Since 2015 when the ADA sued Harvard and MIT for noncompliance, Section 508 has been revised and several more lawsuits and complaints have been filed. This presentation takes a comprehensive look at the lawsuits, the changes to Section 508 and their implications for higher education.
The issue of accessibility came dramatically to the attention of higher education in 2015 when the National Association of the Deaf (NAD) filed lawsuits against Harvard and MIT, alleging discrimination against deaf and hard-of-hearing students because content provided free through the edX platform was not adequately captioned. According to the NAD, approximately 48 million students were not provided equal access to information because of their disabilities. Harvard and MIT delivered thousands of videos and podcasts, often through MOOCs available on edX, but those resources left a cross-section of society behind.
Concerns about accessibility are certainly on the radar of many institutions, but this situation did not come without warning. The emphasis on accessible content for all learners came to light in 2010 when the Civil Rights Division of the U.S. Department of Justice and the Office for Civil Rights of the U.S. Department of Education sent a joint letter to university and college presidents saying that federal disability laws required that "individuals with disabilities must be provided with aids, benefits or services that provide an equal opportunity to achieve the same result or the same level of achievement as others."
In 1998, Congress amended the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 to require Federal agencies to make their electronic and information technology (EIT) accessible to people with disabilities. The law applies to all Federal agencies when they develop, procure, maintain, or use electronic and information technology. Under Section 508, agencies must give disabled employees and members of the public access to information that is comparable to access available to others.
Fear of legal ramifications provides a strong incentive to understand and meet the accessibility requirements of the ADA. However, it should not be the only motivation. A willingness to serve all learners equitably should be at the heart of any institutional accessibility initiative.
This presentation will summarize and highlight past legal complaints and lawsuits, present the implications of Section 508, and provide a call to action for colleges and universities to address accessibility requirements.