Overview
During the third quarter, the Digital Accessibility Program continued to advance the City’s digital accessibility maturity through targeted staff training, cross-organizational collaboration, technology review, and development of new guidance resources. These efforts support equitable access to digital services, strengthen compliance readiness, and build staff capacity across departments.
Staff Training and Capacity Building
The Program delivered multiple training sessions to increase staff proficiency in creating and managing accessible digital materials. Audiences included the Volunteers Coordinator Collective, Engagement Coordination Committee, and Finance Department through its Lunch & Learn series. These sessions provided practical guidance on accessibility best practices for volunteer communications, departmental materials, and documents and slide decks.
Cross-Organizational Collaboration
The Program collaborated with a University of Colorado professor and student team from a digital accessibility computer science course after the professor reached out seeking a real‑world project for their final assignment. The Program sponsored a project in which the students evaluated the City’s use of the GivePulse volunteer platform. The student team produced a comprehensive report with recommendations for both the City and the GivePulse accessibility staff, supporting shared efforts to improve the platform’s overall digital accessibility.
New Staff Resources Released
Several new internal digital accessibility resources were launched to enable departments to more effectively meet accessibility requirements and integrate best practices into daily workflows. These include:
- Dashboard Digital Accessibility Checklist and Guide
- Digital Accessibility Champion Program materials
- Digital Accessibility Frequently Asked Questions
- Guidance on Appropriate Use of the COB Accessibility Statement
Digital Accessibility Champion Program Support
The Program continued supporting Champions through facilitated drop-in sessions. These sessions offered direct consultation, problem-solving support, and reinforcement of accessibility standards across departmental projects.
Technology Review and Procurement Support
To strengthen citywide compliance and reduce long-term accessibility risk, the Program conducted accessibility reviews of 24 software products this quarter. Documentation was provided to staff as part of the procurement workflow.
Workflow and Documentation Development
The Program partnered with Engagement staff to incorporate digital accessibility expectations into the “Working with Contractors” documentation. This work ensures staff who are working with contractors on engagement projects are have the resources they need to both include the boilerplate contract language when contracting for digital deliverables and can effectively review materials for accessibility requirements before acceptance.
Summary
Q3 efforts focused on expanding staff capability, enhancing governance and guidance, and strengthening accessibility considerations within procurement and software evaluation processes. These initiatives contribute to a more consistent and sustainable approach to digital accessibility across the organization.