Accessibility Resources

Our goal is to ensure all digital content at UTA, including online courses and educational materials, adhere to accessibility standards because we value our students, employees, alumni and our future Mavericks!

When our websites, mobile apps and digital resources are not accessible, they create a barrier for people with disabilities. For example, individuals who are blind may use a screen reader to gather information from a website. If an image that provides information does not include alt text (text describing the image), those individuals have no way of receiving that information.

By following the best practices outlined here and reviewing the provided resources, you will be prepared to serve our students and employees and comply with state and federal laws.

If you need assistance with any of the resources on this site, please contact us at accessibilty@uta.edu.

If you are using a screen reader, please ensure your browser settings are set to automatically download PDFs. If you need assistance, view this KB article: https://kb.uta.edu/0011836

In early 2024, the Department of Justice updated its regulations for Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA). The new rule has specific requirements about ensuring web content and mobile apps are accessible to people with disabilities.

UTA has until April 2026 to comply.

The new rule impacts UTA by:

  • Increasing the accessibility requirement from WCAG 2.0 AA to WCAG 2.1 AA.
  • Allowing UTA to move historical reference materials to an archive section of our website without requiring remediation except upon request.
  • Requiring a remodel of the current EIR Accessibility Exception process which we anticipate will result in fewer exceptions being approved.
  • Removing the option to provide an equal but separate experience for users.

If you create, approve, or share any of the following, you must follow the Best Practices outlined on this website.

  • Websites/Webpages
  • Mobile Applications
  • Electronic Documents, including PDFs, PowerPoints, Word Docs or Excel Files
  • Emails
  • Electronic Flyers
  • Online resources including Software as a Service (SaaS)
  • Software
  • Archived Data
  • Electronic forms and surveys
  • Videos
  • Vendor services that include any of the above

In 1990, President George H.W. Bush signed the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) into law. Title II of the ADA applies to State and local government entities and protects qualified individuals from discrimination on the basis of disability in services, programs, and activities provided by these entities.

Since 1990, various additional laws have been implemented to set the compliance mark for accessibility at both the state and federal levels.

It is our faculty and staff’s responsibility to ensure all digital resources support the Level A and AA success criteria of the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG). This also extends beyond just “web.” Every electronic resource is measured this way. To apply a WCAG criteria to a PDF, we just replace the word “webpage” with “document.”

You can learn more about WCAG criteria from the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C.) However, you do not have to learn how to manage each aspect if you follow the tools we provide.