more learners in ways that you may not have considered.

]]> All images in your files need to have alternate text that describes the purpose and important information for those who cannot see the image. While we used to just consider this as an accessibility issue for people who use screen readers, there are additional uses for alt text: people with low internet bandwidth may turn off images to speed up page loads, descriptions of images will display if the image does not load because of broken links or technical issues, and these verbal descriptions will be included for those using the MP3 audio file created by Ally Alternate Formats. The fundamental purpose of Universal Design for Learning is to design for learner variability which then benefits more learners in ways that you may not have considered.

So, how can you make your alt text instructive? When you craft alt text for pictures, charts, and illustrations, consider the purpose of the image. Why did you select this visual? What do you want learners to take away from the image? What is important about it in relation to your learning outcomes? Include this in the alt text rather than just a detailed description of what is on the screen.

If you need help brainstorming alt text in this way, you can try the  that will create variations of alt text for an image you upload. See this in action with an example from a biology journal article: 

]]> Accessibility Mentor Training /ctl/accessibility-mentor-training/ Tue, 24 Feb 2026 19:51:56 +0000 /ctl/?p=5411 This training introduces new Accessibility Mentors at 91桃色 to the role and responsibilities, as well as some of the simple "quick fixes" to improve digital accessibility of our files.

]]> This training introduces new Accessibility Mentors at 91桃色 to the role and responsibilities, as well as some of the simple “quick fixes” to improve digital accessibility of our files.

Practice your skills

  1. Download this file and try out the OCR tool in Adobe Acrobat to recognize the text. Next, use the auto-tagging feature to provide metadata for screen readers to navigate the file. Use the alt text tool to add descriptions to images or mark them as decorative.
  2. Download this file that was exported from a PDF and work on the following steps to make it accessible:
    • Modify the section headings to keep the formatting but assign the appropriate heading level (Heading 2).
    • 91桃色 Heading 1 style to the title of the article while maintaining the format.
    • Increase the color contrast of the blue font to make it easier to read.
    • 91桃色 a header row to the table.
    • Add alt text or mark images as decorative.

For more resources on making simple edits to improve accessibility, visit the following pages:

Ally for Brightspace Quick Fixes for Accessibility Remediating Digital Files WCAG Checklist

]]> Color Contrast Checker /ctl/color-contrast-checker/ Wed, 04 Feb 2026 18:07:29 +0000 /ctl/?p=5128 Color contrast is critical in your digital content because it ensures people with low vision, color blindness (approximately 1 in 12 men), or situational impairments (like screen glare) can easily read text on the screen. Ideally, the ratio between the text color and the background color should be 4.5 to 1, but what does that mean and how do you know whether you are using the right colors?

]]> Color contrast is critical in your digital content because it ensures people with low vision, color blindness (approximately 1 in 12 men), or situational impairments (like screen glare) can easily read text on the screen. Ideally, the ratio between the text color and the background color should be 4.5 to 1, but what does that mean and how do you know whether you are using the right colors? The color contrast scale moves from 1:1 (white on white) to 21:1 (black on white). If you know the color codes, you can use an online tool to determine the contrast ratio. However, many people don’t know how to find the color codes, so a free tool like Colour Contrast Analyzer (CCA) can be a big help. After downloading this app for your Mac or PC, you can use the eye dropper tool to pick any colors on your screen to determine the contrast ratio.

Check it out here: 

Screenshot of the Colour Contrast Analyser application open above a window with poor color contrast showing the color codes, the contrast ratio, and teh WCAG guidelines passed or failed
]]> Demystifying screen reader use for manual testing /ctl/demystifying-screen-reader-use-for-manual-testing/ Wed, 26 Nov 2025 21:56:55 +0000 /ctl/?p=5310 Are you curious about what it's like for someone with a vision impairment to navigate a website? Gareth Fuller attended this training at the Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD) conference last week and returned with the session materials. This website explains how screen readers work and what the experience is like for someone to use it. It also provides guidance on downloading and using software to try it yourself.

]]> Are you curious about what it’s like for someone with a vision impairment to navigate a website? Gareth Fuller attended this training at the Association on Higher Education and Disability (AHEAD) conference last week and returned with the session materials. This website explains how screen readers work and what the experience is like for someone to use it. It also provides guidance on downloading and using software to try it yourself.

Screen Reader Comparison chart: Column headers: Screen Reader, Year Released Operating System, Optimal Browser, Cost, Estimated US Users. Row headings: JAWS, VoiceOver, NVDA. Data: 1995, Windows, Firefox, $95/year, 2,362,8000. 2005, Mac, Safari, Free, 286,000. 2006, Windows, Firefox, Free, 1,350,800. Which screen reader, or screen readers you choose to test with is up to you. Needless to say, though, we hope you choose to test with at least one screen reader, and that you test with it early and often!
]]> PDF Accessibility Training Videos /ctl/pdf-accessibility-training-videos/ Wed, 22 Oct 2025 19:21:27 +0000 /ctl/?p=3573 This PDF Accessibility training series was provided to Microsoft employees on creating accessible PDF documents. Use these videos, along with documentation from to learn to create, remediate, and check for accessibility issues. To test your knowledge, use the PDF sample documents

]]> This PDF Accessibility training series was provided to Microsoft employees on creating accessible PDF documents. Use these videos, along with documentation from to learn to create, remediate, and check for accessibility issues. To test your knowledge, use the PDF sample documents

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