BSU Digital Accessibility Resource Guide

This guide provides best practices and resources for creating digital content that is accessible to everyone.

Introduction

Digital accessibility means that websites, documents, and media are perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust for everyone, regardless of the tools or assistive technology they use (e.g., screen readers, voice recognition software, or alternative input devices).

All public colleges and universities must proactively ensure the accessibility of their digital content to comply with the Department of Justice's updated rule under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The compliance deadline for all web content, mobile apps, and digital course materials is April 24, 2026. This requires adherence to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA standards.

Getting Started

Making digital content accessible can take time and effort. We suggest that you start by reviewing the “Digital Accessibility Foundations” training, part of our required annual trainings offered through the State of Minnesota’s self-service portal.

Next Steps: Review, Remediate, Refresh

To meet the new legal standards for accessibility and ensure that your digital content is usable by as many people as possible, consider the 3Rs Strategy for Accessibility: Remove, Revise, and Right First.

Step 1: Review outdated content.

Review courses for material that is out of date or no longer supports learning outcomes and remove it. This will allow you to focus on making the remaining digital content accessible.

Step 2: Remediate existing content.

After removing content that is no longer in use, focus on making your remaining digital content accessible using the techniques discussed below. Another option is to replace inaccessible content with alternative content or formats that are accessible.

Start by reviewing content for the courses you teach regularly and those with the highest enrollment. Alternatively, you could start by revising one type of content (e.g., slide decks or videos) in all your courses.

Step 3: Refresh. Ensure all new content is accessible

Implement digital accessibility strategies when creating new content (including websites and web-based course materials, documents, media, and other information) using the techniques discussed below. For example, when you create a new document, use headers. Or, when you insert images, add alt text to them right away.

Part of this process is deciding what format your digital content should take. Does it need to be a PDF? Can it be a document or a D2L Brightspace page instead?  Generally, a D2L Brightspace page will be the easiest for you to make accessible, followed by Microsoft Word or PowerPoint. Adobe PDFs can be very difficult to format properly.

7 Core Strategies for Creating Accessible Digital Content

Alt Text

Add alternative text, or “alt text,” to every meaningful image in digital content. Alt text is a brief text description of an image that can be read by assistive technologies. It should provide information about the image’s purpose to the reader and typically consists of a few words up to a sentence or two.

For more information, view the web resource about alt text from WebAIM, or this alt text generator from ASU.

Color Contrast

Make sure foreground colors strongly contrast with background colors and other visual indicators. In addition, color should never be the sole means of conveying information. Instead, use another element in addition to color to emphasize a point or visually distinguish information differences. For example, in addition to color, use size, bolding, highlights, patterns, or shapes. Avoid using color plus underline or italics to show emphasis.

For assistance, use this WebAIM Contrast Checker.

Headings

In addition to separating content into meaningful sections, headings help users who use screen readers navigate through a document. Most programs have a text formatting tool for applying styles (i.e., normal, title, heading 1, etc.). Be consistent; start with Heading 1 and if there are subsections use Heading 2 and so on. For example, notice how the headings are used in this document. The “7 Core Skills” text uses Heading 2, and each strategy uses Heading 3.

For more information, view the WebAIM web resource for creating headings.

Links

Make sure all links are as concise and descriptive as possible, even when taken out of context. When possible, embed links within other text, writing them as naturally as possible, with the most specific and relevant text selected as the actual link text. Linked text should clearly explain what your readers will find when they click on the link.

Watch a video on how to add descriptive links in Word (1:19).

Watch a video on adding links in D2L (3:03).

Lists

When making a list of items, numbered or otherwise, it is best practice to format the list using the “list” formatting tool in the application that you are using (i.e. Word, PPT), or use list tags when working with HTML code. Do not simply insert numbers, dashes, or other characters without list formatting.

For more information, view the web resource from WebAIM on formatting lists.

Tables

Use tables to present data with columns or rows that show the meaning of the information. Tables should not be used to make a web page or document look a particular way. As with a list, you should utilize formatting tools where available to create a table. If row or column headers are used, keep them simple and descriptive. Avoid complex or embedded tables and make sure all table cells are populated with some textual content. If necessary, make use of the alt text feature (or caption code in HTML) to describe the overall contextual purpose of the table.

For more information, view the web resource from WebAIM on creating tables.

Captioning and transcripts

Captions must be included on any video content that contains audio, and transcripts must be available for audio-only content. For newly created videos, be sure that the audio sufficiently describes what is shown on screen along with accompanying captions. If embedding a video from a source like YouTube, use their auto-generated captions. If your embedded video does not have captions, use Kaltura MediaSpace as described below. Always review and edit generated captions and transcripts for accuracy.

1. Make sure spelling, punctuation, and capitalization are correct.
2. Keep sections of text to two to three lines of five to six words per line.
3. For multiple speakers, identify who is speaking by including their name with their words, with either parentheses or introduced with a colon.

If you are unable to provide captioning, please submit a captioning service request via BSU’s captioning request form. For more information, see this web resource from section508.gov on captions and transcripts.

Tool-Specific Accessibility Strategies

Microsoft Word

Keep documents simple and straightforward using at least 12-point, black font, white space, and headers. Avoid using tables to design your page layout, as a screen-reading tool might read it out of order. Add alt text to images, ensure sufficient color contrast, and make hyperlinks descriptive. Always run the built-in Microsoft accessibility checker, to  correct common mistakes (select the "Review” tab. then select “Check Accessibility”).

Microsoft PowerPoint

PowerPoint accessibility features are similar to Word, and you can use the built-in Microsoft PPT accessibility checker. A PowerPoint presentation must be accessible in how it looks (color usage and contrast, font size, etc.) and it also must be formatted for a screen reader. One commonly overlooked problem is the lack of a slide title. Even if there are no words on a slide you need to add a title so that a screen reader can read it. All images must have alt text, and you should avoid images containing tables.

D2L Brightspace

Organize your course in a consistent and clear manner. This will reduce the cognitive load on your students and make revising content easier. Use modules and submodules, use a consistent naming convention, and make navigation clear and intuitive.

All instructors and staff who use D2L are responsible for their D2L courses meeting web content accessibility standards. As a brief overview, here are the key points for creating and maintaining an accessible D2L course:

• Follow the text formatting best practices described in the sections above. This includes the use of color as well as color contrast, headings, lists, links, and tables.
• Use alt text with any graphics or images as explained in this D2L web resource on creating alt text.
• Use the D2L Special Access and Accommodation features as needed, which allow you to set different criteria for different students. These settings can be adjusted for quizzes, assignments, and other areas of a course. An example is explained in this article on granting special access in D2L quizzes. In addition, check out this list of common D2L accommodations.
• If you are familiar with HTML, use the HTML content type when adding topics to your content area. Guidance on HTML content can be found in this article on adding course materials in Content.
• Use the D2L accessibility checker for any HTML content you create or edit. Instructions for this tool can be found in this article on adding links, images, and media in D2L.
• Try out D2L’s web reader, TextAid, which reads text out loud. You can access it from the home page of any course in D2L. More information is available in this document on ReadSpeaker TextAid.
• We encourage you to use the resources on accessible D2L courses provided by the Minnesota State system office:  Accommodations feature in D2L, Creating quizzes, Creating surveys, and Creating assignment folders.

D2L Brightspace YuJa Panorama

Beginning in the Fall of 2026, you have access to a tool in Brightspace called YuJa Panorama. Panorama is a digital accessibility platform integrated into D2L Brightspace that identifies accessibility barriers and helps us improve the accessibility of digital content.. More information and instructions for use is available in the knowledge article on YuJa Panorama for Instructors.

Kaltura MediaSpace

The Kaltura MediaSpace video tool is available to all students, faculty, and staff within the Minnesota State system. If you are new to the system, or are unfamiliar with the tool, you can access the Kaltura MediapSpace Overview document to get started.

It is important that any video content you provide comes with accurate captions. When you create or upload a video in MediaSpace, including from YouTube, it is automatically captioned. However, that is only a starting point, as it is imperative to review the generated captions and correct them as needed. To do this, use the caption editing functions. Detailed instructions can be found in this article on captioning a media file. Additionally, refer to this web resource on guidelines and best practices for captioning.

Adobe PDF

PDFs that you do not create are often inaccessible. You must check for the following, and remediate as needed:

• Make sure the text is readable to a screen reader. For example, can you use the search function (CTRL+F) and find words in it or highlight text with your cursor? If not, for example if the document is a scan of a book, use the built-in OCR text-recognition tool. To use this feature, you will need to request access to Adobe Acrobat Pro if you don’t already have access.
• If you're creating a new document, start with Microsoft Word. Once you’ve finished creating your document using the accessible practices described above, check the Word document for accessibility and then select the “Save as PDF” option to save the document as an accessible PDF.
• Use the Adobe Acrobat Pro built-in accessibility checker under Tools > Prepare for Accessibility> Check for Accessibility. It will prompt you to check reading order manually. For documents with a complex layout, this can be tedious, which is why starting in Microsoft Word is advisable.

References and Resources

This resource was developed using resources from Minnesota State Academic and Student Affairs, University of Minnesota and Saint Paul College.

General information about the new digital accessibility rules

• ADA Fact Sheet: New Rule on the Accessibility of Web Content and Mobile Apps Provided by State and Local Governments
• Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1

Accessibility training and resources through Minnesota State

• Annual Required Training: All employees complete the Foundations of Digital Accessibility training course, as part of the Required Annual Training Program available through the Minnesota State self-service portal. Developed in collaboration with Minnesota State accessibility professionals, this course covers updated ADA Title II requirements and non-discrimination expectations.
• Network for Educational Development (NED): NED has a number of recorded webinars and resources from NED on accessibility topics. Participate in accessibility-focused NED development opportunities and subscribe to the NED Educational Development Digest newsletter for NED monthly accessibility tips and support on Universal Design for Learning.
• D2L Brightspace Resources: Use accessible D2L HTML templates and D2L web content accessibility standards, including checklists for headings, links, tables, images, color, emphasis, and semantic markup.
• Automated and Manual Testing Tools: Use built-in accessibility checkers in the software you already use: Microsoft’s Accessibility Checker, D2L’s Brightspace Automated Checker, and Adobe’s built in checker to scan and remediate digital content. Manual accessibility testing should also be used for full compliance.
• Professional Memberships: All employees and students have access to the International Association of Accessibility Professionals (IAAP). This membership provides expert guidance and complements our systemwide memberships to Quality Matters and the Online Learning Consortium.
• Authoring and Vendor Guides: Refer to authoring guides from Section508.gov for detailed checklists and best practices for accessible content creation. Vendors are expected to submit accessible materials as outlined in our State of MN Expectations for Accessible Documents guide.
• Accessible Third-Party Products: The SO-Procurement SharePoint Team includes templates with language for 3^rd party vendors to adhere to WCAG standards.
• Communities of Practice: Engage with existing Minnesota State Communities of Practice (SO-Network for Educational Development, SO-Digital Accessibility, SO-CATT) or external communities like Educause’s IT Accessibility Group, UMN’s Accessibility Ambassadors, MNIT’s Accessibility Blog, IAAP Connections, and Minnesota AHEAD.

Contact information:

Beth Jensen, Instructional Technology Specialist/Lead D2L Admin
Teaching and Learning Center, L234

Brian Jambor, Educational Technologist/Backup D2L Admin
Teaching and Learning Center, L231