Accessibility & UDL Implementation
Building and scaling an accessibility and UDL framework across an entire university, including training, policy, and course redesign aligned to WCAG and Quality Matters standards.
Context
- Institution lacked awareness and implementation of accessibility standards
- Faculty had little to no familiarity with WCAG, UDL or accessible course design
- Course design was highly inconsistent across programs
- Learning Management System (Blackboard) was underutilized or misused
- External audit identified widespread accessibility issues across courses
- Institution served ~3,500 students and ~300 faculty across undergraduate and graduate programs
The Problem
- Courses failed to meet basic accessibility and usability standards
- Faculty relied on ad hoc practices (e.g., email-based course delivery)
- Lack of structured training or institutional expectations
- Accessibility support was reactive rather than built into course design
- Significant risk to student experience, equity, and compliance
My Role
As the sole Instructional Design Specialist, I founded and led the university’s first instructional design function and designed an institution-wide initiative that would:
- Establish accessibility and UDL standards aligned with WCAG and Quality Matters
- Identify and prioritize the most critical accessibility gaps
- Develop and deliver faculty training at scale
- Drive adoption through policy, leadership alignment, and hands-on support
- Improve course quality and student experience across programs
Approach
1. Audit and Gap Analysis
The university partnered with external consultants to evaluate course accessibility while I conducted internal audits using Blackboard Ally. Using both data sets, I identified high-impact gaps, including missing captions and transcripts, poor LMS navigation and organization and distracting or inaccessible visual design.
2. Strategy and Policy Development
I developed a targeted accessibility improvement strategy focused on high-impact changes and presented my findings and recommendations to the Distance Learning Committee (DLC). I secured leadership buy-in (CIO, Provost, Deans, Faculty Senate) for the plan and, through the DLC, established institutional policy requiring ≥80% Blackboard Ally accessibility scores for all online courses.
3. Faculty Training and Enablement
I designed and delivered focused workshops on captioning and transcripts, LMS navigation and course organization and accessible visual design (high contrast, low distraction). I grounded training in frameworks from Quality Matters (QM), the Online Learning Consortium (OLC) and the International Society for Technology in Education (ISTE).
4. Leadership-First Adoption Strategy
I prioritized training for department chairs to build top-down alignment. This enabled chairs to identify priority faculty, reinforce expectations and support adoption within programs.
5. Hands-On Course Redesign
I facilitated workshops where faculty worked directly in their own courses, implemented accessibility improvements in real time and rapidly improved dozens of courses within the first two months.
6. Culture Shift and Continuous Improvement
I incorporated student voice by inviting learners to share accessibility experiences directly with faculty. I built a team of faculty champions who advocated for accessible design. Finally, I embedded accessibility into ongoing course development practices and expectations.
Impact
Institutional Impact
- Established the university’s first centralized instructional design and accessibility function
- Implemented a formal accessibility policy aligned with WCAG standards
- Embedded accessibility and UDL into institutional practices
Operational Impact
- Standardized course design expectations across programs
- Integrated Blackboard Ally audits into regular workflows
- Enabled scalable faculty training and course improvement
Student Experience Impact
- Improved usability and accessibility across online courses
- Increased student satisfaction following course redesigns
- Improved academic performance in select courses following accessibility improvements
Measured Outcomes
- Improved course accessibility scores from non-compliant baseline to 85%+ across all online courses
- Resolved major accessibility issues in dozens of courses within the first two months
- Achieved institution-wide adoption of accessibility standards within ~18 months
Tools & Capabilities Demonstrated
- Accessibility strategy and WCAG implementation
- UDL-aligned course design
- Faculty training and change management
- Policy development and institutional alignment
- Data-informed decision-making (Blackboard Ally, external audits)