Next Steps for Becoming Compliant
To meet UW’s Title II accessibility requirements, employees who create or share documents as publically-accessible documents across courses or the website, should follow the steps below. These actions help ensure PDFs and other digital documents are accessible before they are published or distributed.
Create Accessible Source Documents
Begin accessibility work in the original document whenever possible. Use Microsoft Word or similar tools to apply built-in heading styles, readable text structure, descriptive links and table headers before exporting to PDF. Addressing issues early reduces remediation time later.
Check PDFs Using Adobe Acrobat Pro
Adobe Acrobat Pro includes an accessibility checker that helps identify common issues such as missing tags, reading order problems and missing alternative text. Your department can purchase this tool to review and fix accessibility errors before sharing PDFs publicly.
Making Word Documents Accessible
Microsoft Word includes built-in accessibility tools that help identify issues with headings, lists, tables and reading order. Following federal accessibility guidance for Word documents ensures files are accessible before being exported to PDF.
Making Spreadsheets Accessible
Spreadsheets should use clear headers, logical structure and descriptive labels so data can be interpreted by assistive technologies. Federal accessibility guidance outlines best practices for creating accessible spreadsheets before they are shared or converted to other formats.
Document Accessibility Best Practices
Use Built in Styles
Format documents using the built-in heading, list and table tools in Word or other editors instead of manual formatting. This helps screen readers and other assistive technologies understand the order and organization of the content.
Avoid Images of Text
Use real text instead of embedding important information in images. If images are necessary, provide meaningful alternative text so the content is available to users who cannot see the image.
Readable & Navigable
Use clear language, descriptive links and sufficient color contrast. Documents should be easy to navigate using a keyboard and remain readable when text size is increased.
