Digital Accessibility

In 2024, the Department of Justice issued updated regulations under Title II of the ADA setting technical requirements for web content and mobile apps at public entities, including public universities. There are also related regulations in the state of Virginia. The College of William & Mary's web accessibility standard is WCAG 2.1 AA. 

Our digital accessibility policy is progress over perfection: a web accessibility issue should not stop you from uploading and sharing a document online. That said, we do want to make a concerted effort to adhere to these new laws. Please document any changes you make to improve web accessibility.

Resources

• Web Accessibility: A One-Page Guide (PDF)
• Vims.edu Alt Text Quiz
• William & Mary's Digital Accessibility Office
• Report a web accessibility barrier on vims.edu

Digital Accessibility Basics

• Build accessible PDFs starting in Word. Use built-in heading styles, lists, and tables instead of formatting by hand. Save or Export to PDF, not Print to PDF which strips the metadata that makes the file accessible. Run the Accessibility Checker in Word's Review tab before you export.
• Add alt text to images. Describe the key takeaway a sighted reader would get, not every visual detail. Purely decorative images may not need it. To add alt text in Office apps, right-click the image and choose "View Alt Text."
• Write descriptive link text. Link the words that say where the link goes — "View the Sea-Level Report Cards," not "click here."
• Use tables for data, not layout. Screen readers always read tables as data tables. For layout, use alignment options (Left-aligned, center-aligned, etc.) instead. For real data tables, mark header rows and columns as headers in table properties rather than just bolding them.
• Share the data behind charts and maps. Include the underlying numbers — an appendix or a separate file is fine — so the information reaches someone who can't interpret the visual.