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Universal Access Is Our Goal

The Americans with Disabilities Act guarantees equal opportunity for individuals with disabilities. This equal opportunity includes accessibility of digital materials, such as course syllabi, student handbooks, and degree sheets. The Nevada System of Higher Education (NSHE; Policy for Information and Communications Technology Accessibility) and the University of Nevada, Las Vegas (UNLV; Information and Communication Technology Accessibility Policy) also have policies that require educational materials to be accessible.

UNLV is committed to providing a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience, regardless of technology or ability. We aim to comply with all applicable standards, including WCAG (Web Content Accessibility Guidelines) accessibility standards.

What is accessibility?

"Accessible" means that individuals with disabilities are able to independently acquire the same information, engage in the same interactions, and enjoy the same services within the same time frame as individuals without disabilities, with substantially equivalent ease of use.

Which items must be accessible?

The items that must be covered are listed in the definition of accessible used by NSHE and UNLV:

ICT (information and communications technology) includes, but is not limited to, the internet and intranet websites, content delivered in digital form, electronic books and electronic book reading systems, search engines and databases, learning management systems, classroom technology, instructional materials, student response systems ("clickers"), and equipment such as classroom podiums, copiers, and fax machines. ICT also includes, but is not limited to, telecommunications products (such as telephones), information kiosks, Automated Teller Machines (ATMs), transaction machines (such as payment terminals), computers, ancillary equipment, software, services (including support services), equipment maintained and services operated by third-party vendors, and related resources.

For UNLV academic and administrative faculty and classified staff, these policies imply that all productivity documents such as spreadsheets, PowerPoints, and Word Documents must be created in and exported in an accessible format before being distributed via web, email, or in a WebCampus-Canvas course. For those who are purchasing technology (hardware, web-based service and software), these policies and related standards apply to the acquisition or renewal of ICT, regardless of the anticipated end user group (faculty, staff or students) or the number of users.

How is accessibility achieved and measured?

This starts with building the UNLV website to be accessible to the widest possible audience, including individuals with disabilities. We use the Accessible Rich Internet Applications (ARIA) specification, and strive to meet or exceed the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.1 A & AA) established by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C).

The University also seeks to achieve adherence to, and conformance with the following standards (when possible):

UNLV uses a number of automated and manual checks for websites, pages and documents to ensure optimal accessibility.

Who is responsible for ensuring accessibility conformance & compliance?

Technology accessibility is an institution- and system-wide responsibility. Technology access for individuals with disabilities must provide comparable functionality, affordability, accuracy of content and timeliness of service delivery. Products and services must be usable by the greatest number of people including individuals with disabilities.

Individual faculty and staff who publish Web pages, distribute electronic documents (e.g., via email, websites, WebCampus, etc.) and/or sign a contract with a vendor of electronic technology for the purpose of conducting University-related business and services, and who are notified of non-compliance are required to remediate the inaccessible material. The Office of Accessibility Resources is available to provide support, guidance, and consultation assistance to address accessibility.

Is accessibility training offered?

UNLV currently offers scheduled as well as ad-hoc accessibility training for academic and administrative faculty and anyone responsible for developing, loading, maintaining, or auditing digital content and functionality. Training is also offered to those who must purchase technology.

Who do I contact with questions, or for assistance with accessibility?

In the event you find a page to be inaccessible, please report the issue to the Web & Digital Strategy team, so that we can remediate the page.

For further information on accessible digital materials and technology beyond the UNLV website, please consult the Office of Accessibility Resources.

Note: If you are having issues logging into WebCampus, MyUNLV, UNLVMail, or Rebelmail, please complete a help request with the IT Help Desk.

What about archives?

Some pages included in the UNLV website are archival in nature and may not be fully conformant to meet the WCAG guidelines due to the very limited use of these resources. Should you need access to the information within these archived pages, please contact UNLV Web & Digital Strategy, and we will provide assistance or information in an alternate format