Charles Schwab Web Accessibility Agreement

Posted here is the settlement agreement between Charles Schwab and one of its blind customers about website accessibility. Schwab engaged in the Structured Negotiations process with the Law Office of Lainey Feingold and has made a significant commitment to ensuring that its website is inclusive for all customers. Schwab has begun making site enhancements and will continue doing so. The company has adopted WCAG 2.0 Level AA as its web accessibility standard. Read more… Charles Schwab Web Accessibility Agreement

Charles Schwab Website Accessibility Press Release

Charles Schwab & Co., Inc. today announced an initiative to make its website more accessible and inclusive for all customers. Schwab’s initiative will particularly improve the client experience for Schwab customers with disabilities. Schwab has adopted the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) version 2.0 level AA as its website accessibility standard and has begun working to meet this standard. Read more… Charles Schwab Website Accessibility Press Release

American Cancer Society Information in Braille, Large Print, Audio Formats and Accessible On-Line

Last month, the American Cancer Society (ACS) announced a comprehensive initiative to improve access to its materials by people with visual impairments. Using the alternative dispute resolution method known as Structured Negotiations, ACS worked with the American Council of the Blind (ACB) to improve the accessibility of its website and to develop a pilot program for providing accessible information. As described in this post, print information is now available in Braille, Large Print, mp3, audio CD and accessible electronic formats. Access to information is a civil right and is key to full inclusion of people with disabilities into modern society. Please share this post and help spread the word about the availability of cancer-related information in formats that people who are blind and visually impaired can read. Read more… American Cancer Society Information in Braille, Large Print, Audio Formats and Accessible On-Line

ADA Twentieth Anniversary Rule Making from Department of Justice

Breaking News Update! The U.S. Department of Justice has published Advanced Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) on four issues of importance to the disability community. Earlier News Update! The U.S. Department of Justice has announced that on July 26 it will issue Advanced Notices of Proposed Rulemaking (ANPRM) on four issues of importance to the disability community. The Notices will address web accessibility for entities covered by the ADA, movie captioning and video description, accessibility of next generation 9-1-1, and accessibility of equipment and furniture in covered entities. Read more… ADA Twentieth Anniversary Rule Making from Department of Justice

Web Accessibility Press Coverage on New Year’s Day

Web more accessible to those with disabilities (article appearing on page 1 of the San Francisco Chronicle on January 1, 2010, by staff writer Alejandro Martínez-Cabrera) San Francisco, CA (January 1, 2010)– During her high school years, Lisamaria Martinez, who has been visually impaired since she was 5, carried a 25-pound backpack to school crammed with books written in Braille. But once she was introduced to the Web at UC Berkeley, she started getting professors’ class notes by e-mail, using text-to-speech software, and trading heavy Braille tomes for a few words and a click on a search engine. Read more… Web Accessibility Press Coverage on New Year’s Day

New Web Accessibility Standards (WCAG 2.0) Finalized

On December 11, 2008, the World Wide Web Consortium announced new standards for accessible web content. The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.0 were finalized after years of development and input from web designers, site owners, members of the disability community, WAI staff and volunteers, and countless others with a commitment to making the internet available to all users. Resources about the revised guidelines are provided at the end of this post. Read more… New Web Accessibility Standards (WCAG 2.0) Finalized