What is the ADA? The Americans with Disabilities Act (and ADA Amendments Act) is a federal civil rights law. The ADA guarantees equal opportunity and protects individuals with disabilities in state and local government services, public accommodations, employment, transportation, and telecommunication.

What is a disability under the ADA? An individual is considered to have a “disability” if he or she has a physical or mental impairment that substantially limits one or more major life activity, has a history of such impairment, or is regarded as having such an impairment. Major life activity = caring for one’s self, performing manual tasks, walking, seeing, hearing, speaking, breathing, learning, working.

ADA Amendments Act Expanded the “definition” of disability/major life activity in 2008 and implemented in 2009 Makes it easier for an individual seeking protection under the ADA to establish that he or she has a disability New definition now includes = reading, concentrating, thinking, bending, communicating, major bodily functions (functions of the immune system, normal cell growth, digestive, bowel, bladder, neurological, brain, respiratory, circulatory, and reproductive functions)

SDAO Over the Last 3 Years

Alternative Format Requests Over the Last 3 Years

Section 508 of the Rehabilitation Act Section 508 is an amendment to the Rehabilitation Act of 1973 that requires federal agencies and programs that receive federal funding to make their electronic and information technology accessible to people with disabilities. Section 508 Although most instructors may be aware that the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) spells out requirements for accessibility, they may not know the specifics as they apply the use of video and multimedia in their courses. Americans with Disabilities Act

U.S. Access Board Information Communication Technology (ICT) Refresh On February 23, 2014, the Board submitted a proposed rule to update the Section 508 Standards and the Telecommunications Act Accessibility Guidelines to the Office of Management and Budget (OMB), which has 90 days to complete its review. Once cleared by OMB, the proposed rule will be published in the Federal Register and will be available for public comment for a specified period of time.

What is Captioning? Captioning is the process of converting the audio content of a television broadcast, webcast, film, video, CD-ROM, DVD, live event, or other productions into text and displaying the text on a screen, monitor, or other visual display system.

Captions Should Be (1)synchronized and appear at approximately the same time as the audio is delivered. (2)equivalent and equal in content to that of the audio, including speaker identification and sound effects. (3)accessible and readily available to those who need or want them. (4)captions must have sufficient size and contrast to ensure readability, and be timely, accurate, complete, and efficient. (5)when displayed, captions must be in the same line of sight as any corresponding visual information, such as a video, speaker, field of play, activity, or exhibition.

Our Areas of Concern Classroom Videos Distance Learning Videos Websites

Classroom Videos Currently handled on a case by case basis - once you have a student who is in need of captioned videos enrolled in your class, SDAO suggests – either choose videos/films that are already captioned – start captioning all your videos for your course right away – or at least have a transcript of the video available

Distance Learning Videos The videos on Coursera MOOCs are also handled on a case by case basis, however, when the ICT Refresh is implemented, ALL videos will most likely be required to be captioned.

Websites Videos posted should be captioned for individuals who are deaf/hearing impaired Audio descriptions for individuals who are blind/visually impaired should be available. (Again, beware that the laws are changing).

TIPS YouTube videos: not always accurate. Example: Duke StudentsDuke Students Blind/Visually Impaired - Provide audio descriptions for all multimedia that contains essential visual information. Duke has a selected 3PlayMedia as our preferred provider. Please visit OIT’s website:

Words Matter Affirmative PhrasesNegative Phrases Person with a disabilityThe disabled; handicapped Person with an intellectual disabilityRetarded Person who is deafThe deaf Person who is hard of hearingSuffers a hearing loss Person who has multiple sclerosisAfflicted by MS Person with Cerebral PalsyCP Victim Person with Epilepsy, person with seizure disorder Epileptic Person who uses a wheelchairConfined or restricted to a wheelchair Person with a physical disabilityCrippled Person who is short of statureA dwarf or midget Person without disability or able- bodied Normal or Healthy Accessible parking, bathrooms, etc.Handicapped parking, bathrooms, etc.

Questions? Dot MishoeBianca Taylor Director, SDAO Assistive Technology Coordinator