AP-3725: IT Accessibility Acceptable Use

The Chief Information Officer directs that the following regulations and procedures apply to all Rogue Community College students, faculty, staff, administrators, consultants, authorized guests, and any other persons granted access to College information resources. This group shall be referred to as “users.” The College is responsible for ensuring these procedures are readily accessible prior to the use of any College systems, services, or digital content.

 To balance compliance with operational efficiency, the College may establish and maintain an Approved Technology Resource List (ATRL) consisting of widely adopted, reputable platforms and services that have undergone prior accessibility and risk evaluation.

Technologies included on the ATRL—based on demonstrated industry adoption, vendor-provided accessibility documentation (e.g., VPAT/ACR), and use by peer or benchmark institutions—may be considered pre-vetted for procurement purposes, and therefore eligible for an expedited review process.

Use of ATRL-designated resources does not eliminate accessibility obligations but satisfies initial due diligence requirements, allowing the College to focus review efforts on configuration, implementation, and user-specific use cases rather than duplicative full evaluations.

All other technology resources not included on the ATRL will follow the standard accessibility and procurement review process.

Purpose

Accessibility is a requirement. It ensures that all users, including individuals with disabilities, have equal access to College systems, services, and information. This is not optional and is not handled after the fact.

Legal Requirements

Accessible Technology Resources must comply with applicable federal and state laws and standards, including Section 504, Section 508, the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines(a set of internationally recognized standards developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) that provide guidance on making web and digital content accessible to individuals with disabilities.).

Non-compliance exposes the College to legal, financial, and operational risk. That risk will be managed through enforcement of this procedure.

Responsibility

Accessibility is not owned by one department. It is a shared operational responsibility.

• System and Content Owners ensure accessibility is built into what they deploy and maintain
• Faculty and Staff ensure the materials they create and distribute are accessible
• Information Technology provides standards, tools, and oversight
• Users do not introduce barriers through misuse or negligence

If you create it, publish it, or deploy it—you are responsible for its accessibility.

Acceptable Use

Users will ensure that all Accessible Technology Resources they create, manage, or distribute:

• Meet established accessibility standards
• Are usable by individuals with disabilities
• Do not create barriers to access

At a minimum, this includes:

• Structuring documents correctly (headings, lists, readable formats)
• Providing alternative text for images
• Captioning audio and video
• Maintaining sufficient color contrast
• Using approved and accessible tools and templates

“Inaccessible by default” is not acceptable.

Procurement and Third-Party Systems

Accessibility is a requirement in procurement.

Users will not:

• Purchase or implement technology that has not been reviewed for accessibility
• Bypass established procurement or accessibility review processes

Vendors must meet accessibility requirements. If they do not, the product is not approved for use.

System Use and Configuration

Users will not:

• Disable accessibility features
• Configure systems in a way that removes accessibility functionality
• Implement shortcuts or workarounds that create barriers

Accessibility features exist for a reason. They are not optional settings.

Reporting Issues

Accessibility issues must be reported immediately.

There is no delay, no workaround, and no assumption that someone else will handle it.

Reported issues will be evaluated and addressed through established processes.

User Responsibilities

Users are expected to operate with discipline and awareness.

This includes:

• Creating accessible content from the start
• Using approved tools and methods
• Completing required accessibility training
• Asking for guidance when needed

Accessibility is part of the job, not an extra task.

College Rights

The College reserves the right to:

• Review and audit systems and content for accessibility
• Require correction or removal of non-compliant materials
• Restrict or suspend systems that do not meet requirements

These actions may occur without prior notice to protect compliance and institutional obligations.

Non-Compliance

Failure to meet accessibility requirements will result in action.

This may include:

• Removal of content or systems
• Required remediation
• Loss of publishing or system access
• Disciplinary action up to and including termination or expulsion

Accessibility failures are treated as operational failures.

Acknowledgement

Use of College systems constitutes acceptance of this procedure.

Users are expected to understand and follow accessibility requirements as part of their normal responsibilities.

Procedure

A process will be implemented requiring users to acknowledge accessibility requirements prior to creating, publishing, or managing digital content.

Users must confirm that they:

• Understand accessibility expectations
• Will comply with established requirements
• Accept responsibility for maintaining accessible content

Continued access to College systems is contingent upon compliance.

Rescinds Procedure Number: none
Approved: May 12, 2026