CUNY is looking very closely at College’s Websites to make sure everyone is adhering to ADA guidelines for accessibility. With the launch of our new Website, CSI is in good shape. There are a few items that need to be addressed, which we are currently addressing.
The challenge we are experiencing relates to the posting of PDFs as well as videos. In order to comply with ADA regulations, PDFs need to be created with specific formatting and all videos must be closed captioned. We are training representatives from various departments that are heavy PDF users. In addition, we have documentation on our Website that provides directions on how to prepare compliant documents.
Depending on the content, some PDFs are difficult to make compliant (e.g., if they contain tables, images, etc.) and IT is providing the support when needed. However, from our experience, creating these PDFs is very time consuming and could take more than three hours. With that said, it is better to send the document to IT in Word format, which should be in its final version. Also, depending on the complexity of the document and resources needed, IT may not be able to assist with creating the PDF. These documents will not be posted on the Website (e.g., flyers and large brochures). In this regard, IT is exploring a third-party vendor to assist with these conversions. Documents that require constant updates such as the academic calendar are being converted to a Web format that is ADA compliant using html.
As of Thursday, Jan. 18, 2018, the ADA compliance rules are becoming even more stringent. If you have any questions, please don’t hesitate to contact IT. We will do the best we can to work with you.
Thank you for your continued cooperation and flexibility.
