Create Accessible Documents and Media

Creating accessible documents and media ensures all users can perceive, understand, navigate, and interact with content regardless of disabilities or impairments. This involves following guidelines like providing text alternatives for non-text content, ensuring proper color contrast, and making multimedia content accessible with captions and transcripts. Interpreting Voluntary Product Accessibility Templates (VPATs) and vendor accessibility statements helps evaluate the accessibility of technologies. Designing inclusive learning environments adheres to Universal Design for Learning (UDL) principles - providing multiple means of representation, action/expression, and engagement to meet diverse learner needs and preferences. UDL reduces barriers and maximizes learning opportunities through flexibility in how information is presented, how students demonstrate knowledge, and how they are motivated and engaged. 
 
The set of resources below is designed to support faculty by providing options which consider desired time commitment and depth of knowledge.

Professional Development

Strengthen your professional development with our specialized courses and trainings on accessibility and inclusive teaching. Discover the essentials of Voluntary Product Accessibility Templates (VPATs) in an 8-minute video, learn to remediate PDFs with Equidox in a self-directed session, and deepen your understanding of Universal Design for Learning (UDL) through a comprehensive three-week workshop. These tools and workshops are designed to support you at KSU in creating accessible and inclusive learning environments for all students!

TITLE DESCRIPTION LEARNING OUTCOMES RESOURCE TYPE AVERAGE TIME
Finding and Using VPATs This video introduces faculty to the purpose of an Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT), how to find them, and how to share them in their course. The video briefly refers to an Accessibility Statement video as well as a list of VPATs for commonly-used technologies as well as a reference to the DLI Service Portal where faculty can get accessibility help.
  • Interpret VPATs and accessibility statements. 
 Microlearning Video 8 minutes
Using Equidox for PDF Accessibility Participants will be able to download sample documents and remediate them as they follow along with instructions.
  • Create accessible documents and media.
 Self-Directed PD 1 hour
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) Experience The UDL Experience (UDLEX) is a three-week workshop designed to give Kennesaw State faculty an opportunity to collaborate on applying UDL principles to course lessons, content, activities, and assessments.  This workshop assumes that faculty who attend already have a basic working knowledge of Universal Design for Learning and want to learn more about how to use it in their own course.
  • Design inclusive learning environments using UDL principles.
 Instructor-Led Course 9 hours across 3 weeks