We strive to design courses that provide all students opportunities to engage, learn, and succeed. Central to this mission is ensuring our course materials are accessible to all learners. Getting started with digital accessibility can feel overwhelming, but committing to it is as important as ever.
Updated regulations under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) require that digital content shared and used across the university meet established web accessibility standards by April 24, 2026. These regulations apply to the learner-facing digital course materials you use in your teaching, including your CarmenCanvas pages, lecture videos, emails and announcements, and the documents and readings you share with students.
Across the country, university instructors are familiarizing themselves with the new requirements and preparing to make the necessary changes to their course materials. The Drake Institute has been working alongside partners across campus to develop targeted trainings and resources to support you in this important work.
Workshops
The Drake Institute offers workshops to help you build core digital accessibility skills throughout the academic year.
Introduction to Universal Design for Learning
Universal Design for Learning (UDL) is a framework for providing students with learning opportunities that are effective and accessible for all students. UDL helps instructors design courses for all learners and the interests, experiences, background knowledge and skills they bring to our classrooms. During this interactive workshop, participants will learn about the UDL framework and discuss practical strategies for designing more flexible courses.
"Title II and You" Workshop Series
The Drake Institute offers a three-part workshop series to help all who teach at Ohio State understand and apply the new Title II requirements. The series provides an overview of core digital accessibility concepts and hands-on practice time with accessibility and disability experts across campus. These workshops have been developed in partnership with the Office of Technology and Digital Innovation and with support from Student Life Disability Services and the Digital Accessibility Center.
Title II and You: Digital Accessibility for Course Design
In this hands-on workshop, participants will learn about the upcoming ADA Title II changes and what those mean for courses at Ohio State and review their own courses for potential accessibility concerns. The workshop will provide a description of the changes to the law, an introduction to major digital accessibility terms as they apply to the work of teaching and learning, and examples of how disabled people use digital tools and information. Using a backwards-design model, participants will spend the last 30 minutes of the workshop in small groups led by an accessibility or ed tech expert to locate areas of their course that may need revision, brainstorm alternative options and questions, and create a to-do list for themselves as they work toward creating more accessible courses.
Title II and You: Seven Core Skills in Practice
In this practice-oriented workshop, participants will practice the Seven Core Skills with their own documents. In the first half of the session, participants will review the Seven Core Skills by examining how these apply to a CarmenCanvas Course Announcement. In the second half of the workshop, our time will be split between practicing remediation with participants’ own documents and working through common problems in documents. During the second half, accessibility and ed tech experts will be available to answer questions or document unexpected difficulties so that staff can prepare additional guidance where needed. Participants will be encouraged to join a breakout room or small group (2-3 people) to learn from each other and enable facilitators to provide support. Participants will leave the session with the sample Course Announcement remediation instructions, their own revisions to their document, and a target list of questions or to-do list items to help them plan for Spring 2026.
Title II and You: Accessibility for Multimedia Materials
Videos, podcasts, PowerPoints, infographics, diagrams, photographs, and other media have become commonplace in the classroom. In this workshop, participants will review the WCAG 2.1 AA and Ohio State M-DAS regulations for using multimedia or multimodal course materials. One facilitator will review Ohio State resources for adding captions and transcripts and walk through the major parts of the process. Another facilitator will demonstrate how screen readers work with image-heavy files and websites, and then demonstrate a few examples of audio description. In the second half of the workshop, participants will create a list of potentially difficult multimodal materials they use currently, discuss their list in small groups, and work with an accessibility or ed tech expert to determine what steps to take to ensure accessibility.
Visit our Workshops and Events page to register for upcoming sessions, and subscribe to the Drake Institute Digest to stay in the loop on programming.
Training on Ally, the New LMS Scanning Tool
The Office of Technology and Digital Innovation (OTDI) recently licensed Ally, an accessibility scanning tool that will be integrated within CarmenCanvas. The tool can review your course, report accessibility issues, offer remediation guidance, and generate alternative formats for many materials. The OTDI Learning Systems team is providing several upcoming training sessions to support instructors with using Ally to improve the accessibility of their Carmen courses. These sessions will cover the tool’s basic features—reports, remediation guidance, and alternative formats—and offer insights on its limitations and strategies for prioritizing your review.
Register for Using Ally to Improve Accessibility in Your Courses
On-Demand Resources
Visit the Teaching and Learning Resource Center for guidance on reviewing your course materials and applying best practices to ensure their accessibility. Built upon Digital Accessibility Service's Title II resources, but tailored for instructors, Digital Accessibility: Building Course Material for All Learners walks you through foundational accessibility skills and a step-by-step process for reviewing course content.
- First, you will understand the rationale and benefits of making your course accessible to all learners.
- Next, you will build foundational knowledge by learning 7 Core Skills for digital accessibility.
- Finally, you will be guided through the 3Rs Strategy for reviewing course content so you can decide whether to Remove, Replace, or Remediate inaccessible materials.
Digital Accessibility: Building Course Material for All Learners
More On-Demand Resources
- Complete the Drake Institute's online asynchronous training on Making Your Course Accessible to All Learners.
- Get started with Producing Accessible Digital Content, including PowerPoint presentations, Word documents, and multimedia content.
- Explore Digital Accessibility: Title II and You to find more resources and tools for navigating Title II changes.
Questions?
If you require further assistance with accessibility, find the appropriate support contact for your needs below.
Implementing Digital Accessibility in Your Unit
Contact your Digital Accessibility Coordinator.
Students' Registered Accommodations
Title II compliance / Digital Accessibility Policy / Ohio State's Minimum Digital Accessibility Standards
Contact the ADA Digital Accessibility Center (DAC) at accessibility@osu.edu. Part of the Civil Rights Compliance Office, DAC supports the campus community by providing accessibility expertise, interpreting policy, setting technical standards, investigating complaints, and performing audits.
See Ohio State’s Minimum Digital Accessibility Standards and Digital Accessibility Policy.
All Other Accessibility Questions and Concerns
Contact Digital Accessibility Services (DAS) at das@osu.edu. Part of the Office of Technology and Digital Innovation, DAS provides resources and assistance to those producing digital content, acquiring or building digital products, or serving as a Digital Accessibility Coordinator.