Facilities Accessibility Request Process and Checklist for Physical Accessibility
Document which outlines the steps taken once a request has been determined to be compliance related or not and what steps will be taken from there to create a more accessible environment for members of the GRCC community.
Copyright Permission Request for Closed Captioning of Media/Online Materials form
The Americans with Disabilities Act requires GRCC to ensure access to equal and effective communication for all students, staff, and community members. In certain instances this also requires us to caption material that is otherwise copyright protected and owned by individuals not employed or affiliated with the college. In these situations it is necessary to attempt to obtain copyright permission from these individuals/entities to take the original material and circumvent copyright protection in order to provide an accessible version or respond to an accommodation request.
In those rare occasions where responsible parties neglect to respond to requests after significant attempts at gaining permission, a ruling by the Library of Congress essentially requires that we still provide the accommodation as ADA's requirements under Title II supercede copyright protection under specific guidelines. If you have need for a physical or online media document to be converted into a captioned format, please utilize one of the following forms and forward it to the address listed for completion.
Faculty Classroom Resources
Accessible Course Content Delivery Checklist
Checklist for faculty to utilize ensuring all due diligence has been done to ensure the course is accessible and reasonable accommodation can be made with minimal disturbance. i.e. All course content has been reviewed to ensure that: Textbooks are available in alternative formats (e-text that is screen reader compatible), all videos produced or shown in class are available with captioning and audio descriptions, all documents created to distribute course content are available or convertible into alternative formats, a statement is included in my syllabus to encourage students needing auxiliary aids to contact DSS for additional support
Blackboard Accessibility
Blackboard is the enterprise course management system at Grand Rapids Community College that is used for the delivery of online courses and in the support for online resources used for on campus classes. Teaching, Learning and Distance Education (TLDE) has compiled a set of resources to ensure your online courses are compliant with the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) issued by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) and Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act issued in the Untied States Federal Government.
Curriculum Points to Consider
What are the areas of functional limitation surrounding vision, hearing, speech limitations or lack of possible verbal communication. What do you need to consider when working with students experiencing occasional loss of physical control or fatigue? What about mobility, standing limitations, hand or arm function or learning modes? This document will give direction in these areas as well as explain the Rights and Responsibilities in accommodating students needing accessibility for both Faculty and Students.
Suggested Guidelines for Online Courses
Set of expectations for creating accessible content to be reviewed online for links, text, graphics, color, animation, video and audio content.
Subject Guides
Research assistance, subject guides, and useful resources compiled by your friendly GRCC librarians. The following link leads to content on the subject of accessibility and disability.