Introduction

Workgroup

In February 2023, the Digital Accessibility Community of Practice steering committee formed a workgroup with the following members to establish a campus-wide strategy for improving digital web accessibility at the University.

  • Luke Kudryashov, Disability Resource Center, Twin Cities (Co-chair); now Deputy ADA Coordinator
  • Dimitri Tadege, University Relations, Twin Cities (Co-chair)
  • Jane Flis, Carlson School of Management, Twin Cities
  • Christina Goodland, Office of Information Technology, Twin Cities
  • Kieran Kohlhase, Office of Information Technology, Twin Cities
  • Khaled Musa, Office of Information Technology, Twin Cities; now ODA Director
  • Jane Reed, Natural Resources Research Institute, Duluth

Charge

Part of the charge was to "[understand] the University’s and peer institutions’ digital accessibility landscape" and to provide "recommendations to the Policy Workgroup to make sure the Digital Content and Information Technology Accessibility strategy is aligned with the University’s Policy on web accessibility."

Tasks

To accomplish both and develop the strategic plan, we:

  • Searched the web for and reviewed information on similar institutions' accessibility efforts 
  • Conducted interviews with digital accessibility professionals, UMN digital content contributors, UMN web developers, and representatives of other institutions that have similar distributed web governance and staffing structures or who use automated accessibility checking tools like Pope Tech for web accessibility and UDOIT for online courses
  • Provided feedback on the policy workgroups' proposed revision of the University’s policy on web accessibility and included related recommendations in the strategic plan
  • Identified what we wanted to recommend in a consensus workshop
  • Drafted the strategic plan in a series of workgroup sessions using Google Docs, and then refined it on this website

Community Input

We are grateful for the information shared by professionals from the University and outside institutions, which helped us determine what to recommend.

Scope

Initial

The intent of this initial strategic plan is to ensure that our most public and widely used digital content—the text, media, and files posted on our official websites and ongoing live courses in the University's learning management system—meet a minimum set of of accessibility standards within a short timeframe and demonstrate significant progress toward complying with the policy and WCAG 2.1 AA requirements.

  • Websites and web applications using the umn.edu domain name
  • Websites and web applications produced by employees to conduct official University business and outreach
  • Web content and applications connected to a service provided by a third party vendor
  • Communication modalities or platforms used by the University such as email and social media
  • Course sites on the University's learning management system that are actively being used for online teaching and instruction
  • Web applications internally developed or purchased for use in University business processes

New Federal Guidelines

Proposed new federal accessibility guidelines were released while we were developing the strategic plan, and finalized while the draft strategic plan was being reviewed.

May 2023

The Department of Justice (DOJ) and Department of Education's Office for Civil Rights (DOE OCR) issued a joint letter about their ongoing efforts to address accessibility issues related to online services, programs, and activities in higher education.

August 2023 

The DOJ released a proposed rule on the Accessibility of Web Information and Services of State and Local Government Entities and opened the comment period for all higher education and public institutions until October 3, 2023. 

April 8, 2024

Attorney General Merrick B. Garland signed a final rule under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) titled “Accessibility of web content and mobile applications (apps) for people with disabilities.”

The Advance Copy (PFD) of the rule highlights all the comments that were taken into consideration, and explanations for those that didn’t. 

The Fact Sheet has a good summary of the rule and what it covers.

Summer 2024

Changes have been made to the strategic plan accordingly, as summarized below.

  • The University must provide and make accessible all web content and mobile apps that it offers directly or through contractual, licensing, or other arrangements. This covers websites (public or behind authentication), and all content provided via a vended tool like Canvas and Kaltura.
  • All public institutions must make their websites and mobile apps comply with WCAG 2.1 A/AA. The University is expected to comply by April 24, 2026. 

Future

After significant progress has been made, we will update the plan further to meet higher accessibility maturity levels, until we ultimately have a sustainable accessibility program.

Goals

This plan presents a roadmap of initial tasks organized to meet four broad goals: 

  1. Create a central University structure that will oversee and lend support to digital accessibility efforts across all departments and campuses within the University system.
  2. Develop an accountability structure to clarify roles and responsibilities.
  3. Create a system to track issues and remediation progress.
  4. Develop a communications plan and regularly share information about responsibilities, resources, and progress.

Rationale 

We believe that the accessibility policy and a plan to enact it are essential in enabling individuals to excel in their academic and professional pursuits. We made it a priority to align the plan with University values and priorities, comply with legal obligations, and honor past efforts.

Values and Priorities

The University mission statement expresses a commitment to “making the knowledge and resources created and preserved at the University accessible to the citizens of the state, the nation, and the world.”

Websites and digital materials that are not designed with accessibility in mind exclude a significant portion of citizens of both our University and larger communities.

We hope the strategic plan helps extend the benefits of accessible design to all people who use our digital content and bolsters larger diversity, equity, and inclusion initiatives in the MPACT 2025 strategic plan.

Central to our efforts in all areas is a commitment to people. According to the social model of disability, every person is responsible for contributing to the accessibility of the environment that we all share. We want to help us all collectively meet that responsibility.

Legal Obligations

The University must comply with federal and state laws that prohibit discrimination on the basis of disability, including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973. 

Past Accessibility Efforts

Over the past several decades, the dedicated efforts of numerous passionate individuals have propelled the University of Minnesota toward a more accessible digital landscape. See About the ODA for details. This strategic plan formalizes, builds upon, and expands these efforts.