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Accessibility Policy and Regulation

The Dallas College Accessibility Policy was approved by the Dallas College Board of Trustees as of Dec. 4.

Policy Report

Approval of Amendments to Policy Concerning Accessibility of Information Communication Technology

Effective Date: Dec. 4, 2018

TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES

CR (LOCAL)

ACCESS BY INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES

The Chancellor or designee shall develop procedures to ensure that individuals with disabilities have access to the College District’s information and communication technology resources (ICT) similar to individuals without disabilities.

COMPLIANCE

College District ICT resources shall comply with the most recent version of or successor standards for accessibility as established by law and/or the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) or their content and functionality made available to College District users on request in an equally effective and accessible alternative manner.

The Office of Institutional Equity shall oversee compliance with this policy.​

APPLICABILITY

This policy shall apply to the to the development, procurement, implementation, and continued maintenance of all ICT resources (including web-based resources used in College District courses) published, hosted, or used (including remotely hosted sites and software) by the College District to conduct College District business or College District-sponsored activities.​​

Regulation Report

Effective Date: UPON APPROVAL

INFORMATION TECHNOLOGY RESOURCES AND SYSTEMS

CR (REGULATION)

ACCESS BY INDIVIDUALS WITH DISABILITIES

The College shall, in accordance with its accessibility policy, and applicable laws, provide equal opportunity in and access to its information and communication technology (ICT) resources to ensure the broadest possible community participation in its mission.

Ensuring equal and effective access to College ICT is the responsibility of all managers of College departments, programs, or activities, including student organizations and activities (“Managers”).

STANDARDS

The College shall be guided by the World Wide Web Consortium’s Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), 2.0, Level AA standards for electronic and information technology accessibility, as well as the standards established by the Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR) (TAC 206.70), which include standards established by Section 508 of the 1973 Rehabilitation Act, as amended, (“Section 508”) (“Accessibility Standards”).

The Accessibility Standards set forth above establish only the minimum standard for ICT accessibility within the College. The College will endeavor to go beyond this minimum whenever possible.

DEFINITIONS

The following terms shall have the meanings set forth below:

  • To be Accessible means that a person with a disability is afforded the opportunity to acquire the same information, engage in the same interactions, and enjoy the same services as a person without a disability, with substantially equivalent ease of use.
  • Information and Communication Technology (ICT) means any electronic resources used for instruction, information distribution or communication. ICT includes, but is not limited to instructional systems, online instructional lessons, web-based services, software applications, electronic documents (including, but not limited to, word processing files, spreadsheets, presentation, mobile applications, .pdfs and e-mail), telecommunication products, video and multimedia products, and online events and content.
  • An Upgrade is a new version of an application that offers a significant change to or major improvement on the current version.
  • A Substantial Revision includes the adoption of/migration to a new platform, modification of the majority of content (including course content), or another change that substantially alters usability or design.
  • Managers are those College employees who occupy a supervisory or managerial role, including, but not limited to, club sponsors or advisors, team leaders, managers, deans, department chairs, vice presidents, and executive leadership.

ICT ACCESSIBILITY

Unless an exception applies:

  1. College personnel (including faculty) and students who are responsible for the development or management of ICT shall use good faith efforts, subject to the requirements set forth in this regulation and applicable laws, to update existing ICT to meet Accessibility Standards.

  2. All new ICT, whether developed by the College or purchased from an external vendor, shall comply with Accessibility Standards.

  3. The College shall incorporate Accessibility Standards into the development or implementation roadmap for all existing ICT, including websites and web applications, whenever such ICT is scheduled for an upgrade or a substantial revision.

  4. Vendors seeking to develop or provide ICT for the College must demonstrate that their products satisfy Accessibility Standards by completing a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT) or the College Accessibility Standard Form.

  5. Each website published or hosted by the College shall link to the College's Accessibility Notice, which includes a statement of the College's commitment to ICT accessibility and provides a way for persons to report ICT accessibility issues.

UNDUE BURDEN EXCEPTION

An exception to the College accessibility policy may apply if compliance with Accessibility Standards would pose an undue burden to the nature of the content or the purpose of the ICT resource, result in a fundamental alteration or if compliance would result in unreasonably high administrative or financial costs (“Undue Burden”). Insufficient funds of a particular department or program will not be considered a valid reason for an exception.

A Manager may request an exception by completing the Accessibility Exception Request form, which must be submitted to the Office of Institutional Equity (the “OIE”) for review and consideration. The OIE, in consultation with the applicable Information Technology department and the affected department or program, will make a determination and notify the requesting party accordingly.

The approval of a request for an exception does not relieve a Manager from the obligation to provide reasonable accommodations regarding access to College ICT resources. Managers to whom an exception is granted must ensure, to the maximum extent possible, that the excepted ICT content and/or services are provided in a suitable alternative format. Alternates are not required to produce the identical result or level of achievement for persons with and without disabilities, but must afford persons with disabilities equal opportunity for a person with disabilities to obtain the same result, gain the same benefit, or reach the same level of achievement.