Digital Accessibility (Title II) Support from JMU Libraries

Updates to Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act mean that most online resources from JMU will need to meet basic digital accessibility standards by April 24, 2026. This federal mandate now includes a wider variety of materials, including some that require a JMU login to access.

While JMU IT has long supported accessibility scans of JMU’s main website, we recognize this expanded mandate will be a significant undertaking, with varying impacts across JMU. Your friends in the Libraries are working hard with campus partners to help! 

What Is Digital Accessibility? 

JMU’s approach, outlined in a new Digital Accessibility website, treats our Title II support as an ongoing collaboration aimed at expanding access to information and education.  

As a continuous process of removing barriers that hinder engagement and learning, digital accessibility can never be considered “perfect” or “fully done.” However, by striving to improve the accessibility of course content, we can better support JMU students with disabilities and improve the educational experience for all JMU students.  

Digital Accessibility for Course Materials

Course content that should meet the new standards will generally include files you create or provide via Canvas, or materials you may link to externally for online reading or viewing. In the Libraries, we are also working hard with publishers and vendors to meet accessibility requirements for the content we license and purchase for your use.

Three key examples of digital accessibility in course materials include providing basic structure for documents like syllabi, captions for videos, and alt text for images.  

As instructors plan your work leading up to late Spring 2026, we encourage you to explore the resources JMU is providing. Here are a few steps to take: 

• Visit the JMU Digital Accessibility site to learn more about JMU’s campus approach to compliance.
• Join our workshops on digital accessibility.
• Try Anthology Ally, a digital accessibility checker that we added to Canvas in August 2025.
• Join our self-paced Canvas course on Digital Accessibility Awareness to learn simple strategies and better understand the new standards and requirements.
• Review the Getting Started Guide for JMU Instructors.
• Use our other Accessibility Resources.

Digital Accessibility for Other Online Content

If your JMU work includes creating or managing online content, we encourage you to explore the resources available now: 

• Visit the JMU Digital Accessibility website, which offers information about our campus approach to compliance, along with advice on auditing and prioritizing your content, resources for getting started, and FAQs. 
• Join our self-paced Canvas course on Digital Accessibility Awareness, which teaches simple strategies related to the new standards and requirements. 
• Join our workshops on digital accessibility.

Future Title II Resources

JMU plans to offer additional resources, working through our campus Accessibility Committee. These include: 

• Ongoing updates to the campus compliance plan, at JMU’s Digital Accessibility site. 
• New workshops and resources: We are working with campus partners to provide additional training opportunities and support
• More fine-tuned approaches to college-level and disciplinary needs, including a Digital Accessibility Ambassadors Program coming soon.

And more support to come, based on your feedback. 

As always, your colleagues at JMU Libraries are here to help you teach with Canvas, provide course materials to your students, and much more. Please reach out to us or share your feedback and questions with the campus Accessibility Committee directly.