Digital Accessibility: Frequently Asked Questions
This FAQ is intended for faculty and staff who create, upload, edit, or manage digital content such as websites, documents, instructional materials, emails, and multimedia.
Policy Overview
- Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
- ADA Title II implementing regulations (28 CFR Part 35)
- Texas Administrative Code (TAC), Title 1, Chapters 206 and 213
Digital accessibility should be addressed proactively and must not be delayed until an accommodation is requested.
- Websites and web pages
- Web‑based applications and portals
- Digital documents (Word, PDF, Excel, PowerPoint, email)
- Multimedia content (audio and video)
- Social media content used for University business
- Software and services that are not web-based
- Perceivable
Information and user interface components must be presented in ways users can perceive, such as providing text alternatives for non‑text content and captions for multimedia. - Operable
User interface components and navigation must be usable through different means, including keyboard‑only access, without requiring specific physical actions. - Understandable
Information and operation of the user interface must be clear and predictable, with readable content and instructions that are easy to follow. - Robust
Content must be compatible with a wide range of current and future assistive technologies so it can be reliably interpreted by users and software.
WCAG helps ensure digital content can be accessed, used, and understood by people with a wide range of disabilities and assistive technologies.
- New digital content must be accessible at the time of publication
- Existing content must be reviewed if it remains in use or is updated
- Accessibility is an ongoing responsibility
Content that is reused each semester, reposted, or redistributed is considered active and must meet accessibility requirements.
- Public and internal websites
- Canvas course content and instructional materials
- Digital documents and forms
- Emails and mass communications
- Audio, video, and multimedia content
This applies regardless of cost, meaning content created or delivered using free tools, platforms, templates, or services must still be accessible.
- Images should include alternative text when supported
- Video and audio content should be captioned
- Color contrast and readable formatting should be considered
Social media content created before current requirements does not need to be retroactively remediated but should be archived if no longer needed.
All University websites and web content must be accessible.
- Text
- Images
- Audio
- Video
Third-party content must be accessible when UT Tyler hosts or embeds it as part of a contract or license.
Digital Accessibility Tools and Suport
Canvas includes an Accessibility Checker that scans Pages and Assignments. For help in creating accessible course content, email canvas@uttyler.edu.
If further assistance is required, email EIRAccessibility@uttyler.edu.
Alternative Formats
- Contact Student Accessibility Resources (SAR) for guidance with student-related requests.
- Contact Office of Human Resources for faculty/staff related requests.
- Digital Accessibility offers resources to create accessible documents.
An equally effective accessible alternative is a temporary way to provide the same information and functionality when digital content cannot be made fully accessible right away.
The alternative must be available without delay, usable independently, and does not replace the requirement to fix the original content.
- A document or media file cannot be remediated immediately
- Third-party content has known accessibility barriers
- Time-sensitive information must be shared before remediation is complete
- An accessible Word or web version instead of an inaccessible PDF
- Text descriptions or summaries for charts, infographics, or images
- Captions and transcripts for audio or video content
- Structured, typed notes instead of scanned or handwritten materials
- Accessible data summaries instead of complex or inaccessible spreadsheets
- Asking users to request help or accommodations
- Providing access only after someone reports a problem
- One‑on‑one assistance that replaces independent access
- Summaries that omit important content or functionality