Texas Tech University

Strategic Plan for Texas Tech University Online Instruction Accessibility

Mission Statement

To support TTU priorities and goals by making our online instructional materials accessible to all our students. The present plan details the strategies and associated tactics required to create and maintain accessible online instruction at TTU.

Rationale

The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) states that "physical and mental disabilities in no way diminish a person's right to fully participate in all aspects of society". The law protects the rights of individuals with disabilities and, according to Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, Texas Tech University has an obligation to uphold this law as a recipient of federal funds. Litigation in the United States against institutions of higher learning often center on the inaccessibility of online instructional materials. This plan, when fully implemented, will significantly fortify Texas Tech University against these types of non-compliance by providing a high-quality online learning experience for all our students, one that exceeds federal requirements.

Standard

For content and services to be considered accessible at TTU, a person with a disability must be afforded the same opportunity as others to acquire information "in an equally effective and equally integrated manner" and "as fully and independently" as others, referencing Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 and the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990 . Additionally, the legal requirement for digital material accessibility is called the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 AA created by the international organization World Wide Web Consortium (W3C). These standards focus on making sure all web content is perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. The WCAG 2.0 AA standard is the goal for all online instructional materials at TTU.

Collaboration and Oversight

Given the critical nature of providing accessible courses at Texas Tech University, the eLearning & Academic Partnerships (eLAP) team has included other TTU areas invested in creating and providing accessible instructional materials for students. The following areas are involved in aspects of this plan:

  • Student Disability Services
  • Information Technology
  • Colleges and Departments
  • Appropriate academic and administrative leadership
  • General Council
  • eLearning Council
  • Teaching and Learning Professional Development Center (TLPDC)
  • ADA Accessibility Compliance Committee
  • Division of Diversity, Equity & Inclusion
  • Faculty Senate
  • Appropriate Academic Leadership Councils and Committees

Although participation from all these groups will be essential in the success of this plan, eLearning & Academic Partnerships will track progress of this plan and publish update reports along the way.

Goals, Assessment Indicators, and Strategies

Goal 1: Accessibility Advocates

To have knowledgeable Accessibility Advocates in each area to provide basic course accessibility guidance and expertise, and to leverage campus resources to assist their faculty, staff, and students.

Responsibilities of the Advocates:

  • Attend a half-day meeting 1-2 times a year to be trained in course accessibility issues and resources available at TTU to assist faculty with course accessibility;
  • Assist faculty and staff in making accessible instructional materials and direct them to the services around campus as needed;
  • Set up trainings for faculty and staff in their areas as needed with the staff of eLearning & Academic Partnerships;
  • Report on the status of their areas to eLAP; and
  • Serve a 3-year term.

Assessment Indicators:

  • Each area has an Accessibility Advocate who is trained to assist faculty and instructors with accessibility and engages campus resources as needed.
  • Faculty and Staff use Accessibility Advocates to get information about accessibility.
  • Accessibility Advocates schedule regular trainings for their faculty and staff.
  • New Accessibility Advocates are selected and trained in each area every 3 years.
  • Blackboard Community is established and utilized by Accessibility Advocates as a means of ongoing communication and resource sharing.

Strategies:

Strategy 1.1: Area leadership will receive a request from the Vice Provost for eLearning & Academic Partnerships to designate an Accessibility Advocate.

Strategy 1.2: Area leadership will select a candidate for Accessibility Advocate and send that person's name and contact information for nomination. Every three years.

Strategy 1.3: Accessibility Advocates will receive acknowledgement/incentive to be established by the Office of the Provost, likely an award of up to three days leave time annually. eLAP will coordinate the discussion to determine feasible options for providing an incentive and acknowledgment for accessibility advocate designation.

Strategy 1.4: eLearning and Academic Partnerships and SDS will schedule and conduct 1-2 trainings a year for Accessibility Advocates. Trainings will include accessibility basics and information about all of the services available to faculty and staff concerning accessibility on campus.

Strategy 1.5: Create a Blackboard Community for all Accessibility Advocates and Instructional Designers around campus for ongoing communication and support regarding accessibility on campus.

Strategy 1.6: Areas that have repeated non-compliance concerns will be elevated to the Vice Provost for eLearning & Academic Partnerships and the Senior Vice Provost.

Goal 2: Accessibility Support Website

The accessibility website will be a site where faculty and staff can go to learn how to create accessible instructional materials.

Assessment Indicators:

  • The accessibility website is populated with high-quality accessibility support materials for faculty and staff.
  • The website is linked on "Faculty Resources" pages.
  • Analytics reflect increasing traffic on the website.
  • Accessibility website will be maintained by eLearning and Academic Partnerships.

Strategies:

Strategy 2.1: The website will be populated by December 1, 2018.

Strategy 2.2: Campus webmasters will add links to the accessibility website.

Strategy 2.3: The website will be promoted and maintained by the eLearning & Academic Partnerships marketing.

Goal 3: Blackboard Ally

Blackboard Ally is the solution provided to faculty to improve the accessibility of their online instructional materials.

Assessment Indicators:

  • Blackboard Ally is integrated into Blackboard Learn.
  • Faculty are using Blackboard Ally in their courses to create more accessible content.
  • Blackboard Ally analytic reports reflect increasing accessibility of course content.
  • When content is added to the course, Ally will automatically scan the materials and provide feedback to the faculty member.

Strategies:

Strategy 3.1: eLAP and IT successfully completed a Summer II semester 2018 pilot of Ally.

Strategy 3.2: Conduct a marketing campaign during Fall semester 2018 to raise awareness for Ally and how it can help.

Strategy 3.3: Implement Blackboard Ally campus-wide in Spring semester 2019.

Strategy 3.4: Create and maintain an accessibility website supporting Blackboard Ally.

Strategy 3.5: Areas that have repeated non-compliance concerns will be elevated to the Vice Provost for eLearning & Academic Partnerships and the Senior Vice Provost, at the discretion of eLearning and Academic Partnerships.

Goal 4: Accessibility Training

Provide regular trainings on creating instructional materials that reach the WCAG 2.0 AA standard.

Training Topics include, but are not limited to:

  • Making Accessible Documents
  • Accessibility Basics for Instructors
  • Making Accessible Videos
  • Making Accessible Online/Hybrid Courses
  • Making Accessible Presentations

Assessment Indicators:

  • Minimum of ten (10) participants per training, offered 1-2 times per semester.
  • The TLPDC is involved in offering and supporting trainings in accessibility as part of their Teaching Academy and the TEACH program.
  • The TTU IT Division provides accessible computing equipment in campus student computing labs to augment those at the Student Disability Service Office.

Strategies:

Strategy 4.1: Offer high-quality training 1-2 times each semester.

Strategy 4.2: Promote the accessibility training through marketing efforts.

Strategy 4.3: Collaborate with the TLPDC to ensure that the Teaching Academy and the TEACH Program include accessibility training.

Goal 5: New Faculty Outreach

New faculty joining Texas Tech University receive information about accessibility as part of their New Faculty Orientation.

Assessment Indicators:

  • New Faculty Orientation includes a brief presentation about the expectations for faculty regarding course accessibility and the accessibility support resources provided on campus.
  • Number of new faculty that attend training.
  • Number of consultations provided to faculty preparing to teach online.

Strategies:

Strategy 5.1: eLAP and SDS will collaborate to create a brief presentation explaining the expectations for faculty regarding course accessibility and the accessibility support resources provided on campus.

Strategy 5.2: eLAP will collaborate with the TLPDC to include accessibility training into each New Faculty Orientation.

Goal 6: Mandatory Accessibility Training

Faculty will complete a mandatory accessibility training every two years.

Assessment Indicators:

  • A mandatory training about course accessibility is present and high-quality.
  • The training is required for all faculty and staff every 2 years.

Strategies:

Strategy 6.1: eLAP, TLPDC, SDS, IT, and General Council will collaborate to create a high-quality training to address the legal requirements for TTU and the resources available

Strategy 6.2: eLAP will add the mandatory training to the university training management system.

Goal 7: Faculty Senate and Academic Leadership Councils' Participation

Faculty Senate will be approached to designate a representative in the area of accessible online instruction. The designated senator will participate in various meetings, and provide comment on policy and strategy matters.

Assessment Indicator:

  • Annual designation of a Faculty Senate representative.
  • Faculty leadership groups and councils reminded annually of this responsibility through campus messaging systems, council announcements, and newsletters.
  • Periodic reports made to academic leadership councils, such as; Academic Council, Graduate Council, Associate Dean Council, and Chair Committee.

Strategies:

Strategy 7.1: Office of the Provost will approach Faculty Senate for the designation of a faculty senator to serve as a resource.

Strategy 7.2: eLAP and SDS will support the faculty in their efforts to make course materials accessible.

Strategy 7.3: Annual message to all TTU faculty reinforcing the importance and necessity of accessibility with online tools and reinforcing the resources available to assist faculty.

Goal 8: Website Accessibility

All TTU websites are accessible according to the WCAG 2.0 AA standard.

Assessment Indicators:

  • IT will monitor accessibility compliance of campus websites
  • Reports outlining accessibility problems will be electronically sent to the relevant Webmaster
  • Establish a compliance timeline

Strategies:

Strategy 8.1: The IT department will utilize Compliance Sheriff or other tools to regularly monitor accessibility compliance in TTU websites.

Strategy 8.2: The TTU IT Division will remain the state-designated point of contact for website accessibility. The Managing Director of Technology Support is the designee.

Additions to eLearning Accessibility Website:
Addendum 1: Strategic Marketing Plan
Addendum 2: List of Partners and Councils
Addendum 3: List of Resources

Student Disability Services