Accessibility Initiative

Disclaimer

Winthrop University has attempted to make its Web site accessible to individuals with disabilities in accordance with Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act. If you have any difficulty viewing a page with adaptive technology, please send an e-mail to accessibility@winthrop.edu. Be sure to include the type of problem encountered and the Web address of the page you were attempting to access. Information or material requested will be provided in an alternative format.

Progress

Winthrop University takes the issue of Web accessibility seriously. A number of measures illustrate this commitment:

• 2005:
• On July 28^th, Winthrop staff members attended the South Carolina Web Accessibility Conference in Columbia, SC.
• A follow up meeting was held on August 30^th to debrief the conference attendees and to discuss Winthrop's next steps.
• September 28^th a group gathered to discuss the current Web Policy, the implementation of a Content Management System, and Winthrop's Web accessibility plan.
• On October 28^th, Winthrop University submitted its Compliance Transition Plan to the Division of the State CIO.
  
  
• 2006:
• A meeting was held January 18^th to check Winthrop's progress on the accessibility front.
• An e-mail was sent to all university Web authors and the executive staff on March 10^th discussing Section 508 and its implications for departmental Web sites.
• March 30^th, university representatives attended the South Carolina Web Accessibility Conference and the SC Assistive Technology Expo in Columbia, SC.
• In April, an accessibility addition was made to the University Disclaimer Statement, and an e-mail account was established to field visitors' accessibility concerns at accessibility@winthrop.edu. The "Accessibility Initiative" page was also uploaded on April 18, 2006.
• During the month of May, a Winthrop student tested top level Web pages for accessibility.
• Steps taken during June:
  • ensure all official Winthrop Web sites minimally meet Section 508 standards
  • e-mail a reminder of the South Carolina mandate for compliance by July 21^st
  • create a new Web page explaining the Section 508 requirements
  • plan training opportunities for Web authors *
    (* Please send an e-mail to accessibility@winthrop.edu if you'd like to be a part of the first Accessibility Workshop.)
• On July 19^th, Winthrop purchased an accessibility solution that allows the Web visitor to easily convert all pages to text only versions. UsableNet's Lift Text Transcoder (LTT) enhances the Web experience for disabled users and users of mobile technologies.
• Group and one-on-one training sessions were held in August for interested Web authors.
• In September, Winthrop launched a new home page with a link to a text-only version of the site.
• During November, Winthrop's Web site was configured for proper viewing on mobile devices.
• By December 1st, a text-only version of the new Wingspan student portal became available.

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Compliance Testing

Winthrop University is fortunate to be working with a current student who is visually impaired to conduct usability testing of top-level Web pages of the site.

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Note: Internet Explorer version 6 or higher is the recommended Web browser for the best access to Winthrop’s online services. Although IE is not the only browser that offers accessibility solutions, the following guidelines for making Winthrop's Web site more accessible are based on Internet Explorer procedures. Winthrop University Web authors are encouraged to perform cross browser testing prior to launching pages primarily intended for external audiences.

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Colors

Many individuals require high contrast between text and background colors in order to see a page's content. If you are an IE user, you can set a customized color palette for a Web page by following these simple steps:

1. Open the "Tools" menu (Alt+T).
2. Choose "Internet Options" (O).
3. Select the "General" tab.
4. Click the "Colors" button at the bottom left of the box.
5. Set text, background, and links colors to suit your needs.

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Fonts

If a Web page is written to allow for scaling of fonts, most Web browsers allow the user to alter font size and style. The following are steps IE users can take to change font sizes or styles to meet their individual needs:

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Images

There may be times when Web visitors wish to turn off images for quicker page download or for some other reason. To view Winthrop's site without displaying images, follow these steps in Internet Explorer:

1. Open the "Tools" menu (Alt+T).
2. Choose "Internet Options" (O).
3. Select the "Advanced" tab at the top right of the dialog box.
4. Scroll down to the "Multimedia" section.
5. Unclick the box next to "Show Pictures."
6. Click the "Apply" button and then click the "OK" button.

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Plug-Ins

Some information on Winthrop's Web site requires the use of plug-ins. A plug-in is "an auxiliary program that works with a major software package to enhance its capability" (Source: Answers.com). A FREE version of these plug-ins can be downloaded from the Internet. (Note: Clicking on the links below will open the download site in a separate browser window.)

Some of the plug-ins that might be required to access information on various pages include:

• Real Player, QuickTime, and Windows Media Player might be required to view video clips and listen to audio clips.
  For more information on using media players, visit WebAIM.
• Some of the slide shows on the site are in Microsoft PowerPoint format.
• Macromedia Flash Player is required to view some Winthrop Web features.
• Viewing files in PDF format requires use of the Adobe Acrobat Reader plug-in. Adobe also offers a Web-based service
  that converts many PDF files to html or text (discussed below).

Adobe Acrobat

The Winthrop University site uses Adobe Acrobat to display certain documents. Some screen reader software may not be compatible with the free Adobe Acrobat Reader, therefore Adobe provides a free online tool that converts the content of PDF files to a format which can be understood by most screen reader applications.

The Web address (URL) of the document can be submitted either via e-mail or a Web form, and the content is returned to the user converted either to HTML (i.e. standard Web page format) or to plain text. Alternatively, the document the user wishes to read can be e-mailed as an attachment.

For more information, and full details of how to use this tool, visit:
http://www.adobe.com/products/acrobat/access_onlinetools.html

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Macintosh Users

For full instructions on making use of the various versions of the Macintosh operating system's accessibility features, including resizing text, text-to-speech function, and keyboard alternatives to mouse functions, visit the Apple Web site's section on disability.

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Services for Students with Disabilities

Winthrop's Services for Students with Disabilities offers a variety of services to assist the disabled student. For more information on what services are available and how to request services offered, visit the Services for Students with Disabilities Web site.

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