Get started with accessibility

Why is accessibility & ADA Compliance Important?

Approximately 9,000 CUNY students self-identify as having a disability. This represents approximately ONLY half of the CUNY student population with disabilities.

To create an inclusive experience for all users, it is helpful to understand the ways in which different disability types need to access content and what you can do to make your content more accessible to them.

We are required by law to provide programs and services that are accessible to all qualified participants, including those with disabilities.

What does that mean for you? What do you need to know?

This website provides an extensive body of how-to pages for making particular types of content accessible. To learn more about the accessibility of particular technologies, consult the pages that are most relevant for the technologies you’re using or are especially concerned about.

CUNYfirst | Captioning Videos | Creating PDF & Office Documents | Creating Emails | Microsoft |

The Mayor’s Office for People with Disabilities Accessible Virtual Meetings Guide

How People with Disabilities Use the Web

Visual Disabilities

Blind and low vision users rely on keyboard-only navigation, the use of screen reader technology, and/or screen enlargements. Access to information is dependent on: sizable fonts, good color contrast, well-structured websites that label all graphics, icons, buttons, and multimedia; and using web standards for coding tables, forms, and frames.

Hearing Disabilities

Deaf and hard-of-hearing users can access multimedia content (video and audio) if captions and transcripts are available. For video content that also has audio without captions or transcripts, only the visual content is accessible. A transcript is the only way to make video or audio content accessible to someone who is both deaf and blind.

Motor Disabilities

Users with limited mobility are likely to use only a mouse, keyboard, voice or other inputs to navigate the web. Websites developed with multiple input options are more accessible to these individuals. Mouse-only or keyboard-only control requirements will create a barrier for some of these individuals.

Cognitive Disabilities

Users with cognitive disabilities rely on clear structure, consistent and predictable forms, buttons, links, and other functions.