Author: IBL News

IBL News | New York

Universities and public colleges are in a hurry to make their webpages, online course content, and mobile apps accessible to people with disabilities by April 2026 to meet compliance guidelines and requirements.

The Department of Justice gave institutions two years to comply with its regulations under Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), effective April 2024.

Experts in Higher Ed said that this Act will require serious time and financial investment, making it prohibitive for many institutions.

Compliance requires publicly funded entities to ensure that all web and media content — thousands of webpages — adheres to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines.

It means every PDF file must be accessible, captions and audio descriptions must accompany every video, and every sound clip must be paired with a transcript.

Faculty have to make course materials accessible, and any third-party tech platform from vendors must also be compliant.

The consequences of not responding are severe, as the DOJ has taken a larger role in enforcing civil rights laws in higher ed under the second Trump administration. Also, legal and activist groups can sue noncompliant institutions.

Some experts have pointed out that the White House can use the new rules in its negotiations with higher ed institutions, given the widespread lack of preparation.