Accessibility

Electronic and Information Resources (EIR)

Academic Accommodations

For academic accommodations, including those on campus, online, or at the Amarillo Center, please contact the Office of Student Accessibility.
Physical location: Classroom Center 106 (West Texas A&M University, Canyon, Texas).
Phone number: (806) 651-2335.
Email: osa@wtamu.edu.

EIR Accessibility Comments

West Texas A&M University welcomes comments on how to improve accessibility for people with disabilities. If you use assistive technology and find that the format of any material on our website interferes with your ability to access the information, or if you have accessibility concerns regarding electronic and information resources (EIR), please contact:

Accessibility Coordinator
Information Technology
West Texas A&M University
WTAMU Box 60811
Canyon, Texas 79016-0001
Phone: (806) 651-1241
Fax: (806) 651-1249
Email: accessibility@wtamu.edu

To enable WTAMU to respond in a helpful manner, comments should include your contact information, the nature of any EIR accessibility problem or suggested changes, and the preferred format for receiving any inaccessible material.

Introduction

Accessible electronic and information resources (EIR) can be used in a variety of ways and do not depend on a single sense or ability. WTAMU’s Accessibility guidelines and procedures help make EIR accessible to the widest possible set of authorized users.

Making EIR accessible is a process that requires design, testing and maintenance, and that develops professional accessibility skills over time. WTAMU faculty, staff, and vendors make EIR accessible because it demonstrates inclusiveness and social responsibility, it improves academic and professional results, and it’s required by law and policy.

Law

Texas state institutions of higher education are required by Texas Government Code 2054 (opens new window), Subchapter M, to provide state employees and members of the public (students are included as members of the public) with disabilities access to and use of EIR that is comparable to the access and use available to individuals without disabilities, unless it would impose a significant difficulty or expense on the institution.

The Texas Department of Information Resources (DIR) adopted rules for institutions of higher education regarding the development, procurement, maintenance, and use of EIR to provide access to individuals with disabilities. These rules are Texas Administrative Codes (TAC) 206 (opens new window) and 213 (opens new window). These TACs align closely with the federal accessibility standards in Section 508 (opens new window) of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended in 2018 (Information and Communication Technology (ICT) Final Standards and Guidelines).

Policy Statement

West Texas A&M University is committed to providing a working, learning, and service environment that affords equal access and opportunity to otherwise qualified individuals with disabilities, in compliance with federal and state law. Consistent with this commitment, the University strives to provide EIR that are accessible to all authorized users and that meet the requirements of the Texas DIR.

Applicability

Accessibility applies to all EIR developed, procured, maintained, or used by WTAMU.

Compliance

All applicable EIR must be compliant with the Texas DIR accessibility rules as specified in WTAMU Rule No. 29.01.99.W1 Information Resources (PDF) and the Web General Guidelines and Practices below.

WTAMU accessibility compliance and compliance testing responsibilities rest with the University EIR owner and/ or the University site administrator of external affiliated websites.

EIR Owners

The EIR owner is the person responsible for the EIR, defined as the person with statutory or operational authority and responsibility at WTAMU for establishing controls for the EIR’s generation, collection, processing, access, dissemination and disposal. This might include a program director or project manager of an EIR application or project, a document or course content author, or a site administrator of an external affiliated website.

Exceptions and Exemptions

Approved exceptions to compliance with the Texas DIR accessibility rules allow a time-limited exception to the standard means of access to the EIR under consideration. Approved exceptions do not eliminate the University EIR owner’s responsibility to provide access to the EIR by an alternate method or in an alternate format. Any request for an exception to the Texas DIR accessibility rules must be submitted to the WTAMU accessibility coordinator for review and processing.

Statewide exemptions to compliance with the Texas DIR accessibility rules are granted by DIR and are posted on the EIR Accessibility Requirements, Exceptions, and Exemptions (opens new window) website.

Web General Guidelines and Practices

WTAMU official websites are state websites. A state website is one that is connected to the Internet and is owned, funded, or operated by or for a state agency or institution of higher education, including the homepage, all subordinate pages, and other key public entry points (KPEPs).

As the image and reputation of WTAMU is determined by the quality of information that is conveyed to and accessible by our constituencies, content of all official University websites (all webpages residing on University servers or servers funded by University budgets) must be accurate, timely, and compliant with local, state, and federal laws.

Accessibility Guidelines and Standards

WTAMU uses the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 (opens new window) as the primary way to meet TAC 206 standards for state website accessibility.

WCAG 2.1 covers a wide range of recommendations for making web content more accessible. Following WCAG 2.1 makes content accessible to a wider range of people with disabilities, including blindness and low vision, deafness and hearing loss, learning disabilities, cognitive limitations, limited movement, speech disabilities, photosensitivity and combinations of these. Following WCAG 2.1 also often makes web content more usable to users in general.

Browser Support

WTAMU supports current versions of Internet Explorer, Safari, Firefox and Chrome browsers.

Management

WTAMU’s official website is managed by the offices of Communication and Marketing, and Information Technology (IT). Communication and Marketing manages the public facing webpages (www.wtamu.edu) through the University’s content management system (CMS), Cascade. Website content is managed by the web director, designers, programmers, and content creators. Specific content throughout the website is edited and maintained by content creators.

Information Technology manages application based pages off the root URL wtamu.edu (i.e., wtclass.wtamu.edu, apps.wtamu.edu, etc.). Certain exceptions of page management apply to WTAMU affiliated websites in instances where the server hosting the page(s) is not managed directly by IT.

Any issue regarding an official WTAMU webpage can be brought to Chris Rea, web director, crea@wtamu.edu.

Content Editor Responsibilities

Update and ensure information on assigned pages is accurate, timely, and compliant with local, state, and federal laws.
Ensure assigned pages are accessible.
Ensure copyright laws are strictly observed.
Have documented permission to copy and display copyrighted text, graphics, photographs, etc.
Ensure assigned pages keep the University’s graphic standards and style guidelines intact.
Adhere to the WTAMU Link Policy and Privacy Statement.
Communicate needed additions to the University calendar to the appropriate calendar editor.

Content Creator Training

New content creators are trained in accessibility practices. Content creators are given a training packet by the Office of Communication and Marketing with detailed instructions about using the CMS Cascade, and practicing accessibility.

The following accessibility efforts are covered in the training. Trained content editors are expected to practice these accessibility efforts.

Alt Text must be present on all non-decorative images. In the case of images on social media without the Alt Text option, a caption should be present instead of Alt Text.
WTAMU webpages must have properly defined header tags (i.e., <h1>, <h2>, <h3>, etc.) to make content accessible.
PDF documents with essential text must be presented as text and not images of text.
Links must be descriptive, so that they could be recognized if the link was by itself.

Testing

WTAMU uses a service called Siteimprove (opens new window) to monitor and manage webpages for inaccessible content. When content creators attend training, the web director will determine other areas that should be using Siteimprove.

Fonts

All fonts used on wtamu.edu are pre-set and available within the CMS Cascade. These font selections were incorporated into the website as a part of WTAMU’s brand rationale. Use of other fonts within the text of Cascade violates University branding and also can cause displays across different web browsers to be problematic.

Name, Logo, and Symbols

All representations of the West Texas A&M University name, logos and symbols must conform to official guidelines outlined by the University. The logo and other official artwork may be downloaded online or by contacting the Office of Communication and Marketing at (806) 651-2129.

Key Public Entry Points

A key public entry point (KPEP) is a webpage on a state website that is frequently accessed directly by members of the public, which an institution of higher education has specifically designed to enable direct access to official institution of higher education information.

WTAMU KPEPs include affiliated websites (official University websites not managed and/ or monitored by either the Offices of Communication and Marketing or IT), and must include the following links.

WTAMU Homepage (link) - www.wtamu.edu
University Link Policy and Privacy Statement (link) - www.wtamu.edu/privacy
University Accessibility (link) - www.wtamu.edu/accessibility
University Contacts (link) - www.wtamu.edu/contact

Forms

Consistent with the Texas DIR State Website Linking and Privacy Policy, with few exceptions, state law gives you the right to request, receive, review, and correct information collected by forms.

In accordance with TAC Rule 206.72, any web-based form on an official University website that requests information from the public must have a link to the WTAMU Link Policy and Privacy Statement.

Link Policy

West Texas A&M University is committed to abiding by the link policy set forth by the Texas DIR State Website Linking and Privacy Policy.

In accordance with the recommendations from Texas DIR, the following disclaimers and guidelines are applicable to all webpages pertaining to www.wtamu.edu.

Disclaimer: West Texas A&M University disclaims responsibility for the accessibility, security or content accuracy of information for external (non www.wtamu.edu) website content. The liability of such pages rests on the site owner of the respective site.

Links

Links must be descriptive, clearly identified and must comply with the overall mission of the University and departmental goals. See the WTAMU Link Policy and Privacy Statement for more information.

External Websites

External websites are third-party websites not hosted on University servers, nor hosted on servers funded by University budgets.

External affiliated websites are webpages with content managed by WTAMU personnel on external websites (i.e., Facebook, Twitter, or other external websites).

External Website Content

In instances where West Texas A&M University, or its entities, manage content on external webpages (i.e., Facebook, Twitter, or other external websites) the accuracy of information is entrusted to the applicable site administrator(s). These site administrators are employees of West Texas A&M University and by this employment agree to WTAMU’s values of Honesty, Hard Work and Integrity. Any misrepresentation of West Texas A&M University, or its entities, on these or any other medium by WTAMU employees or non-employees should be reported to the Office of Communication and Marketing, aunderwood@wtamu.edu.

In accordance with recommendations from the Texas DIR State Website Linking and Privacy Policy, WTAMU disclaims liability for external website content.

Disclaimer: West Texas A&M University disclaims the responsibility for inaccurate or misleading information (including copyright violations, slander, libel, defamation and invasion of privacy) on external webpages. The responsibility of such actions rests on the individual.

Accessibility of External Website Content

WTAMU does not have direct control over the accessibility of external website content and therefore disclaims any responsibility in the neglect or absence of standards set forth for institutions of higher education by the state or federal government.

In instances where West Texas A&M University, or its entities, manage content on external webpages (i.e., Facebook, Twitter, or other external websites), the applicable site administrators should abide by the guidelines set by the Office of Communication and Marketing to ensure the most accessible content available on the medium. Questions or concerns should be addressed to the web director, crea@wtamu.edu.

TAC Accessibility Workgroup

To help ensure that WTAMU fulfills its obligation to provide information, services, and programs that are accessible, usable, understandable, and navigable, the Texas Administrative Code/ TAC Accessibility Workgroup has formed.

Through the most effective communication channels available, the workgroup will inform relevant personnel about accessibility requirements, assess WTAMU’s current level of compliance, and make recommendations to administration on how to move closer to full compliance.

The workgroup meets as required to create and maintain WTAMU accessibility policies and procedures, develop or recommend accessibility training, and coordinate testing of University software, websites, and other electronic information resources.

The workgroup consists of one representative from each of the areas below, serving either a permanent (P) or rotating (R) term. Current members are also listed.

Academic Affairs: Amy Andersen (P)
Accessibility: Lisa Caid (P)
Career Services: To be recommended (R)
Communication and Marketing: Chris Rea (P)
Cornette Library: Shawna Kennedy-Witthar (P)
Faculty: To be recommended (R)
Human Resources: To be confirmed (P)
Information Services: To be recommended (R)
Academic Technology Services: Lora Haasl (R)
IT Services: Michael Reagan (R)
Purchasing and Inventory: Byron McCafferty (R)
Student: To be recommended (R)
Student Accessibility Services: Paul Fenstermaker (P)
Telecommunications Services: Dan K. Garcia (P)

Questions and Contacts

If you have any questions about academic accommodations at WTAMU, please contact:

Paul Fenstermaker
Director of Student Accessibility Services
West Texas A&M University
WTAMU Box 60904
Canyon, Texas 79016-0001
Phone: (806) 651-2335
Email: pfenstermaker@wtamu.edu

If you have any questions about EIR accessibility at WTAMU, please contact:

Lisa Caid
Accessibility Coordinator
West Texas A&M University
WTAMU Box 60811
Canyon, Texas 79016-0001
Phone: (806) 651-1241
Email: accessibility@wtamu.edu

If you have any questions about the practices of this site or your use of this website, please contact:

Chris Rea
Web Director
West Texas A&M University
WTAMU Box 60788
Canyon, Texas 79016-0001
Phone: (806) 651-2120
Email: crea@wtamu.edu

Statewide accessibility contacts:

Governor’s Committee on People with Disabilities (opens new window)
Austin, Texas
Phone: (512) 463-5739
Fax: (512) 463-5745
Email: GCPD@gov.texas.gov

Electronic Information Resources Accessibility (opens new window)
Statewide Accessibility Coordinator
Department of Information Resources
Austin, Texas
Phone: (512) 463-6186 or (512) 475-4700
Email: statewideaccessibilitycoordinator@dir.texas.gov