What Is My Responsibility For Accessibility?

As subject matter experts and course developers, faculty:

• Reviews existing course materials for accessibility, consulting with Access Advocates and others as needed.
• Designs and creates instructional materials using CAST accessibility guidelines and UDL (Universal Design for Learning) principles. 
• Before selecting commercially available materials to be used in a course, ensures that those materials meet accessibility requirements.
• Provides alternative text descriptions for images, tables, etc.
• Selects captioned media wherever possible.
• Creates a transcript and adds captions to accompany any newly created media.
• Checks accessibility of materials using applications’ built-in accessibility review, Ally course accessibility reports, and/or WAVE Web Accessibility Evaluation tools.
• Prepares alternative experiences for any inaccessible content.

Each academic department has an Access Advocate who: 

• Facilitates the selection of 20% of the program courses to be reviewed and updated/revised as needed to meet accessibility standards
• Assists their unit in deciding how to prioritize which courses are most critical to review first (e.g. online courses, General Education courses, courses that every student in the major has to take).
• Creates a schedule for remaining courses to be reviewed and updated.
• Provides an informal review of the accessibility of course materials as requested.
• Provides ongoing support to faculty members in their unit on the accessibility of new and existing instructional methods and materials.
• Assist with developing resource material on accessibility & universal design for learning.

The Center for Academic Innovation and Faculty Support (CAIFS) supports digital pedagogy and learning with technology. CAIFS: 

• Consults with faculty on the selection and creation of accessible instructional material.
• Assists with creation of alternative text.
• Assists with captioning process.
• Assists with accessibility and/or course reviews as requested & assists with revisions as necessary.
• Assists with subject area accessibility planning and instructional design.
• Develops resource material on accessibility & universal design for learning. 
• Provides instruction and individual consultations/over-the-shoulder support for teaching with accessibility in mind.
• Assists with the maintenance of web resource materials, including accessible syllabus templates and the accessibility statement links for commonly-used instructional tools.

Online Learning and Program Support assists with facilitating accessible online courses and instructional materials. The office: 

• Consults with faculty on strategies for meeting the standards of accessibility in online courses.
• Reviews online courses for accessibility and provides feedback and support to assist with revisions as necessary.
• Assists with subject area accessibility planning and instructional design.
• Monitors online courses and programs for accessibility standards compliance and assists with the implementation of online course accessibility rubrics.
• Assists with the evaluation of potential new educational technology products for accessibility.
• Maintains current WebAIM training certifications to serve as an in-house resource on accessible course design.

Central resource for students regarding assistive technology and access accommodations and:

• Coordinates provision of access accommodations according to established procedures.
• Assures access and accommodations by:
  • Providing faculty notification forms to students.
  • Supplying accessible alternative formats as indicated.
  • Providing additional aids and services as needed.
• Promotes campus awareness of accessibility and universal design for learning in collaboration with Access Committee.
• Assists with evaluation of potential new educational technology products for accessibility.
• Consults with Facilities Management to ensure the physical campus is accessible

Central resource for staff and faculty regarding access accommodations and

• Plans, implements and promotes human resource programs and practices that enhance the University’s ability to attract, develop, reward and retain an exceptional faculty and staff.
• Coordinates provision of accommodations for staff and faculty according to established procedures.

A standing broadly representative campus group charged by the Chancellor with

• Careful study and campus-wide universal design and accessibility policy and process development.
• Planning for raising campus awareness and faculty/staff expertise in accessibility and accommodations including assistive technology procurement and funding and ongoing strategic planning to support a strategic access plan.
• Develops resource material on accessibility & universal design for learning.
• Creates and maintains web resource materials.

Facilities Management monitors and assures accessibility of physical spaces for all university facilities including the main campus, The George, and in Greenville.

• Assures accessibility of the physical environment for everyday functions and for special events hosted in university spaces.
• In partnership with Disability Services, regularly reviews and monitors campus accessibility.