Ensuring that people with disabilities can use technology that U-M leverages is an essential aspect of bringing technology into the university. This page contains a compilation of websites acquired from meeting with the many individuals, groups, and experts throughout the University of Michigan, including Michigan Medicine, who champion accessibility and universal design. This list of resources focuses on technology and is aimed at HITS staff who create, support, or assess websites for accessibility, in order to better facilitate digital accessibility in teaching, learning, and working at U-M.

Universal Design

• Explaining the difference between accessible, usable, and universal design.
• An overview on universal design principles, along with detailed information for anyone involved in web development, design, and content.

Accessibility Resources

• Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI) home page provides resources to help you make the Web more accessible to people with disabilities. Among the many links are an overview to the W3C Accessibility Standards and the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG).  [Note: U-M currently uses 2.0. For information on moving to 2.1, contact the U-M Digital Accessibility Team]
  
• Launch point for IT accessibility information at U-M, with resources for instructors, people with disabilities, content creators/presenters, manager/admin support, and technical staff.
• Resources for U-M Technical Staff. Provides information on reviewing websites, Apps (including automated tools and checklists for testing), and on developing accessibility.
• Resources for Digital Accessibility at U-M.
• U-M Web Accessibility Working group that meets monthly.
• The Knox Center is a quiet and accessible computing site for students registered with the Office of Services for Students with Disabilities (SSD) as well as a source of assistive technology information for students, staff, and alumni.
• The Big Ten Academic Alliance has produced the Vendor Guide to Web Accessibility Cookbook, which provides an extensive list of resources for design, technical, quality assurance, marketing, and other positions that support accessibility. [Note: To get more information about the new version under development, contact the U-M Digital Accessibility Team]
• WebAIM is a non-profit that provides web accessibility solutions. Their offerings include training, accessibility evaluation tools, instruction material, and other services.
• Deque is a local company that provides web and mobile accessibility consulting, training, and tools so you can meet compliance goals and help make the web accessible to all users. They also provide a large list of webinars and a Beginner's Guide to Accessibility.

Web Design

• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) Overview and W3C standards.
• UM resources for creators and presenters to make the following content accessible: web content, Canvas, emails, Google docs, Google slides, Word documents, PDFs, and PowerPoint presentations.
• Top 10 tips for making accessible websites 
• A brief discussion on internal and external consistency when designing web pages.

Reviewing Websites for Accessibility

• Quick reference for testing web content for accessibility
• Checklist for manual functional testing produced by U-M Accessibility Group
• Quick non-technical accessibility tests
• Checklist for keyboard accessibility

Guidelines for Creating Accessible Documents

• Create accessible digital documents: guide provided by U-M Accessibility Group
• Create and verify PDF accessibility (Acrobat Pro)
• Accessibility Checker for Microsoft 365

Assessing Vendors

• Digital Accessibility and Procurement: a guide to assessing vendors

Tools - Overview on Assistive Technology and Automated Testing Tools

• Information on assistive technology that's available on public computers or can be downloaded for free
• Testing with assistive technology (draft document from U-M) 
• Morphic is a system that makes technology use significantly more accessible, through placement of a quick access toolbar, for disabled individuals and others who have difficulty using standard digital setups (U-M Morphic is a beta site).

Tools - Online Contrast Checkers

• Colour Contrast Analyzer allows you to easily determine the contrast ratio of two colors simply using an eyedrop tool. This tool works on both web pages or mockups that haven't been posted online yet
• Contrast checker provided by Acart Communications
• Contrast checker provided by WebAIM
• Contrast checker provided by Lea Verou

Tools - Downloadable and Add-ons

• The WAVE Browser Extensions for Chrome, Firefox, and Edge allow you to evaluate web content for accessibility issues directly within your browser
• The Photosensitive Epilepsy Analysis Tool (PEAT) is a free, downloadable resource for developers to identify seizure risks by checking whether any flashing elements meet WCAG guidelines
• Overview on Axe Monitor
• Axe for Firefox - Web Accessibility Testing, by Deque Systems
• Axe for Chrome - Web Accessibility Testing, by Deque Systems
• Grackle Docs is an add-on that runs in Google Docs
• Grackle Slides is an add-on that runs in Google Slides
• Grackle Sheets is an add-on that runs in Google Sheets
• NoCoffee vision simulator add-on for Firefox 

Need Assistance?

Reach out to QA Advisory if you have any questions

• QA Advisory Service Portal Request

QA Advisory participates in Service Management Office hours (held every other Friday)

• Service Management Office hours calendar

Reach out to the U-M Digital Accessibility Team for assistance with accessibility

• Contact information for U-M Digital Accessibility Team