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Accessible Procurement: Looking for Credible Evidence��Sarah Ellis Murray�Director of Accessibility Services�Charter Oak State College�scellis@charteroak.edu

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Presentation Objectives:

Discuss the why’s of accessible procurement
Standards for accessible digital goods/services
Types of credible evidence
Anatomy of a VPAT (Cliff Notes version)
Review strong/poor VPAT
Note VPAT red flags
Requestor Workflow handouts

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Why do we need to procure accessible EIT?

Title II & Title III

Section 504 & 508

CSCU EIT Accessibility Policy

Diversity, Equity and Inclusion

Good Business Sense

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Accessibility Defined

A person with a disability is afforded the same opportunity to

Acquire the same information
Engage in the same interactions
Enjoy the same services

As someone without a disability

In an equally effective and equally integrated manner
With substantially equivalent ease of use

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Definitions

EIT – Electronic and Information Technology
PDAA – Policy Driven Adoption for Accessibility
VPAT – Voluntary Product Accessibility Template (Information Technology Industry Council –ITI)
ACR – Accessibility Conformance Report
WCAG – Web Content Accessibility Guidelines
W3C – World Wide Web Consortium
WAI – Web Accessibility Initiative

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What qualifies as EIT?

Online Course Content
Media & Communications
Websites and web-based services/platforms
Online Events/Webinars
Hardware
Electronic documents
Includes no cost/low cost

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What is Accessible EIT?

Works with screen readers (JAWS and/or NVDA)
Keyboard navigation
Headers/Links
Multimedia is captioned and has transcripts; audio transcription (99% accuracy and synchronized)
Alt-text
Color Contrast/Meaning

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Who needs accessible EIT?

Visual Disabilities
Auditory Disabilities
Motor Impairments
Cognitive Impairments

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Standards we are held to:

Department of Justice:

The needs of the individual

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Accessibility Guidelines and Standards

Section 508 U.S. Federal accessibility standards for hardware

WCAG – Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (78 standards)

2.1 Level A (lowest accessibility standard)

2.1 Level AA – required by the CSCU Policy – Strong accessibility

2.1 Level AAA – Highest level & harder to achieve*

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Who is responsible for acquiring accessible products/services?

ALL OF US IN THE CSCU SYSTEM

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Before purchasing or acquiring digital goods and services, do your homework

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Looking for Credible Evidence of Accessibility

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Step 1: Is your purchase high risk or low risk?

Who is the intended audience? (Internal, Public or Student Facing?)
How many will use the product or service?
What is the purpose of this purchase? (Educational, employee use)
Is there an accessible alternative?
Corrective Action Plan (CAP)?

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How do I gather credible evidence of accessibility?

Question the Vendor
PDAA (Policy Driven Adoption for Accessibility)
VPAT (Voluntary Product Accessibility Template)
ACR (Accessibility Conformance Report)

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Questions from the PDAA

Do you maintain an EIT Accessibility Policy for your product/service? Can you send it me?

What processes/structures do you use to ensure accessibility for your product/service? Examples

What processes do you have for addressing accessibility conformance gaps?

Is your development staff trained in accessibility? Certified (IAAP)?

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Step 2: Initial Vendor Questions

Can you send me a VPAT (ACR) for the product?
Are you using VPAT 2.4, which is up to date with WCAG 2.1AA?
Does your organization have an accessibility statement or PDAA?
Have you worked with any 3^rd parties to have your products or web-based applications tested for accessibility?
Were the tests manual (keyboard, screen readers)?

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Step 3: Reviewing Sections of a VPAT (ACR)

Report Version and Product Information (2.4 – Rev 508, Rev WCAG, INT)
Product Name (should match the product & version)
Date (Should not be older than 12 months)*
Contact Information
Evaluation Methods Used (should be 3^rd party, assistive tech, functional & manual, along with various browsers if web based)
Terms of Conformance and Standards/Guidelines (Correct Terminology) (2.1AA)
Tables

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ArcGis VPAT (next 3 slides, Page 5, Introduction of the VPAT)

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ArcGis VPAT (slide 2 of 3, Page 6 of the VPAT)

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ArcGis VPAT (slide 3 of 3, Page 6 of the VPAT, Standards & Guidelines)

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Mentimeter VPAT (Page 2, Introduction page)

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Mentimeter VPAT (Page 3, Applicable Standards/Guidelines)

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Brainfuse VPAT (Introduction Page)

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Conformance Levels & Tables

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Conformance Levels

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ArcGIS VPAT page 12 Conformance Levels

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Mentimeter VPAT Sec 508 Standards page 25

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Brainfuse VPAT (Section of the Conformance Tables)

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VPAT Red Flags

Cells without content
Conformance terms such as “passes/fails”, “yes/no”
Numerous “N/A”
All Supports
One VPAT for multiple products
Not dated or dated over 12 months*
Only automated testing as evaluation method or generic details
In-house testing*

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What if the product or service is not accessible?

Determine if the product/service is a high priority for accessibility conformance.

No – May qualify for an exclusion/exemption
Yes – Ask the vendor more questions regarding credible evidence of accessibility conformance* (Demo)

Request an Exception and create an EEAAP (Equally Effective Alternate Access Plan) (CAP Corrective Action Plan)

Limited Scope and Time
Meet CSCU EIT Accessibility Policy criteria

Find another product/service

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A good VPAT/ACR will

Correct product version and recent date
Have a clear description of the product, including associated features
Have been written by someone other than the product vendor*
Comprehensive evaluation (assistive tech, manual, functional, various browsers for web)
Uses conventional wording: “Supports”, “Partially Supports”, “Does not Support”, “Not Applicable”
Have explanations for each success criteria/guideline
Stand up to questioning