Accessibility and Inclusivity

Topics:

Accessibility
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What is Accessibility?

All documents and web content must be accessible to everyone. PDFs are often less accessible because they are hard for screen readers to read and difficult to navigate. PDFs are also harder to search and find on search engines like Google. Web accessibility means designing websites, tools, and technologies so that people with disabilities can use them.

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Creating Accessible Content

In planning and creating your content, you can use the Accessibility Checklist for Content Creation for useful tips to get started.

Accessibility Checklist for Content Creation
151.04 KB .pdf
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Why is Accessibility Important for This Project?

Our goal is to make our content accessible and inclusive to all readers. The W3C Web Accessibility Initiative says that web accessibility means designing websites, tools, and technologies that people with disabilities can use. It ensures that people can:

  • See, understand, navigate, and use the web.
  • Contribute to the web.

This includes things like good color contrast, captions for videos, the ability to use a keyboard to navigate a website, and more.

Standards

As of October 2023, the websites on the DX Platform meet these accessibility standards:

 

Accessibility Guidance: Contractor/Consultant vs Public Information/Notice

When you create content for your site, whether it's from your team, public information, or an outside contractor, make sure it is accessible.

MNIT offers resources like the Digital Accessibility Quick Cards to help you check your content for accessibility.

Accessibility also means writing content at an 8th-grade reading level using plain language.

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Write in Plain Language

The State of Iowa Voice, Tone, and Style Guide can help you write content that is easy to understand. You can also learn more about the plain language in government initiative.

As you write, ask yourself these questions:

  • Can someone easily translate this into their preferred language?
  • If someone is using a screen reader, will the order of the content make sense?
  • Can someone on a small device, like a smartphone, quickly understand the page?

Learn more about writing for all people in our style guide.

Woman working with documents on computer
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PDF Editorial Guidance

  • Always make sure your PDFs are fixed before uploading them to the platform.
  • Only use PDFs when necessary, such as for long documents that need to be shared.

Document Naming Conventions for Accessibility

Naming files correctly is important for accessibility. Clear, consistent names help people with disabilities find and organize files.

Here’s why naming files properly matters:

  • Screen Reader Compatibility: Screen readers use file names to help users understand what the file is. Clear names make this easier.
  • Organization and Findability: Using consistent naming conventions helps everyone find files quickly, especially people with disabilities.
  • SEO: Descriptive file names can help improve your website’s search engine ranking.
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Best Practices for Naming Files:

  • Use Descriptive Names: Clearly describe what’s in the file.
  • Avoid Abbreviations and Acronyms: Use full words so the file name is clear.
  • Use Dashes: Separate words in file names to make them easier to read.
  • Be Consistent: Use the same naming rules across your website.
  • Prioritize Important Information: Put the most important words first.
  • Date: Use the format YYYYMMDD to keep files in order.
  • Example of a good document name:
  • "ProjectName-DocumentType-Date" (e.g., "CohortPlan-Schedule-Jan2024")

For more details, check our Naming Convention Guide.

Naming Conventions for Documents
380.05 KB .pdf

Run Acquia Optimize Scans for Accessibility

Acquia Optimize (formerly Monsido) helps you find and fix accessibility issues, such as broken links and missing alt text. It also offers a Chrome extension to help you quickly identify problems on your website. Fixing these issues helps make your site more accessible and improves the user experience for everyone.

Acquia Optimize Chrome extension
  • Weekly audits to make sure all pages stay accessible.
  • After updates to the website that might affect accessibility (e.g., new images or changes to navigation).
  • When issues are flagged, like broken links or missing alt text, that affect accessibility.
  • For routine checks to find problems that may affect users with assistive technologies.
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Understanding What Impacts Your Site’s Accessibility

The accessibility score shows how accessible your website is for all users.

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