Accessibility @ SMC
Accessibility is important to Saint Mary’s College and the community it serves.
Campus Accessibility
: Shows parking, ramps, and elevators throughout the campus.
- Request for assistance including captioning or interpreters for campus events can be made to the Student Disability Services Office at (925) 631-4358.
- Evacuation chairs are located on the highest level stairs landing in the following buildings: Dante Hall, Garaventa Hall, St. Albert Hall Library, Brousse Hall and Galileo Hall.
Electronic Accessibility
We look to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines WCAG 2.0 level AA for direction, and we use POUR standards (Perceivable, Operable, Understandable and Robust) to determine accessibility. To evaluate web based products and classroom software for accessibility, we:
- Apply the WAVE toolbar from www.webaim.org to search for errors in the HTML and Javascript code and to identify missing/problematic alt tags in images, disassociated labels/radio buttons, and to point out where contrast ratio issues exist between text and background colors
- Test to determine if the product and/or site is navigable without a mouse
- Ensure that the product and/or site information is perceivable and usable without sound
- Check for product and/or site for compatibility with screen reader such as JAWS
Products and sites that will be used on a mobile device must also be navigable with VoiceOver on iOS devices in addition to meeting WCAG 2.0 level AA.
Resources/Training
Infobase: Learning Cloud
SMC IT Services has contracted with a training service called Infobase: Learning Cloud, an online, on demand, training site that offers over 50,000 tutorial videos on over 250 technology applications, including Microsoft, Google, and Adobe. Topics are subdivided into very small chunks, and presented in videos of one or two minutes, so learners can easily and quickly find the training they need on specific topics.
There are over 400 video tutorials on this site related to Accessibility, including information on creating an accessible syllabus, forms, documents and much more.
To access the training, navigate to My Saint Mary's Portal Page, look for Infobase: Learning Cloud located between Get Connected and Human Resources and login using your SMC Credentials. Once at the site, type "Accessibility" into the search bar and scroll through the results to find accessibility training options.
DO-IT (Disabilities, Opportunity, Internetworking and Technology)
Training videos for faculty and staff to learn about the "how to" of accessibility
- 20 Tips for Instructors about Making Online Learning Courses Accessible
- Making Videos Accessible
- Creating Accessible Documents
- Captions: Improving Access to Postsecondary Education
- Delivering Accessible Presentations
WEBAIM
Consult this easy to follow guide for making documents accessible.
Top 5 Tips for Faculty
Here are a few ways faculty can start building an inclusive and accessible environment for all students:
- Consider distributing in-class materials in advance.
- Face the classroom when speaking.
- Consider the contrast of the text & background.
- Visit this guide for how to make effective color contrast.
- Ensure videos shown in class and assigned outside of class are captioned.
- For assistance with captioning, contact the SDS office.
- Use 12 pt or larger fonts in documents, websites, etc.
- Sans serif typefaces such Arial or Calibri are generally considered more legible when larger font sizes are used