Supporting Digital Accessibility at JMU: What Staff Need to Know Now

Posted May 19, 2025 in Featured News, JMU Libraries News

an image of a computer keyboard with purple and white images on some of the keys; the images are implying accessibility concepts

As you may have heard, 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 does digital accessibility mean?

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 digital accessibility is a continuous process of removing barriers that can impede engagement and learning, it can never be considered “perfect” or “fully done.” However, improving the accessibility of online content helps support users with disabilities and improves the JMU experience for everyone.

What can staff do now?

Because the federal mandate newly includes course materials, the campus Accessibility Committee has been prioritizing resources for instructors ahead of the summer months. More staff guidance is coming soon! If your JMU work includes creating or managing online content, we encourage you to explore the resources available now:

JMU’s Digital Accessibility website offers information about our campus approach to compliance, along with advice on auditing and prioritizing your content, resources for getting started, and FAQs.

Our new Digital Accessibility Awareness self-paced Canvas course teaches simple strategies related to the new standards and requirements.

Our recent message to faculty explains what digital accessibility means for course materials.

Are more Title II resources on the way?

Yes! JMU plans to offer additional tools and resources for all content creators over the next year, working through the campus Accessibility Committee. Workshops for staff who create or manage digital content are on the way.

Please share your feedback and questions with committee members directly.