Digital Accessibility Standards & Resources

Access the CU Anschutz Campus Standards for Digital Accessibility 2024 (.docx)

Complete CU Accessibility Fundamentals (Skillsoft) introductory course on digital accessibility and ADA compliance for digital communications.

Additional Resources:

• CU Boulder Digital Accessibility Office – Resources on accessible content, documents, events, teaching, and Canvas.
• WCAG 2.1 – Official web accessibility guidelines from the W3C.
• WebAIM – Offers tutorials, articles, and discussions on web accessibility for all skill levels.
• State of Colorado OIT – Guides on creating accessible websites, documents, and IT services.
• LinkedIn Learning Accessibility Trainings – Free trainings curated by CU Anschutz OIT. Access via MyCU.edu portal.

• Images
• Color Contrast
• Headings
• Links
• Lists
• Tables
• Visual Style

The CU Anschutz standards for digital accessibility adhere to the FCC closed captioning rules. Visit the FCC website for closed captioning guidelines

Recommended Captioning Tools: Panopto (preferred), Anthology Ally, Zoom Captioning

For web-hosted videos, review the AtWeb guides on video captioning and creating accessible videos

For pre-recorded content, review the CU Anschutz Office of Disability, Access, and Inclusion’s guide to creating transcript files

CU Boulder Resources: Automated Captioning Tools, Live Captioning Tools, Creating Accessible Videos, and how to filter YouTube search results by captioned videos

Additional Resource: W3C Making Audio and Video Media Accessible

For instructors using Canvas, Anthology Ally helps improve the accessibility of course materials, ensuring that all students have equal access to learning resources.

Review teaching resources related to digital accessibility from the CU Anschutz Office of Disability, Access and Inclusion (ODAI), including tips for universal design for learning.

Additional Resources:

• The CU Boulder Digital Accessibility Office provides resources for instructors and additional help with Canvas accessibility.
• The CU Denver Division for Teaching Innovation and Program Strategy (TIPS) provides a variety of digital accessibility resources for faculty and staff.

PDFs

• Understanding PDF Accessibility (CU Boulder)
• Introduction to PDF Accessibility (Adobe)
• PDF and Document Accessibility (State of Colorado OIT)

Word

• Understanding Word Accessibility (CU Boulder)
• Create accessible Word documents (Microsoft Training)

PowerPoint

• Understanding PowerPoint Accessibility (CU Boulder)
• Create accessible PowerPoint slides (Microsoft Training)

Emails

• Create Accessible Emails (CU Boulder)
• Create accessible Outlook emails (Microsoft Training)

Excel

• Create accessible Excel workbooks (Microsoft Training)

Forms

• Accessible Forms (State of Colorado OIT)
• Formstack Best Practices
• Qualtrics Recommendations (CU Boulder)
• Qualtrics Inaccessible Question Types (CU Boulder)

Review key guidelines for digital asset accessibility from the CU Anschutz Office of Communications.

The CU System eComm program offers tutorials and best practices for Marketing Cloud and Cvent. Visit the CU eComm Wiki for more information.

Additional Resources:

• Accessibility Best Practices
• Creating Accessible Content

All CU Anschutz websites are required to comply with WCAG 2.1 guidelines.

Members of the university web community can access tools and best practices for building accessible websites.

For support and guidance on web accessibility, contact the CU Anschutz OIT Web Services and Development team by submitting a help request or emailing oit-servicedesk@cuanschutz.edu.

To learn more about web accessibility, explore these recommended resources:

• Web Accessibility Laws & Policies
• WebAIM (Web Accessibility in Mind)