Body
To comply with Binghamton University’s Accessibility Policy, as well as with all laws and standards regarding accessibility, digital content must meet certain standards and criteria. Digital content includes all:
- webpages
- electronic documents
- electronic communications
- Brightspace courses
This is a list of basic requirements to achieve accessibility standards and ensure that your content can be fully accessed and understood by people of all abilities. This list has been simplified for brevity and is not all-inclusive. If you need further information on a specific topic, please follow the resource links provided.
Document structure
Heading styles - H1, H2, H3, etc.
- Headings are used to logically organize the content.
- Heading levels are not skipped.
List styles
- Bulleted and numbered list styles are used.
Additional Resources
Links have meaningful link text.
- The link text conveys the purpose/destination of the link.
- Generic link text like “click here” or “read more” is avoided.
Knowledge Base Resource
Color
Color is not used as the only visual means of conveying information.
- Color is paired with text, icons, pattern, or another visual signal.
- In charts and graphs, direct labels are used rather than a legend.
Additional Resources
Contrast
- Text has strong contrast against the background.
- Buttons and other functional components have strong contrast.
Knowledge Base Resource
Images
All non-decorative images have alternative text.
- The important information conveyed by an image is also provided as text in the alt text attribute, the caption, or the main text.
- Images of text are avoided, unless the same text is included as alternative text.
Knowledge Base Resource
Tables are formatted correctly.
Simple tables are used.
- Complicated and nested tables are split up into smaller tables.
- Cells, rows, or columns are not merged.
Table Header <th>
- Every table has a header row and/or column designated.
- Header labels are accurate and descriptive.
Table caption/title
- Table caption is meaningful and unique
Additional Resources
Multimedia
Videos
- All videos have accurate closed captions.
- Text transcripts are provided for all videos.
- Audio descriptions are provided for important visual-only content in videos.
Audio
- Text transcripts are provided for all audio tracks or files.
Knowledge Base Resource
Captioning Videos and Livestreams
Additional Resources
Forms
- All input fields have accurate labels.
- On focus, the input field is highlighted visually.
- Error messages are given in context and use text and color to indicate the problem.
Additional Resources
Animation and flashing
- Moving, blinking, and scrolling content can be paused, stopped, or hidden.
- Nothing flashes more than three times in a one second period.
Additional Resources
Keyboard navigation
- Content can be accessed without the use of a mouse.
- There is an obvious focus indicator when keyboard navigating through a page.
Additional Resources
Resize text
- Text can be resized up to 200% without loss of content or functionality.
Additional Resources
Reading Level
- Keep text as simple and understandable as possible.
- For general audiences, strive for an 8th grade reading level.
- For an advanced or specialized audience, strive for a 12th grade reading level.
Additional Resources
Need more assistance?
Contact Krista Poppe, Digital Presence and Accessibility Compliance Coordinator in ITS, with additional questions.