Commitment to Accessibility
HHMI BioInteractive is dedicated to ensuring that our resources are accessible and usable for everyone to the greatest extent possible. We strive to produce content that can be accessed and used equitably; flexibly; intuitively; and, if needed, via assistive technologies (AT), such as screen readers. We are committed to industry best practices and innovation for design and development to optimize the user experience.
Our Accessibility Guidelines
We strive to incorporate the relevant accessibility guidelines in accordance with the Final Rule of Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act (Final Rule), which includes standards for all documents and media types. We use established standards for accessibility compliance, which refers to the requirement in the Final Rule of conformance to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), developed by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative (WAI). WCAG is widely regarded as the international standard for web accessibility for the purpose of promoting high usability of digital content for people with disabilities.
Our Accessibility Goals
Our goal is to make all BioInteractive resources compliant with WCAG accessibility standards at Level 2.0AA or higher. To this end, we are integrating processes to meet these standards into the development of new resources whenever possible. Additionally, as part of an extensive approach for updating our existing materials, we are also remediating resources published prior to these initiatives to improve access and usability.
Accessibility of Our Resources
Conformance of all materials associated with BioInteractive resources to the WCAG is verified via various testing methods and evaluation tools. Current accessibility status of materials is indicated in the "Details" section of individual resource webpages under "Accessibility Level." Categories of materials, such as interactive media, PDF, and video, are listed as "Meets criteria" or "Partially meets criteria," and are further defined below. Additional details may be provided within the resource materials, such as in the "Help" section of some interactive media. These details may include information on accessibility limitations, such as those with highly dynamic content and user-generated inputs.
| Resource Material Types | Examples |
|---|---|
| Interactive Media | Click & Learns |
| PDFs | Student Handouts, Educator Materials, Transcripts |
| Video Files | M4V, WMV |
| Other File Types | PowerPoint Slides, Excel Spreadsheets, JPEG Images |
| Spanish Files | Above file types followed by (Spanish) |
| Accessibility Level | Conformance |
|---|---|
| Meets criteria | All components of this material type have been designed, optimized, and tested for accessibility compliance to the WCAG. Details about compliance can be provided upon request. |
| Partially meets criteria | The majority of components of this material type have been designed, optimized, and/or tested for accessibility compliance to the WCAG. Compliance can be assumed except for the limitations detailed in the resource. |
For materials that have not yet been updated to meet accessibility criteria, accessible components and features cannot be guaranteed, such as color contrast; alt text; keyboard navigation; and support of assistive technologies (AT), such as screen readers.
Our Accessibility Plan
We are committed to full transparency towards achieving the highest level of accessibility compliance possible. To ensure we achieve our accessibility goals, we have implemented the following measures:
Assess & plan
- Include accessibility within our internal processes.
- Integrate accessibility throughout our resource design and development.
Train & scale
- Require accessibility compliance for contractors.
- Provide accessibility training for our staff.
Monitor & test
- Employ quality assurance methods.
- Assign clear accessibility targets and responsibilities.
Feedback
We welcome your feedback on the accessibility of BioInteractive resources. If you encounter accessibility barriers, such as problems using assistive technologies with any of the materials labeled as “Meets criteria” or “Partially meets criteria,” or if you have inquiries about resource-specific accessibility specifications, please contact us (select the “Accessibility” category on the contact form).