AP 19-60c - Digital Accessibility | Arapahoe Community College

AP 19-60c - Digital Accessibility

Arapahoe Community College
Series 19 - Safety, Security, and Civil Rights
AP 19-60c - Digital Accessibility

Originated: December 31, 2014

Revised: July 2016; September 2018; August 2020; August 2025; June 2026

Effective: December 31, 2014; July 2016 September 2018; August 2020; August 2025; June 2026

References:;

Approved:

Stephanie J. Fujii, Ph.D.
President, Arapahoe Community College

PURPOSE

This Process applies to information and communication technology (ICT) which includes, but is not limited to, websites, instructional materials, online services, software applications, multimedia content, and kiosks that are developed or maintained by entities within CCCS. The System must ensure that ICT is accessible for use by faculty, staff, students, prospective students, and the public.

This Process does not apply to unauthorized web pages published by students or employees, which are not used to conduct CCCS business or instructional activities. Furthermore, this process does not apply to third-party content linked to a CCCS website, unless the third-party site or web content is used to allow members of the public to participate in or benefit from CCCS services, programs, or activities.

This Process contains pertinent information affecting students and employees, current through the date of its issuance. BPs and SPs are subject to change throughout the year and are effective immediately upon adoption by the Board or System Chancellor, respectively. Employees are expected to be familiar with and adhere to BPs, SPs as well as College directives, including but not limited to this Process.

Nothing in this Process is intended to create (nor shall it be construed as creating) an express or implied contract or to guarantee employment for any term. The College reserves the right to modify, change, delete or add to this Process as it is deemed appropriate. To the extent that any provision of this Process is inconsistent with State or Federal law, State Board for Community Colleges and Occupational Education Policies (BPs) or Colorado Community College System Procedures (SPs), the law, BPs and SPs shall supersede and control.

This process incorporates the requirements established in ; HB21-1110; and 8 CCR 1501-11, Technology Accessibility Rules.

SCOPE

This procedure applied to employees.

DEFINITIONS

Level AA – The World Wide Web Consortium recognizes three levels of digital accessibility. A is the minimum level of requirements any website should be able to meet. AA is the mid-range level that represents strong accessibility. AAA is the highest level of conformance providing exceptional accessibility. Level AA requirements include:

Text and background have proper color contrast
Content Organization has clear heading structure and logical order
Navigation must be consistent throughout every web page

WCAG – Web Content Accessibility Guidelines explains how to make web content more accessible to people with disabilities. WCAG covers web sites, applications, and other digital content.

PROCESS

To ensure official college ICT conforms to the technical standards adopted by the Technology Accessibility Rules (8 CCR 1501-11). Currently, these standards are generally WCAG 2.1, Level AA. College ICT must conform with the technical standards unless Ģ��Ƶ is otherwise in compliance as provided by applicable law.

College Implementation and Support

All employees play an important role in Ģ��Ƶ’s success to ensure the goals of Digital Accessibility are met in a timely manner. Each department contributes by implementing digital accessibility best practices or supporting other departments as they train, assess, remediate, and create accessible web content. Ģ��Ƶ will make their top priority systems visible to the most users with highest regard given to public-facing systems and student-facing systems. The lowest priority will be those systems which are being phased out in the near future.

The following have been identified as areas of concentration related to the implementation of WCAG standards:

Ģ��Ƶ Website and myĢ��Ƶ Student / Employee Portal
Training
Course Materials and Documents
Non-instructional materials and documents
Technology and Software

The Ģ��Ƶ Digital Accessibility Committee will conduct an annual review at the end of each fiscal year on the status of conformity completion. This review will be submitted to Ģ��Ƶ and CCCS governing bodies.

Vendor Agreements

Ģ��Ƶ shall purchase from vendors who conform to technical standards as appropriate for the services they provide.

APPENDICES

Appendix A - Areas of Concentration: Items to be Considered

Ģ��Ƶ Website (www.arapahoe.edu) and myĢ��Ƶ Student / Employee portal (https://portal.cccs.edu/acc)
1. Identify and address structural conformity issues within the website and portal to conform with technical standards.
2. Update website and portal page content (this includes written copy, video, audio, images, etc.) to conform with technical standards.
3. Caption/transcribe multimedia content to conform with technical standards.
4. Ensure documents on the website and portal conform with technical standards.
5. An annual audit [WDP1] [NA2] will be conducted of www.arapahoe.edu and https://portal.cccs.edu/acc to determine conformity issues.
6. Website and portal updates will be monitored to conform with technical standards (this includes documents that are available on the site).
7. Research of accessibility standards and best practices for utilization.
8. Review and remediation of all web-based documents for accessibility conformity.
Training
1. Conduct regular workshops/webinars/trainings for employees on making materials accessible.
2. Develop or purchase resources for making multimedia resources and documents accessible.
3. Require digital accessibility training for new employees and ongoing training for all employees as needed.  
Instructional Materials and Resources
Digital course materials and resources for in-person and online courses can include documents, materials, pages, assignments, activities, quizzes, and external resources, and 3rd-party tools linked within a course. These items collectively are referred to as course content.

Faculty and instructors will:
1. Review and assess digital course content to conform with technical standards
2. Remediate HTML/documents for conformance with technical standards so that educational materials are accessible.
3. Ensure new course content conforms with technical standards.
4. Ensure course content within LMS conforms with technical standards.
5. Caption/Transcribe multimedia (video and audio files) to conform with technical standards.
6. Include narrated audio descriptions when necessary.
Non-instructional Materials and Documents

All Ģ��Ƶ employees will:
1. Review and assess digital content to conform with technical standards
2. Remediate digital content so that materials conform with technical standards.  
3. Ensure new digital content meets accessibility standards.
4. Caption/Transcribe multimedia (video and audio files).
5. Include narrated audio descriptions when necessary.
6. Update employment documents and forms.
Technology and Software
1. Instructional Technology will analyze applications and software requested by faculty and staff for compliance with technical standards. If components are missing and not available for that product, the requesting party will be notified and an alternate route may be suggested or advised.
2. Instructional Technology will support software installation and configuration as needed on College-owned equipment.
3. Partner and associated websites will be reviewed annually for compliance with technical standards by the department using the website.
4. Accessibility plans will be requested of current partners/associated website vendors by the department using the partner/website vendor to ensure conformity with technical standards.
5. Future partners will be contractually required to provide conformity within their products by the department using the partner.

Ģ��Ƶ

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