A: WCAG 2.1 stands for Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1. It was developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) to provide an international standard for making digital content accessible to people with disabilities. 

WCAG is built around four core principles. Content must be: 

• Perceivable – Users can see or hear the information. 

• Operable – Users can navigate and interact with it. 

• Understandable – Content and navigation make sense. 

• Robust – It works with assistive technologies. 

You may also hear about Section 508, which is a U.S. federal law. Section 508 requires federal agencies to make their digital content accessible, and it references WCAG as the technical standard to follow. 

In short: 

• WCAG = the accessibility guidelines and success criteria. 

• Section 508 = the legal requirement (in the U.S.) that points to WCAG. 

Institutions often adopt WCAG 2.1 Level AA as their working standard. 

A: The DOJ regulation does not designate any specific software (including Ally) as the accessibility standard. The required standard is WCAG 2.1 Level AA. Ally is a helpful tool that assists us in identifying potential accessibility barriers in course materials, but an Ally score itself does not determine whether a course is compliant.

For your information, Ally accessiblity checklist can be found here: https://ally.ac/resources/Accessibility-Checklist-Creating-Accessible-Content.pdf

As you can see from the checklist, it does not address accessibility requirements for videos.

A: The instructor is ultimately responsible for the accessibility of their course content. This includes all materials students are required to access, whether created by the instructor or provided by a third party.

Accessibility compliance is supported at the departmental and institutional level, but responsibility for course-level implementation rests with the instructor.

A: Accessibility is about equitable access to learning.

When course materials are accessible:

• Students using screen readers can fully participate.
• Students with hearing loss can access captions.
• Students with mobility impairments can navigate without a mouse.
• Students with temporary injuries, slow internet, or learning differences also benefit.

Accessibility is not just about compliance. It improves clarity, organization, and usability for everyone. Clear headings, meaningful links, captions, and structured documents make content easier to use in general.

It also reduces the number of last-minute accommodations. When content is built accessibly from the start, students don’t have to request fixes later.

A: The short answer: If you assign it, you are responsible for it.[GU1] 

Even if content comes from:

• A publisher
• A YouTube video
• A vendor platform (open or password-protected)[GU2] 
• A PDF found online

If it is required for your course, it must be accessible to students.

That does not mean you have to personally fix everything. But it does mean you should:

• Choose accessible vendors when possible.
• Use captioned and transcribed media.
• Provide accessible alternatives when needed.
• Work with your instructional design or accessibility team when issues arise.

Accessibility is a shared institutional responsibility, but faculty play a key role in the materials selected and assigned.

A: https://tigerlearn.fhsu.edu/accessibility/

Step-by-step guides on how to use Blackboard Ally for fixing accessibility issues: https://scribehow.com/page/Accessibility_and_Anthology_Ally_Resources__CV3th55tSq28KfAXlEsJLg?referrer=documents[GU1] 

A: Federal regulations require compliance by April 24, 2026. Beginning with Summer 2026 courses, all course materials must meet accessibility standards. 

A: Please read the following document to see how FHSU is recommending this process.

Email: Accessibility is a student success opportunity. Accessible course design benefits students with documented disabilities, students using assistive technologies, mobile users, and students in low-bandwidth environments. Starting April 24, 2026, it is also a federal compliance requirement.

New DOJ regulations under Title II of the ADA will require that all course content delivered through Blackboard conform to WCAG 2.1 Level AA accessibility standards. There is no exception for educational course content in an LMS — this applies to every document, video, page, and assignment in your courses.

Rather than asking faculty to remediate courses mid-semester, TILT has developed a strategic approach that aligns this work with the existing Summer/Fall course copy cycle. The attached document lays out the full plan, but the core idea is simple: fix it once, at the source, before it gets copied.

For courses built from master shells, remediation should occur at the shell level before copying — a single fix prevents inaccessible content from spreading across dozens of sections. For courses managed by individual instructors, we recommend reviewing and cleaning up your materials before the copy cycle so you’re only remediating content you’ll actually use going forward.

Blackboard Ally is already running in every FHSU course and will be your primary tool for this work. It identifies issues, walks you through fixes step by step, and even generates alternative formats students can use right away.

A: Yes. TILT is offering a series of accessibility workshops this semester covering topics such as WCAG basics, document accessibility, course content in Blackboard Ultra, and media accessibility. These sessions are designed to provide practical, step-by-step guidance you can apply directly to your courses. Registration and training will take place in Zoom Events.

Accessible Images in Digital Course Content
Wednesday, April 1, 2026
12:00–12:30 PM CDT
Facilitators: Zhongrui Yao and Alexa Summers

Creating Accessible PDFs for Instructional Use
Thursday, April 2, 2026
12:00–12:30 PM CDT
Facilitators: Zhongrui Yao and Alexa Summers

Using Ally Reports to Improve Course Accessibility
Friday, April 3, 2026
1:30–2:00 PM CDT
Facilitators: Thomas Horne and Dani Reilley

A: WCAG 2.1 Level AA Requirement for Video:

• Captions are required
• Audio descriptions (ADs) are required when visual content conveys meaning that is not being spoken about
• Media player must be fully keyboard accessible
• Controls must be visible and predictable
• Content must not rely solely on color
• Text must meet contrast requirements

Panopto stays up to date with WCAG and is frequently adding updates to their own accessibility resources and capabilities. Go to this link to learn about Panopto accessibility features. A webinar took place on March 4, 2026. Click here to watch that recording

MathType with the ChemType toolbar – The work can be done in a Word Doc which is input in math or chemistry notation correctly, then can be exported to Math ML or ChmML. If the text for the problems is also created in MS Word format using the style menus, the resulting document will be accessible for screen readers.

Here’s more info from WIRIS, the company that bought DesignScience and mathtype software. There is a toolbar in mathtype that allows for chemistry input!

https://docs.wiris.com/mathtype/en/mathtype-integrations/mathtype-web-interface-features/chemistry.html

Information regarding handwritten chemistry formulas: 

There are several apps that can read handwritten chemical formulas and convert them to text. Nothing handwritten is accessible without converting it for use on an LMS. If prepared by the faculty using ChemType, for example, it can be displayed visually and saved as CHML, and read by screen readers.

All work must be completed before posting to the LMS.

Here are some (not mentioned by OP or previous posters) apps to try:

Tools that can read handwritten chemical diagrams

• Mathpix: This tool, which can be accessed through its mobile apps or desktop snipping tool, has a chemical diagram OCR (Optical Character Recognition) feature. It allows you to take a picture of or screenshot a handwritten chemical structure and convert it into a machine-readable format, such as SMILES.
• ChemPix: Developed by researchers at Stanford, this tool uses deep learning to recognize hand-drawn hydrocarbon structures from images and convert them into the SMILES format. It was specifically trained and tested on blurry, low-quality images to reflect real-world usage.
• ChemReco: Also based on deep learning, ChemReco is another tool designed to recognize and interpret hand-drawn chemical structures, including complex organic rings. It translates a drawn structure into a digital format like SMILES.
• Pic2mol: This online service translates images of chemical structures into editable SDF and SMILES formats. You can upload an image of a hand-drawn structure for recognition.

In all cases, the original handwriting needs to be scanned first. Try these and see if you can find one that’s suitable and works for you.

On the flip side, the instructor could be provided with a copy of ChemType from Wiris which works as a toolbar add on for MSWord. Another possibility is an open source application called Chem4Word which converts typed chemical elements and compounds into images as well as converting elements and compounds into text.