Editor’s Note: This is the first in a series of articles highlighting the various types of accessibility training available to faculty and staff via accessibility.psu.edu.
UNIVERSITY PARK, Pa. — Penn State is committed to making its digital environment inclusive and accessible. The University has outlined that commitment in Administrative Policy AD69: Accessibility of Information and Communications Technology, but it is the responsibility of the entire University community to fulfill it.
In an effort to better support our collective accessibility work, Penn State IT will be highlighting accessibility resources each month. To begin the series this month, the Penn State Accessibility team has chosen to focus on Microsoft Office, since the suite of programs is one that most of us use every day.
Getting started
Perhaps the first place to start is with the accessibility assistance Microsoft has included within the programs themselves. The Penn State Accessibility team has outlined these tools on its website for Microsoft Word, PowerPoint and Excel. Using the tools allows you to customize your files and retain accessibility features, and once made accessible, Word and PowerPoint files can be converted to accessible tagged PDF files.
Additional training resources
A number of different training resources are available, including:
- Accessibility Learning Path: This series of courses begins with an Introduction to Accessibility course that is recommended for all faculty and staff.
- Syllabus Templates: There is a repository of templates that can help you create an accessible syllabus or other course files in Microsoft Word.
- PowerPoint Templates: Accessible PowerPoint templates are available through Penn State’s Brand Book.
- Live Zoom Webinars: Join a webinar run by the Penn State Accessibility team to learn more about specific accessibility features and topics.
- Recorded webinars and courses in LinkedIn Learning: To work at your own pace, check out the many recorded webinars and LinkedIn Learning courses that are available on demand.
If you have questions about our accessibility requirements or the resources available, reach out to the Penn State Accessibility team at accessibility@psu.edu.