EKU Web Accessibility Symposium

Conference brochure
Checklist for Posting Documents in Blackboard.ppt (Parker Owens, EKU)
Quick Tips for Designing Effective Alt-Text.ppt (Parker Owens, EKU)
AT.ppt (used with permission from Kit Frank)
Web 2 Accessibility.ppt (Mandy Eppley, EKU)
UniversalDesign.ppt (used with permission from AccessIT)
Video.ppt (used with permission from AccessIT)

Social Networking Website

http://webaccessibleky.ning.com/

Conference Sessions

• Kim Naugle, Ph.D., ADA Coordinator, Keynote Welcome (ppt)
• Mandy Eppley, Online Learning Consultant, and Parker Owens, Web Accessibility Coordinator, EKU, Online Learning Accessibility (ppt)
  Blackboard and WebCT issues
  Blackboard Accessibility Interest Group - listserv info is at the bottom of the page
• Michael Providenti,Web Development Librarian and Robert Zai, Research and Instructional Services Librarian, NKU, Web Accessibility at Kentucky's Academic Libraries (ppt)
  Data collected in two studies, 2003 and 2007, have suggested more attention is needed to improve the accessibility of academic library websites within the Commonwealth.  The legal framework and the enforcement mechanisms that can be applied to academic libraries and universities will be discussed.  Common accessibility barriers identified in the data collection, as well as approaches to satisfying a selection of accessibility guidelines will be examined.  A number of common tools used to evaluate pages will be presented and explained.
  
• Ron Yoder, EKU Director of Web Communications, Public Relations and Marketing, Accessible and Good-Looking Web Content
  With a little consideration for basic design elements and a little knowledge of CSS, this presentation will demonstrate how you can dress up web email, web forms, and Web 2.0 sites in ways that not only make them look good but also increase their accessibility. Result? Your email will get read more, your databases will have cleaner data, and your online groups (classes, soccer team, professional associations) will participate more.
  
  
  Photo by Ben Kleppinger
  
  
• Nedim Slijepcevic, EKU Instructional Designer, Creating Accessible Flash (ppt)
  Flash animation and its impact on accessibility, text in Flash, components such as form elements, buttons, text areas, Video Captioning with XML and Hi-Caption.  
• Marilyn Greenwell, Web Accessibility Coordinator for Univ. of Louisville, Creating Accessible PDFs (ppt) and Web Awareness 101 (ppt)
  Most people can hardly remember, much less conceive of life without the internet. We rely on the internet 24 hours a day, seven days a week, to provide news, weather, email, educational information, entertainment and much more. With the click of a mouse, a wealth of information is "at your fingertips" ... if you can use a mouse... and see the screen... and hear the audio.  In other words, if you don't have a disability of any kind. This session is designed to bring awareness to various disability types, help you understand how people with disabilities use the web as well as their frustrations when they cannot.  We will also discuss how help ease their frustrations by making your website comply with laws and guidelines.
  Think you have an accessible PDF file because you converted it to PDF when you saved it?  Think again!  Yes, even your PDF files must be accessible.  This hands-on course teach you to test a PDF file for accessibility and resolve issues to make the file accessible.  You will also learn to convert a PDF file to recognize the text in a scanned document (image).
• Sage Cutler, Central Kentucky Project Manager ConnectKy, The Digital Divide & Closing the Gap
  We will take a look at what the Digital Divide is, its significance, and the impact of what we are doing in Kentucky to help bridge this barrier. We will review some of the recent successes, and discuss current and future focus areas to ensure Kentucky remains the place to live, work, and raise a family.
• Marlow Marchant, EKU Technology Instructor, Using Cascading Style Sheets to Improve Web Accessibility (pdf)
  Using Cascading Style Sheets (CSS), with the HyperText Markup Language (HTML) necessary to create Web pages improves a computer’s ability to verbalize the content of a page for the visually impaired. Using CSS, the Web page creator separates the formatting of a page from the content, leaving the page without a bloat of HTML tags which can make it difficult for those with visual problems to understand. This processes also makes the Web pages easier to edit and provides less code in a page, thus decreasing download time. The presenter will demonstrate the use of CSS and provide examples of how it improves Web Accessibility.
  
  
  Photo by Ben Kleppinger


• Ward Henline, Technology Specialist for Center on Deafness, Initiative, Captioning for internet video content: is it really an accommodation for the deaf and hard of hearing? (Quicktime)
  When English is not the first language of many deaf and hard of hearing individuals, does it make sense to assume that adding captioning to internet video content is reasonable accommodation?  We will examine the opinions of deaf and hard of hearing individuals as well as offer additional advice for accommodation.  
  
• Tammy Cosseboom, Director of Education, HiSoftware, NH, Incorporating Automated Testing into your Web Accessibility Strategy
  Learn how to develop a Web accessibility compliancy program and how to implement an automated solution to enforce content standards, promoting a positive user experience.
  This presentation will discuss the challenges of developing a compliancy program within an organization with particular focus on Web Accessibility. The goal of the session will be to cover the following topics:
  • How do you Educate your organization on compliance issues?
  • How do you Audit thousands of Web pages?
  • How do you Enforce specific content standards?
  • How do you Measure for site quality standards?
  • Other
    • What does Accessible IT mean?
    • What are my legal risks if my Web site is inaccessible?
    • The legal and business case supporting accessibility.
    • The role of automated tools.
• Michelle Swaney, PEPnet-South (Postsecondary Education Programs Network) Technology Specialist, Options for Accessible Webcasts & Online Media (ppt)
  In today's world of advancing technology, delivery of training and courses through online media has opened up many opportunities for individuals to receive needed information.  However, accessibility for online delivery methods still lags well behind and is typically not addressed.  Institutions and individuals need the necessary support and resources in order to make informed choices and ensure that webcasts and online media are accessible.  This presentation will provide participants with options for creating webcasts and online media that are accessible and universally designed.   
  
  
  Photo by Ben Kleppinger
  
  
• Phillip Logsdon, EKU Training, Dreamweaver Accessibility and Accessible Forms
  Technical overview of typical web accessibility problems and how to fix them in Dreamweaver.
  Best practices for accessible forms. Session attendees may contact Phillip for Dreamweaver and Contribute templates at phillip.logsdon@eku.edu.
  
  
  Photo by Ben Kleppinger
  
  
• Mary Donnelly, Evantage Consulting, MN:  Case Study: Findings of an accessibility study of an online resource directory geared towards people with a disabilities and seniors
  In July 2005, we conducted a study as the overall accessibility of an online directory is geared towards seniors, people with disabilities, caregivers; families; and low income people.  Twenty-five individual tests were conducted in users’ homes.  All users accessed the web using some type of assistive technology such as a screen reader. The study uncovered twenty-seven usability and accessibility barriers that prevent users from completing tasks.   This presentation will cover logistics, methodology, findings, and recommendations.  
  
• Jim Gleason, EKU Dept. of Communication Instructor, 21 Tips for User-Centered Web Design: Tactics, Tools and Techniques That Work (ppt)
  Poor website design can obscure the message and goals of your website from even the most dedicated visitor. But what constitutes good design and who gets to decide?  The concept of usability is not new in the web design industry, but a recent wave of research has both validated the importance of the user experience and isolated identifiable strategies for successful design of your website. This presentation explores “usability” as a practical application, and explores concrete tactics for creating a positive user experience. Specific topics identified include user, designer and client expectations, accessibility, layout and navigation, graphics and multimedia, content organization, and site availability. 
  
• Teresa Belluscio, Director of Disability Services, EKU, Web Accessibility: January 2008 update
  Case law, structured negotiations and legal strategies.
• Dr. Gloria Reece, educator on New Media and Instructional Technology, Accessible/User-centered design, Universal Accessibility & Multimodal Curricula:  Creating New Media Products for Multicultural Audiences
  How to identify the fundamental connections between multimodal interface design and universal accessibility when designing new media products for on–line teaching and learning activities for multicultural students with low vision. This session builds upon Dr. Reece’s research over the last 17 years in multimodal interface design and universal accessibility, her own life-long experience with deaf-blindness, her work in instructional design in higher education during the last 7 years, and her on-line outreach program in 2007 to Ayacucho, Peru for economically disadvantaged students who needed to learn English, Spanish and Braille. The session will address two inquiry questions:
  • What are the fundamental connections between multimodal interface design and universal accessibility when designing new media products for on–line teaching and learning activities?
  • What type of unified conceptual framework can instructional designers apply?
• Jon McGee and John Estes, designers at UK Creative Graphics and Web Design, Retro-fit vs. Redesign (pps) (rtf)
  "Accessibility isn't expensive if you remember it before you do the design. It will always be more expensive to retrofit pages afterward."-- Jakob Nielsen, Interviewed for Techsoup.org
  In this session, John Estes and Jon McGee, Web developers for the University of Kentucky, will discuss why 'retro-fitting' your old design may not be the most cost-effective approach to making your current Web site more accessible and user-friendly. They will cite examples from their experiences and highlight some current Web development issues and modern design trends. Some of the discussion points include:
  • assessing whether your Web site is a likely candidate for a repair or a complete redesign
  • CSS vs. table-based design
  • checklist for usability
  • planning, creating an outline, and organizing content
  • is fixed design or fluid design best
  • design tips for keeping it simple

Sponsored by Office of Services to Individuals with Disabilities and the Kentucky ADA Coordinator Office.

Contact Email: parker.owens@eku.edu.