USM Accessibility in Action - April 2026 Issue

Thu, 02 Apr 2026 15:22:39 -0400
accessibility, inclusion, news, usm

April 2026 Issue

Repost from the USM Kirwan Center for Academic Innovation and the USM Digital Accessibility Work Group

Sprinting to the Finish: Part 2 of 2

As the April Title II compliance deadline approaches, you've assessed your materials, prioritized strategically, and built quality checkpoints into your workflow. Now it's time to look beyond the finish line. This month, we're focusing on what happens after April: establishing sustainable accessibility practices, planning for continuous improvement, and transforming the momentum of this endeavor into lasting institutional change. The skills you've developed and the systems you've put in place over the past eight months aren't just for meeting a deadline—they're the foundation for creating accessible content as your default practice. Whether you're putting final touches on remediated materials or already thinking about next semester, this newsletter will help you transition from sprint mode to sustainable accessibility practices that serve your students and colleagues for years to come.

Beyond the Deadline: At-a-Glance

Where We Are: April deadline within reach; remediation work in final stages

This Month's Focus: Sustainability over perfection (build habits, document processes, and plan for accessible-first content creation)

Quick Win: Create a "lessons learned" document capturing what worked, what didn't, and what you'll do differently next time

Key Principle: The April 2026 deadline isn’t a finish line; it's actually a starting line. Accessibility is an ongoing practice, not a one-time project

What’s Inside

Why Planning Beyond the Deadline Matters

Quick Fix Guide: Your Complete Accessibility Reference Library

Tools & Tactics: Accessibility Automation and Efficiency

Campuses in Focus: Accessibility Champions in Action

Looking Ahead: Your Accessibility Roadmap for Next Semester and Beyond

Learn More

Why Planning Beyond the Deadline Matters

The difference between a short-term compliance effort and a transformational accessibility practice lies in what happens after the deadline passes. Without intentional planning, it's easy to slip back into old habits like creating inaccessible PDFs, forgetting alt text, or skipping heading structures when you're in a rush. The workflows you've established during this year are valuable precisely because they can prevent that backslide.

Documenting your processes ensures that the knowledge you've gained doesn't live only in your head. When you create templates, checklists, and standard operating procedures, you make it easier for yourself (and your colleagues) to maintain accessibility standards post-April.

Building accessibility into content creation from the start is exponentially more efficient than retrofitting materials later. The time you invest now in setting up accessible templates, establishing review processes, and creating reusable accessible components will save countless hours in future semesters.

Cultivating an accessibility mindset transforms how you approach all digital content. Instead of viewing accessibility as an extra step or compliance burden, it becomes an integrated part of high-quality content creation, just like checking for typos or ensuring accurate citations.

Most importantly, sustainable accessibility practices ensure that the students, faculty, and staff who benefit from accessible materials continue to have equitable access long after April. The deadline may be finite, but your commitment to inclusion won’t be.

Quick Fix Guide: Your Complete Accessibility Reference Library

Over the past eight months, each newsletter has included a Quick Fix Guide focused on one of theSix Essential Stepsor a critical accessibility strategy. Now we're bringing them all together in one place. This complete collection serves as your go-to reference library for accessibility practices; bookmark this section or save these guides where you can easily access them when you need a quick refresher.

The Complete Quick Fix Guide Collection

August 2025 USM Digital Accessibility Checklist: Your foundational overview of digital accessibility requirements and the Six Essential Steps that form the basis of accessible content creation. Download the USM Digital Accessibility Checklist.

September 2025 Headings Hierarchy 101 Quick Fix Guide: Master the use of heading styles to create logical document structure that helps all users navigate your content, especially those using screen readers. Download the Headings Hierarchy 101 Quick Fix Guide.

October 2025 Accessible Links in 5 Minutes Quick Fix Guide: Transform generic "click here" links into meaningful, context-rich hyperlinks that make sense when read out of context by screen readers. Download the Accessible Links in 5 Minutes Quick Fix Guide.

November 2025 Color & Contrast Quick Fix Guide: Learn to test and apply color combinations that meet WCAG standards, ensuring your content is readable for users with low vision or color blindness. Download the Color & Contrast Quick Fix Guide.

December 2025 Quick Fix Guide Creating Alt Text for Images: Learn how to write effective alt text that conveys meaning without being overly verbose, when to mark images as decorative, and how to handle complex images like charts and diagrams. Download the Creating Alt Text for Images Quick Fix Guide.

January 2026 Quick Fix Guide for Tables & Data: Discover how to build tables that screen readers can interpret correctly, including proper header designation and keeping table structures simple. Download the Quick Fix Guide for Tables & Data.

February 2026 Multimedia Remediation Quick Fix Guide: Get practical strategies for captioning videos and providing transcripts for audio content, including how to edit auto-generated captions efficiently. Download the Multimedia Remediation Quick Fix Guide.

March 2026 Sprint to the Finish Checklist: Use the assessment, prioritization, and verification strategies to manage your final weeks before the deadline strategically. Download the Sprint to the Finish Checklist.

How to Use This Library

As a Learning Resource: If you're new to accessibility or missed earlier newsletters, work through the guides in order from August through January to build your foundational skills in theSix Essential Steps.

As a Reference Tool: Bookmark this page or save these guides in a folder you can access quickly when you encounter a specific accessibility challenge.

As a Training Resource: Share relevant guides with teaching assistants, new colleagues, or anyone who creates digital content for your courses or department.

As a Quality Check: Before publishing any material, run through the relevant Quick Fix Guides to verify you've addressed all accessibility considerations.

What’s Next

While this collection covers the essential accessibility practices you need for most academic content, accessibility is an evolving field. We'll continue to share updates, advanced techniques, and discipline-specific guidance in future newsletters. If there's an accessibility topic you'd like to see covered, let us know atcai@usmd.edu.

Tools & Tactics: Your Accessibility Workflow Toolkit

During the past eight months, you've become familiar with accessibility checking and remediation tools. Now let's explore tools and strategies that help you maintain accessibility with less ongoing effort.

Automate What You Can

Accessible Templates: Create and save document templates in Word, Outlook, PowerPoint, and your LMS that include proper heading structures, color schemes with sufficient contrast, and placeholder alt text reminders. Starting with an accessible template eliminates many common errors before they happen.

Style Libraries: Build custom style sets inWord and PowerPointthat include only accessible color combinations and properly structured heading styles. This prevents accidental accessibility violations when you're working quickly.

LMS Course Templates: Work with an instructional design colleague to create accessible course shells that include properly structured modules, accessible announcement templates, and assignment submission guidelines that request accessible formats.

Build Accessibility Into Your Workflow

Pre-Publication Checklist: Create a simple checklist that lives where you work (pinned document, browser bookmark, sticky note on your monitor) reminding you to verify the Six Essential Steps before publishing any content.

Peer Review Partnerships: Establish reciprocal arrangements with colleagues to review each other's materials for accessibility before they go live. A fresh perspective catches issues you might miss in your own work.

Scheduled Accessibility Audits: Set quarterly calendar reminders to spot-check a sample of your materials, ensuring accessibility standards haven't slipped during busy periods.

Leverage AI and Emerging Tools

AI-Powered Alt Text (with Human Review): Tools like Microsoft's AI-generated alt text can provide starting points for image descriptions but always review and refine them for accuracy and context. AI can speed up the process but shouldn't replace human judgment.

Automated Accessibility Scanning: Set up regular automated scans of your web content using tools like Siteimprove or similar platforms if your institution provides them. Automated monitoring catches new issues as they're introduced.

Caption Editing Efficiency: Use auto-generated captions as a first draft, then develop an efficient editing workflow. Many instructors find it faster to watch videos at 1.5x speed while editing captions rather than transcribing from scratch.

Pro Tip: The 20/80 Rule for Sustainable Accessibility

Focus your ongoing effort on the key 20% of practices that prevent 80% of accessibility issues: using heading styles instead of manual formatting, adding alt text as you insert images (not later), and starting with accessible templates. These habits, once established, maintain accessibility with minimal additional time investment.

Campuses in Focus: Accessibility Champions in Action

As we approach the April deadline, it's worth pausing to recognize the countless individuals across the University System of Maryland who have transformed accessibility from an abstract requirement into tangible improvements for their students and colleagues. This month, we're spotlighting two accessibility champions whose journeys demonstrate that meaningful progress is possible, regardless of where you start or what resources you have available.

These stories showcase different paths to accessibility success: one person who tackled a massive remediation project, and another who built sustainable systems for their department. While their approaches differ, they share common threads: persistence, strategic thinking, and a commitment to inclusive education that extends beyond compliance.

Louise Anderson, Co-Chair Music, Theatre and Dance, Salisbury University

The Challenge: After achieving 100% accessibility on one Canvas course, Louise recognized that many faculty colleagues were struggling with the same technical issues she had worked through—particularly around PDFs and Word documents.

The Approach: Rather than keeping her hard-won knowledge to herself, Louise documented her process while working through her next course. She created short, focused "nuts and bolts" video tutorials targeting specific accessibility fixes: one on PDF title elements and tags, and another on Word title elements and headings. She utilized campus support documentation from SU while also conducting her own research to find solutions to Canvas accessibility issues.