Lone Star College recognizes and supports the principles set forth in federal and state laws designed to eliminate discrimination against qualified individuals with disabilities. The College believes in equal access to educational opportunities for all individuals and is committed to making reasonable accommodations, including providing auxiliary aids and services, for qualified individuals with disabilities as required by law.

Building Accessible Courses

Individual student accommodation remains an important part of creating equitable access to online education. However, there are several proactive steps faculty can take to build accessible content and incorporate universal design strategies to enhance the accessibility of their online course.

Accommodation is Reactive, Accessibility is Proactive

Accessible online content can be compared to physical wheelchair ramps and accessible entryways, it provides a digital pathway and allows all students to enter and utilize the course.

When content is accessible, all students, regardless of background or ability, have equitable access to the course.

To get assistance with implementing accessible practices, using tools such as Ally and EquatIO, or to ask questions about accessibility, please contact the office best suited to assist you:

Accessibility Checklist by Library Services: Not sure where to get started with accessibility? This checklist offers a simple, practical guide to help you ensure your content, technology, or project is usable by everyone. From basic design considerations to essential compliance steps, it’s an easy way to begin building more inclusive experiences.
Tips for Creating and Testing Accessible Content: Resources and guidance for creating and testing accessible content, created by Library Services.
Campus Technologists / VTAC Support: Assistance with D2L tools, technology, and accessible course content guidance.
Instructional Designers: Assistance with accessible course design best practices.
Disability Services: Assistance with course accommodations and support for specific student accommodations.
Accessibility Services and Resources: Assistance with public accessibility inquiries, legal compliance for campus or system-wide access, and employee accommodation.

Select a format for accessibility tips and instructions:

Microsoft Word	Microsoft PowerPoint	Microsoft Excel
PDF Files	D2L Content via Ally	Math
Videos and Media	Adding Auto-Captions to Media Editing Captions in the Video Editor Deleting Captions as a Content Owner Adding an Audio Description Using Optical Character Recognition How to Enable and Use Windows Narrator

Accessibility Training Recordings

Below are some training recordings about accessibility tools. Check out our Training Calendar for upcoming sessions related to accessibility. For other self-paced training, visit our Other Accessibility Resources page.

Helpful Handouts

Feeling Overwhelmed?

Prioritize your most used content first
Focus on the "Big Four"
1. Add alternative text to describe your images
2. Use basic document formatting with semantic structure (headings, lists, etc.)
3. Offer video captions and transcripts
4. Use 3rd-party tools that are accessible
Remove inaccessible content that you no longer use
Going forward, try to make your content accessible as you create it

Accessibility, Getting Started!

Building Accessible Courses

Select a format for accessibility tips and instructions:

Accessibility Training Recordings

Adobe PDF files

Ally, for D2L content

Equatio, for math

YuJa, for videos

General Accessibility

Helpful Handouts

Feeling Overwhelmed?

Related Articles