NEWS

CMU prepares for WCAG compliance deadline

Standards for digital content promote greater accessibility

On April 24, 2026, public-serving institutions like Central Michigan University must adopt the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 AA standards for accessibility. The guidelines, established by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), help organizations like CMU comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act and help institutions make digital content accessible to all students, faculty, staff and visitors.

"It’s both a legal obligation and a reflection of our commitment to inclusiveness,” said CMU Provost Paula Lancaster. “As a Caring University, we want to ensure that every member of our community has access to the tools and resources they need to thrive – even, or especially, in our digital environments.”

Lancaster said that CMU had significantly improved the accessibility of its digital content across multiple platforms thanks to the efforts of numerous offices and departments across campus.

“We will continue to enhance access and maintain compliance, which will require ensuring we’re being thoughtful about the content we create and share,” she said.

Understanding WCAG

WCAG helps organizations maintain compliance with the Americans with Disabilities Act, which was signed into law in 1990. In 1999, WCAG 1.0 became the first international set of guidelines for web accessibility.

These guidelines are updated periodically and provide a series of best practices that ensure content is accessible across all digital platforms, including web pages, mobile apps, social media channels, online learning platforms, course content, service portals and internal systems.

Per the W2C website, the WCAG guidelines are built around four principles, called the POUR principles:

Perceivable – content should be available to users in a variety of ways, including visually or with the use of assistive devices and technologies, such as screen readers.
Operable – all users should be able to navigate and interact with the content using a mouse, keyboard, or other assistive technology, and navigation should be designed to meet the needs of people of all abilities.
Understandable – content should be clear and presented in a way that users can easily understand.
Robust – the content should be accessible and compatible with a variety of assistive technologies, now and in the future.

What CMU is doing now

Lancaster said several teams have been preparing for the WCAG 2.1 AA April 2026 deadline, including efforts by the University Marketing and Communications team, the Office of Curriculum and Instructional Support and the Office of Information Technology.

Abby Dean, deputy chief marketing officer, said CMU’s digital strategy team consistently maintains the accessibility of the university’s website. In preparation for the April deadline, the team has been leading training sessions and providing resources for the university’s website collaborators, helping them make unit-owned pages more compliant. She said the MarCom team was also providing resources for university social media managers to ensure that content shared on platforms like Facebook, Instagram and TikTok follows accessibility best practices.

Pete Ross, executive director of Curriculum and Instructional Support, said his office has initiated use of a Blackboard tool called Ally, that can help to identify accessibility issues with digital course materials.

“Ally provides information on why content was flagged and provides guidance on how to remedy those issues,” he said. “This tool is available for faculty use within their Blackboard shells.”

Ross said CIS has also updated information on its Accessible Course Content page. The team also established a hub, called Accessible Course Content Resources, to support faculty in making course content accessible for all learners.

The Office of Information Technology has also taken steps to ensure CMU maintains compliance with accessibility standards.

Eric Whitmore, deputy chief information officer, said OIT requires a Higher Education Community Vendor Assessment Toolkit which considers accessibility, for most IT purchases. In addition, he said any student-facing software purchases, and many staff and faculty software purchases, require a Voluntary Product Assembly Template review as well.

“This helps CMU to ensure our systems are considering end-user experience and accessibility,” Whitmore said.

Steps to maintain compliance

Lancaster said everyone at CMU has a role to play in making our community accessible for all.

“Each of us has a responsibility to ensure that digital content we create and share meets the accessibility requirements established by the Americans with Disabilities Act,” she said. “This is not a one-time effort; it is an ongoing effort to ensure every member of our community can successfully engage with our digital environments.”