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All digital content needs to be compliant by April 26, 2027.
All digital content needs to be compliant by April 26, 2027.
On April 17, 2026, the Department issued an Interim Final Rule extending the compliance deadline by one year, to April 26, 2027. The Interim Final Rule does not change the substance of the digital accessibility requirements.
On April 17, 2026, the Department issued an Interim Final Rule extending the compliance deadline by one year, to April 26, 2027. The Interim Final Rule does not change the substance of the digital accessibility requirements.
The University must continue to work steadily toward compliance with these requirements—now incorporated into the University’s Administrative Policy on Accessibility of Digital Content and Information Technology—by the revised deadline of April 26, 2027.
The University must continue to work steadily toward compliance with these requirements—now incorporated into the University’s Administrative Policy on Accessibility of Digital Content and Information Technology—by the revised deadline of April 26, 2027.
This includes anything that’s internal to more than a small team.
This includes anything that’s internal to more than a small team.
Digital Accessibility Resources
Digital Accessibility Resources
A new University policy entitled Accessibility of Digital Content and Information Technology implements new legal requirements from the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA).
We need to make sure all U of M content presented online is accessible by April 2026. This includes anything that’s internal to more than a small team, but internal is lower priority than external, especially if it’s password protected.
This means a change to our mindset to ensure that accessibility is an integral part of everything we do.
All digital media will need to be compliant, including the following:
Websites and all live content on sites
Materials in PDF, MS Word, MS PPT, MS Excel, Google Docs, etc.
Third-party tools/materials if used in connection with UMN courses & sites
Digital textbooks (including notes, guides, handouts, assessments, data sets, practice sets, lab exercises, case studies, etc.)
Digital media (video, audio, images, charts, diagrams, infographics, etc.)
Intranet
Social media
Emails that go to external audiences
What not to do (a partial list)
What not to do (a partial list)
Uploading a text-heavy graphic or infographic onto a website
Embedding a text-and-image graphic into the body of an email, and that's the entire email
Linking to a PDF or Google doc or any file that hasn't been checked for digital accessibility
Posting a video to a website or social media or in an email without having human-edited captions/subtitles in it
Not using alt text for images in things like social media posts and Word docs
Designing a graphic with very low color contrast like pink background and red text
So what should you do to make sure it's digitally accessible?
So what should you do to make sure it's digitally accessible?
Q&As
Q&As
What if I don't have time to fix my content so it's digitally accessible?
What if I don't have time to fix my content so it's digitally accessible?
You can use a fee-for-service, which costs about $3-5 per page. Submit this form to get started: https://z.umn.edu/oda-pdf
What about linking to other websites that may or may not be digitally accessible? Are we allowed to do that?
What about linking to other websites that may or may not be digitally accessible? Are we allowed to do that?
That depends on the context. If the resource is not essential/required for participation in a program or service (supplementary only) and we don't have a contractual relationship with the outside organization, it is ok not to check it. If the resource is required/essential and/or we have a contract with the organization, we do need to ensure accessibility.
Read this resource guide for faculty and staff on creating accessible digital content.
Other resources and sites for accessibility checking tools:
WAVE (for website pages) is okay to use as long as it's the browser extension only
Fee-for-service remediation: You can fill out this form at https://z.umn.edu/oda-pdf
UDOIT SpeedFIXIT, a new feature in UDOIT for every user who is able to use UDOIT in their course; it specifically targets image descriptions and color contrast fixes. https://z.umn.edu/speedFixIt
What do the DFMCH communications team members do? What if you need help?
What do the DFMCH communications team members do? What if you need help?
The DFMCH communications team is working to ensure that our website pages (over one hundred of them) are edited to be compliant by the deadline. Due to this lift and the scope of our services, we aren't able to assist with others' individual Canvas sites or Google Sites pages, videos on a YouTube page, handouts that were created by others a while ago and need to be made accessible, or any other materials for specific uses. Instead, we ask that you read up on how to create digitally accessible materials and aim to make them compliant from the start going forward.
For additional support, please contact your web and email digital accessibility coordinator (WEDAC), academic digital accessibility liaison (ADAL) for course-related questions, or the Office for Digital Accessibility. ODA in particular is very helpful and can offer advice and guidance. They also offer open office hours and consultations.
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