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Accessibility

Accessibility at ACC: Policy Update and New ADA Regulations

In 2025, the Academic and Student Affairs Council updated Administrative Rule 5.0401.01 Course Materials Orders. Additionally, starting April 2026, new ADA regulations will require colleges like ACC to ensure all online courses, digital content, and apps meet accessibility standards. The Office of Distance & Alternative Education is offering a variety of training sessions to give you the skills to design accessible, inclusive online learning. Visit the ACC Support Links for Accessibility Services page and the Faculty Events Calendar for additional opportunities.

Accessible Information Management (AIM)

Austin Community College District (ACC) offers a one-stop platform for Student Accessibility Services (SAS) called Accessible Information Management (AIM). AIM streamlines services and allows faculty, staff, and students to use a single, confidential system.

Students approved for SAS can log in to the AIM system to request accommodations, schedule exams, make appointments, and more. Faculty use the same system to review, submit, and monitor services for students.

AIM login

Student Accessibility Services (SAS)

When a student is officially approved for accommodations through SAS, faculty receive a Faculty Notification Letter (FNL) via AIM at any point before or during the semester. Provide accommodations as outlined in the letter.

    1. Prepare course materials before the semester begins to maximize accessibility. Use built-in accessibility checkers (Blackboard Ally; Grackle Docs; review tools in Microsoft Word and PowerPoint). Add alt text to all instructional images in Blackboard, Microsoft Word, Google Workspace, and PowerPoint.
    2. Review semester preparation and faculty responsibilities when working with students with disabilities.
    3. Provide the accommodations as outlined in the FNL.
    4. Permit approved auxiliary aids and technology (for example, phones, tablets, laptops with assistive tech; digital recording devices; Access Assistants; notetakers; assistive listening devices; electronic braille displays).
    5. If your exams require proctoring and you cannot provide approved testing accommodations in your department, complete the Testing Agreement Form. The link appears in the FNL, or you can access it by logging in to your AIM faculty portal.
    6. Discuss testing and classroom accommodation implementation as soon as the FNL is received. Instructors are welcome to initiate this discussion.
    7. Contact sas@austincc.edu or the approving advocate with any questions.
    8. Maintain student confidentiality. Discuss accommodations in private.
    9. Respond promptly to messages from SAS staff. Emails may come from individual staff members, sas@austincc.edu, sastest@austincc.edu, or sas-noncredit@austincc.edu.
    10. Respond to requests for semester planning meetings for students in your course so materials are available in the required format.
    11. If a student discloses a disability or requests accommodations without official SAS notification, complete the Basic Needs System (BNS) Referral Form so a member of the Basic Needs team can contact them.

Accessible Documents and Course Materials

Alternative Text and Media (Alt Text & Media) supports students with disabilities who require special formats like braille and screen reader accessible content. If a student in your course requires alternative format accommodations, an SAS Advocate will reach out to schedule an Accessibility Planning Meeting: usually virtual, this meeting normally includes the SAS Advocate, instructor(s), the student, and the Alt Text & Media team. Together, we determine if support is needed to ensure access to the specific course materials, given the student’s particular needs, preferred formats, and available technology. Alt Text & Media may request access to the Blackboard course to remediate documents or convert to special formats. Learn more at Alternative Text and Media Services at ACC or email alttext@austincc.edu.

Grackle Docs simplifies making Google Docs accessible and can generate tagged PDF/UA files. Grackle is available to all ACC Google Workspace for Education users logged in with their @austincc.edu account. The Grackle tools in Google Docs, Sheets, and Slides help identify and fix issues directly from the Grackle panel. To launch, go to Extensions > Grackle > Launch.

To practice fixing accessibility barriers in Google Docs with Grackle, try the Self-Guiding Walkthrough for Grackle Docs and follow the in-document steps.

For more information about Grackle Docs, contact Alt Text & Media at alttext@austincc.edu.

Where to find help: 

Sign Language Interpreting & Captioning (SLIC) Services

Some students require communication access to participate fully in your course and may use sign language interpreting and/or captioning accommodations. Prepare course materials ahead of the semester to ensure accessibility.

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