BELLINGHAM TECHNICAL COLLEGE ACCOMPLISHMENTS, CHALLENGES, AND

BELLINGHAM TECHNICAL COLLEGE ACCOMPLISHMENTS, CHALLENGES, AND LESSONS LEARNED WASHINGTON STATE IT ACCESSIBILITY CAPACITY BUILDING INSTITUTE DECEMBER 14, 2020

OVERVIEW BTC launched a Web Redesign on October 30 Using SiteImprove to check for accessibility At start, all of our pages individually performed at 8790% accessible Factoring in our in-process PDF improvements lowers the overall accessibility score We are aware and will focus on PDF removal or remediation We are aware of an issue with the Heading structure and are actively researching a fix

ACCOMPLISHMENTS Over the past several years, we have developed a robust, cross-campus Accessibility Team with key stakeholders IT and Web Marketing have committed to making our website accessible at the highest level possible Our web redesign began with accessibility in mind – a huge step toward greater efficiency in maintaining and improving accessibility There is an ongoing campus conversation regarding IT

ACCOMPLISHMENTS – CONTINUED eLearning Instructional Assistant II includes accessible design training in all faculty and staff eLearning orientations, with a focus on creating accessible digital content in the LMS, captioning of instructional media, and using Ally to improve online course accessibility Computer Services provides new hires with a brief overview of accessibility guidelines when onboarding Accessibility Resources meets with new faculty and staff for an hour long AR Orientation – however, this is optional

CHALLENGES Information dissemination Having one, consistent space (website) for accessibility guidance and compliance regulations – currently, information is stored in too many places Dedicated staff Currently, our budget prohibits hiring a dedicated Website Accessibility Engineer All employees are expected to create and post accessible materials, which leads to Training No dedicated accessibility staff means insufficient training of all employees Without dedicated training staff and mandatory trainings, our accessibility efforts lack consistency and occurs piecemeal

LESSONS LEARNED Accessibility needs to be the first step in all campus initiatives that result in digital content of any kind (webpages, documents, curriculum, etc.) Administrative buy-in is key in order to keep accessibility at the forefront when budget decisions are being made Our new Interim President and VP of Student Services have asked to attend the next Accessibility Team Meeting to assist with strategic planning Our Accessibility Team currently meets quarterly – because of moving everything online due to COVID, we will most likely meet more frequently