DBTAC: Mid-Atlantic ADA Center

Accessible IT

Follow these links for information, resources, and news on accessible electronic and information technology:

The Mid-Atlantic Accessible Education-Based IT Consortium provides information, technical assistance, and training on accessible information technology in educational settings throughout Delaware, Virginia, West Virginia, Pennsylvania, Maryland, and the District of Columbia.

The Information Technology Technical Assistance and Training Center (ITTATC) promotes the development of accessible electronic and information technology.

The National Center on Accessible Information Technology in Education, or AccessIT promotes the use of electronic and information technology (E&IT) for students and employees with disabilities in educational institutions at all academic levels.

News

Information Technology in Education Accessibility Checklist

Educational institutions face myriad challenges as they provide a technology-rich learning environment for students. One challenge they all face is to assure that technologies are accessible to all students, instructors, and staff, including those with disabilities. This checklist provides a confidential, interactive tool to help users learn about the process of creating an accessible technology environment.

This checklist was developed by the National Center on Accessible Information Technology in Education (AccessIT) and the ten regional ADA & IT Technical Assistance Centers.

Web Access Policy and Standards Construction Tool

The Information Technology Technical Assistance and Training Center (ITTATC) announced that the Web Access Policy and Standards Construction Tool is now available for use. The tool helps state and local governments (as well as other organizations) develop policies and standards that support the development, procurement, and maintenance of accessible websites.

The tool guides the user through the process of creating a policy or standards document by posing questions and issues that should be considered along the way. The user also can view excerpts and sample language from existing state government policies and standards documents; these excerpts (along with links to the source documents) can be selected and saved to the user's working document. The resulting resource provides a strong foundation upon which the user can create a custom policy and/or standards document that supports their particular situation.

You can try out the tool in "demo mode." When you are ready to create your own web access policy and/or standards, create a user ID and password and your selections and edits will be saved to a working document.