Digital Accessibility
What is digital accessibility and why is it important?
Imagine if most of the websites, course materials, and digital tools you rely on for your work were difficult — or impossible — to use. While others can easily access research updates, Extension resources, training modules, or student information, you’re left navigating barriers that prevent full participation.
For millions of people with disabilities in the United States, this is a daily reality. Within our CALS community — faculty, staff, students, and the public we serve — individuals may have visual, auditory, motor, speech, or cognitive disabilities that affect how they access digital content.
In your roles, this shows up in very practical ways:
- A faculty member or student with a visual disability may rely on screen readers, magnification tools, or high-contrast settings to access syllabi, research publications, or online course content.
- Staff and community members with auditory disabilities depend on captions or transcripts to engage with recorded lectures, webinars, and Extension videos.
- Individuals with motor disabilities may navigate websites and documents using only a keyboard or voice-to-text software.
- Those with speech disabilities may rely on non-verbal digital communication tools.
- People with cognitive disabilities benefit from clear structure, consistent navigation, and well-organized content in everything from training materials to program websites.
Digital accessibility, then, is not an abstract concept — it is a core part of how we teach, communicate, conduct research, and serve communities across Virginia. It ensures that all members of the CALS and Extension community can fully engage with our programs, resources, and opportunities.
At its core, digital accessibility means designing and sharing digital content — websites, documents, videos, and tools — in ways that are usable by everyone, including people with disabilities.
Imagine if 90% of the websites or mobile apps you use today locked you out. Everyone else continues to experience the convenience of mobile banking, the connectedness of social media, and the freedom of online shopping, but for you they're inaccessible. For the 57 million people with disabilities in the United States this is their everyday experience. People with visual, auditory, motor, speech and cognitive disabilities rely on various assistive technologies and alternate methods of interaction to use; digital documents, web and mobile apps. People with visual disabilities may rely on screen readers Braille displays, zoom functions or high contrast colors to get value from what's displayed on screen. People with auditory disabilities often rely on captions or transcripts for video content. People with motor disabilities might require speech to text software, or keyboard only interactions. People with speech disabilities require a non vocal means of interaction. And finally, people with cognitive disabilities often require thoughtful and organized layouts with clear direction. Digital accessibility is the practice of making digital documents, web and mobile apps accessible to everyone, including people with disabilities. Accessible sites and apps are Perceivable, Operable, Understandable and Robust. Building accessible sites or apps can be tricky without the right guidance. The web content accessibility guidelines or WCAG, published by the w3c, is the standard rule set that defines what makes a site accessible. Developers, testers, app owners, and accessibility experts from around the world rely on these standards for proper accessibility testing direction. In fact many US federal government agency sites and apps are required by law under Section 508 to be accessible. This law includes the WCAG standard. In the US and European Union WCAG is being adopted across private sector businesses as well. Whether you're following legal requirements or proactively working to make the web a better place, practicing digital accessibility makes a real difference for millions of people. To start making your site more accessible, try the free axe browser extension, or reach out to your local accessibility community for other recommendations on where to start. Deque, accessibility for good. (deque.com/axe)
Where to Start
CALS faculty, staff, and students should assess the accessibility of their new and actively used digital content and make a plan to bring that content into compliance with WCAG guidelines by the April 24, 2026 deadline. For Spring 2026 courses, the deadline for compliance is Jan. 20, 2026, to coincide with the start of the semester. How to Get Started provides strategies for reviewing your content for digital accessibility.
Which best describes you?
Create Accessible Digital Content
Create Accessible Digital Content Revisions to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) Title II requires accessibility compliance for all digital content — including all Canvas content, web pages, word-processing documents, PDF files, images, videos, spreadsheets, and forms — by spring 2026. Your commitment to producing accessible learning materials helps ensure that all students will have equitable access to your course resources. This page will help you create, check, and remediate your content.
ADA Title II Digital Accessibility
ADA Title II Digital Accessibility This website is intended to help you develop a plan for bringing your content into compliance, whether it is new content or something you’ve been using for years. Content could include websites, course sites, video or audio recordings, images or graphics, cloud-based applications, or various document types, including PDF files.
Develop a Pathway to Digital Accessibility - CALS
Develop a Pathway to Digital Accessibility - CALS (Video Recording) This workshop is designed specifically for CALS faculty, staff, research units, and Extension-affiliated programs who create, publish, or manage digital content and files. This hands-on workshop will guide you through assessing the current state of your digital accessibility and using that insight to create a realistic, actionable roadmap toward compliance.
Digital Accessibility Playbook (DAP)
Digital Accessibility Playbook (DAP) DAP is designed as a central space for learning, exploring, and applying digital accessibility practices at Virginia Tech. Here, modules can be completed at your own pace and tailored to your specific accessibility needs. Each module provides a combination of resources, action steps, and practical strategies for building accessible course content
Tools and Training
Tools and Training This page provides a detailed overview of a variety of tools that can be leveraged to help you assess your content provided by the University.
VCE Employee Resources
Title II Toolkit
Title II Toolkit Provides some resources to assist faculty and staff members in creating accessible digital content. This includes Word and PDF documents, emails, websites, spreadsheets, social media, videos and other content that is distributed digitally. It is not limited to only publications. If you have questions regarding these materials, please contact vceresources@vt.edu.
Digital Accessibility Lunch & Learns
Digital Accessibility Lunch & Learns The sessions will include watching a pre-recorded webinar on an accessibility topic (10 minutes or less), followed by sharing specific VCE/CALS examples and Q&A. Held on Fridays from 12-12:30 p.m. Join the webinar at https://virginiatech.zoom.us/j/85126919126.
VCE Marketing Minute Tips
Check out VCE Marketing Minute Tips for quick tips to help you promote your programs and impact.
Teaching and Research Faculty Resources
Following Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles is the easiest way to develop instructional materials that don’t need to be remediated for accessibility later.
Peer Review and Self-Assessment Resources
The TLOS Course Quality Checklist can be adopted (and modified as needed) by programs and departments to support peer review of online teaching. Individual instructors may also find this checklist helpful as a self-assessment tool when they are designing or redesigning an online course.
Training Opportunities
TLOS provides facilitated workshops and self-paced training designed to help faculty prepare to teach at a distance.
- Incorporate the Canvas C.O.R.E. in your online course design.
- Review Foundations of Online and Flexible Teaching, a self-paced course that provides an overview of best practices for online teaching and learning.
- Register for one of our short courses offered through the TLOS Professional Development Network.
Individual and Departmental Consultations
TLOS offers one-on-one consultations for individual instructors, and we welcome opportunities to discuss college- and department-level initiatives.
Request a consultation with an instructional designer or learning technologies specialist.
Extension Volunteer Resources
Coming soon
To learn more about services and programs offered in support of college or department initiatives