Cascade School District

Adopted on: Not yet adopted
Reviewed on: Not yet reviewed
Revised on: Not revised
Implemented by practice

4350 COMMUNITY RELATIONS

Website Accessibility and Nondiscrimination
The District is committed to ensuring that people with disabilities have an opportunity equal to that of their nondisabled peers to participate in the District’s programs, benefits, and services, including those delivered through electronic and information technology, except where doing so would impose an undue burden or create a fundamental alteration.

Benchmarks for Measuring Accessibility
In order to assure that people with disabilities have an opportunity equal to that of their nondisabled peers to access information delivered through electronic and information technology, all pages on the District’s website will conform to the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative’s (WAI) Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 Level AA and the Web Accessibility Initiative Accessible Rich Internet Applications Suite (WAI-ARIA) 1.0 techniques for web content, or updated equivalents of these guidelines, except where doing so would impose an undue burden or create a fundamental alteration.

Website Accessibility
With regard to the District’s website and any official District web presence which is developed by, maintained by or offered through third party vendors and open sources, the District is committed to compliance with the provisions of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 and Title II so that students, parents and members of the public with disabilities are able to independently acquire the same information, engage in the same interactions, and enjoy the same benefits and services within the same timeframe as those without disabilities, which substantially equivalent ease of use; and that they are not excluded from participation in, denied benefits or, or otherwise subjected to discrimination in any District programs, services, and activities delivered online.

All existing web content produced by the District, and new, updated, and existing web content provided by third party developers, will conform to the WCAG 1.0 Level AA and the WAI-ARIA 1 .0 techniques for web content or updated equivalents. This policy applies to all new, updated, and existing web pages, as well as all web content produced or updated by the District or provided by third-party developers.

Website Accessibility Concerns, Complaints, and Grievances
The following statement will appear on the District’s website homepage and all subsidary pages: The District is committed to ensuring accessibility of its website for students, parents, and members of the community with disabilities. All pages on the District's website will conform to the W3C WAI's Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0, Level AA conformance, or updated equivalents.

Under District developed administrative procedures, students, parents, and members of the public may present a complaint regarding a violation of the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA), Section 504 related to the accessibility of any official District web presence which is developed by, maintained by, or offered through the District or third party vendors and open sources.

A student, parent, or member of the public who wishes to submit a complaint or grievance regarding a violation of the ADA, Section 504 or Title II related to the accessibility of any official District web presence that is developed by, maintained by, or offered through the District, third party vendors and/or open sources may complain directly to a school administrator. The initial complaint or grievance should be made using the District’s Uniform Grievance Form, upon request at the District office, however, a verbal complaint or grievance may be made. When a school administrator receives the information, they shall immediately inform the District’s [IT Department or website compliance coordinator]. The Complainant need not wait for the investigation of any grievance or complaint in order to receive the information requested.

Whether or not a formal complaint or grievance is made, once the District has been notified of inaccessible content, effective communication shall be provided as soon as possible to the reporting party to provide access to the information.

Testing and Accountability
The District will ensure website accessibility training to all appropriate personnel, including employees who are responsible for developing, loading, maintaining, or auditing web content functionality. The Technology Coordinator will be responsible for reviewing and evaluating new material that is published by [school staff or IT Department] and uploaded to the website for accessibility on a periodic basis. The Technology Coordinator will be responsible for reviewing all areas of the District’s website and evaluating its accessibility on a periodic basis, and at least once per quarter. Any non-conforming webpages will be corrected in a timely manner.

This policy shall be available to the public via a link entitled “Accessibility,” which shall be located on the District’s homepage.

Cross Reference: Policy 1700 Uniform Grievance Procedure

Legal Reference: Title II of the Americans with Disabilities Act of 1990

Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act