This guide was created to assist CUNY Librarians, faculty, staff & OER developers create accessible content and accessible Open Educational Resources (OER). On this guide you will find information on:

• Creating Accessible Content: Tips on how to create accessible content including, word docs, pdfs, Images, videos, social media posts and other multimedia
• Platforms: What OER platforms are accessible? What are the pros and cons of using each platform?
• Evaluating your OER site: Determine if your site is accessible and see how to fix issues on your site
• VPATs: Voluntary Product Accessibility Template: Collection of VPATs from various vendors to see relevant information on how a vendor’s product or service claims to conform to the Section 508 Standards.

Action Step: Simply getting started is the key

• Take 10-15 minutes every week to engage with one of the Seven Pillars and the How-To Suggestions, below. By gradually integrating these practices into your work, you'll build confidence and be well-prepared to implement them in your courses. 
• If you'd like a month-by-month plan, check out the suggested Steps for Getting Started
• If you'd like to use self-guided learning, check out our UVA guide: Digital Accessibility in UVA Canvas

The focus of many open textbook projects is to provide access to education at low or no cost. But what does access mean? If the materials are not accessible for each and every student, do they fulfill the mandate to deliver fully open textbooks?

The availability of high-quality OER plays an important role in addressing equity issues in education. For its full potential to be realized for every learner, OER must be usable across the variability that learners bring to any learning environment. For this to be the case, OER must be designed according to accessibility best practices that ensure they will work with the assistive technologies many learners with disabilities use to access the curriculum. As an added benefit, accessible OER are also often mobile-friendly, which is an important consideration for increasing participation by students who primarily use smartphones either at school or home.