Section 508 compliance for state colleges
State colleges and universities like UTRGV were established to provide quality education to every student who meets their requirements, regardless of their economic or social status. Individuals with disabilities form an underrepresented and underserved segment of the student population, with around one in five students reporting a disability. However, college and university websites are not always accessible to this audience, causing students with disabilities to underperform compared to their counterparts without disabilities.
To ensure that all students, regardless of their disability, can have a fair chance at a successful academic career, laws such as Section 508 require public institutions to maintain accessible websites and other digital resources. Let’s discuss Section 508 compliance and how state colleges can address it.
What is Section 508 and how does it cover state-related institutions?
The Rehabilitation Act, passed in 1973, required federal agencies to make their facilities and services accessible to individuals with disabilities. It also authorized federal departments to establish programs for individuals with disabilities and prohibited discrimination on the basis of disability, extending civil rights to members of this sector. Section 508 is an amendment to this law passed in 1998, dealing with electronic and information technologies as a response to the growing popularity of the internet.
Section 508, much like the original Rehabilitation Act, covers federal agencies, including executive departs. However, state colleges and universities are also covered by this law, especially if their students and faculty receive federal aid or research grants. While no statistics are available solely for state institutions, the Department of Education allocates $29.1 billion for Pell Grants and $46.2 million for TEACH grants as of 2024. With the staggering amount the federal government allocates to higher education, it’s high time higher education institutions made their websites and applications accessible to all.
What are some requirements for Section 508 compliance?
Now that we’ve discussed why state-funded colleges and universities should aim for Section 508 compliance, let’s see how your institution can achieve this goal. Here are three items you should add to your institution’s accessibility checklist.
Compliance with the WCAG
The Section 508 refresh, issued in 2018, requires covered agencies and institutions to comply with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines. These guidelines are published by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and form the basis of accessibility standards and laws, including the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) and the European Accessibility Act (EAA). The WCAG contains success criteria and best practices for digital accessibility, such as minimum color contrast ratios, image alt text, fillable forms, and video captions and subtitles. If your institution is already ADA-compliant, complying with Section 508 won’t take much work as both laws use the WCAG as a benchmark.
Accessibility statement
Aside from complying with the WCAG, publishing an accessibility statement on your website will show your institution’s commitment to digital accessibility. While accessibility statements are not new, many agencies and institutions have made them public for the past few years. A typical accessibility statement contains a declaration of the institution’s commitment to accessibility, a summary of the entity’s efforts toward accessibility (including its WCAG conformance level), the contact information of an office or point person for accessibility issues, and the limitations of the website’s accessibility.
VPAT templates
Section 508 also requires vendors of technology products and services to produce a detailed report of their accessibility. This is called a Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (VPAT), which translates Section 508 or WCAG requirements into testing criteria. It contains the name and description of the product; a list of evaluation methods used during the testing; a list of WCAG success criteria, conformance levels, explanations; functional testing results; and support documentation. Requiring potential vendors, including external web developers, to submit VPATs will allow your institution to choose products with a high degree of accessibility.
Section 508 compliance: The path to greater inclusivity
While Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act is federal in scope, its reach extends to state-related entities, including state institutions of higher learning. Complying with the WCAG, publishing an accessibility statement, and requiring vendors to submit VPATs are some of the steps you can take to comply with Section 508. By doing so, you make your institution more accessible to students with disabilities.