Accessibility
At ETSU, people come first, are treated with dignity and respect, and are encouraged to achieve their full potential. Because of this belief, we want everyone — regardless of ability — to be able to use and interact with all digital content produced by the university. Providing accessible content to everyone at ETSU is an ethical imperative, a university policy requirement, and a federal law.
Read ETSU’s Public Content Accessibility Policy
Read the Digital Course Content Accessibility Policy
Questions about public-facing content accessibility should be directed to University Marketing and Communications (UMC), while questions about course material accessibility should be directed to Academic Technology Services (ATS). Learn more about the differences here.
The Stats on Accessibility
1 in 4 people have a disability
6.2% of Americans experience deafness or serious difficulty hearing
5.5% of Americans deal with blindness or serious difficulty seeing
46% of adults in the U.S. use voice-controlled digital assistants regularly
Data from the CDC and Pew Research Center
ETSU Accessibility Requirements
ETSU is committed to ensuring that all ETSU-affiliated digital content is accessible to individuals with diverse abilities.
Digital content refers to:
- Web pages
- PDF documents
- Presentations (such as PowerPoint)
- Videos
- Text documents (such as Microsoft Word)
- Social media content
Our digital content should adhere to the electronic and information technology accessibility requirements under the federal civil rights laws including Section 504 and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 (Section 508), the Americans with Disabilities Act, and 45 C.F.R. pt. 92 (or any subsequent standard adopted by an oversight administrative body, including the Federal Accessibility Board).
ETSU’s content standards shall follow the most current W3C’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) level AA or higher with a goal to transition to WCAG 3 level silver. Learn more about W3C’s guidelines and Section 508 standards.
Accessibility Training
All ETSU employees are responsible for making their digital content accessible.
The Office of University Marketing and Communications, the Center for Teaching Excellence, Academic Technology Services, and Disability Services all offer resources to help students, faculty, and staff create accessible digital content.
Where Do I Direct My Questions About Accessibility?
For Public-Facing Content: Contact University Marketing and Communications (UMC)
Public-facing content is anything on your website that a member of the public can see, read, hear, or interact with — without needing a login or special access. This includes things like your webpages, PDFs, images, videos, audio files, and more. It's the opposite of internal tools, employee portals, or anything behind a password.
For questions regarding the public-facing content on your website, please submit a Web Support Request Form, which will be directed to the University Marketing and Communications (UMC) web team.
For Course Materials: Contact Academic Technology Services (ATS)
Course materials are any documents, media, or HTML content included in your course through a learning management system or third-party software provider. These materials are directly presented to students in digital format as part of an online or on-ground course. Materials presented in person are NOT subject to digital accessibility requirements.
Digital course materials include but are not limited to Microsoft 365 files, PDF files, video/audio files, text, images, assignments, and assessments.
For questions regarding accessible course materials, please reach out to ATS at ats@etsu.edu.