Tech Guides :: Accessibility :: Web Sites
Accessible Web Page Development
The Internet has become one of the most important communications media at Humboldt State University. It is used to link to information sources, present course work, and provide access to self-service administrative functions such as registering for classes. Web pages must be reasonably accessible to enable all members of the Humboldt community to take advantage of this critical resource.
Accessibility verification tools are available for checking both those features of Web pages that can be objectively determined to comply with legally mandated accessibility requirements and those that can subjectively judged as candidates for improvement to increase the usability of the pages. The University maintains a list of accessibility verification tools that are available on the campus and known to be capable of determining if a Web page meets the University’s standards.
The University Webmaster will not link an “official” University Web page (as that term is defined in the University’s World Wide Web policy) to the University’s homepage without first checking the page for accessibility using one of these accessibility verification tools. Similarly, the Courseware Development Center will not make course materials available for faculty without first checking the course Web site using one of these accessibility verification tools.
Many units on campus, such as academic departments, colleges, and student service offices, use their own Web developers to create and maintain the unit’s Web site. If the Unit’s web site provides information or access to services to the University community, the site’s developers are required to check their Web pages for accessibility before placing them into production Developers are strongly encouraged to use one of the accessibility verification tools identified as a capable tool by the University. However, whether the developer uses one of these tools, a different tool of his or her own choosing, or does the checking manually, checking must be done using the University’s verification/checkpoint rules which define the University’s standards for Web accessibility.
Web technology and Web accessibility are extremely dynamic areas. In order to assist Web developers to provide the best possible Internet services to the Humboldt community, the University maintains a Web Accessibility Developer’s Guide site which provides links to information resources, schedules for Web Accessibility Workshops for Developers, and other materials to help keep Web developers up to date.
Users experiencing accessibility difficulties should contact the Web site webmaster, the University Webmaster, or the SDRC for assistance.
