2021 Technology, Assistive Technology, and Accessibility

Technology, Assistive Technology, and Accessibility

Advancing Accessible Information and Communication Technology (ICT) within the Federal Government

  • Expanded the capabilities of the Title VI Data Entry Workbook and rolled it out to the entire Title VI grant community who aid American Indians, Alaska Natives and Native Americans in the areas of nutrition, supportive services for older adults, and caregiver services. The Workbook is a tool to facilitate accurate and timely local program recordkeeping and permit annual aggregation of records and annual grantee reporting to ACL. Additionally, we developed suite of training materials and videos for, as well as provided technical assistance to the grantees on how to use the Workbook.
  • Assisted Federal agencies improve their accessibility programs. New Editions continues to lead the way in ensuring that ICT is accessible to people with disabilities. We assisted FCC with policy development to consistently implement Section 508 across agency acquisitions, development, and deployment, including: identifying processes and responsibilities by role; identifying a unified work flow; building tools to assist with the performance of Section 508 activities; and creating forms to systematize and standardize approval processes. We also created processes and requirements guidance for DHS to offer robust accessibility expertise for services in areas of web design, testing, automated testing, document remediation, and compliant acquisitions.
  • Assisted many agencies make digital content accessible to all constituents. This included completion of two large document projects: over 275 documents were remediated for the Department of Interior and over 225 documents were remediated for the Administration for Community Living (ACL). We also assisted numerous federal agencies with their accessible eLearning initiatives and accessible video and webinar development.
  • Established an ongoing collaboration for integrating accessibility in the SELC with the DHS CTOs office in their DevOps, piloting initiatives with an initial targeting of the DHS HQ MOBIUS development team. We conducted a series of automated accessibility tools demos exhibiting strategies for integrating the developer role and automated accessibility unit testing into the DHS SELC. We also created a custom example for integrating automated accessibility testing that is specific to the exact technology stack desired by the DHS HQ MOBIUS team of Angular and the Jest testing framework.
  • Coined the term “A11yDevOps” (accessibility Dev/Ops) to brand the overall strategy promoted by the DHS Section 508 Playbook and presented this initiative, along with recommendations for its promotion and collaborative benefits via publication of a A11yDevOps White Paper.
  • Established a repeatable process for evaluating automated accessibility test tools that includes a smart ruleset mapping Excel template for aligning proposed test tools to the ICT Web Testing Baseline/Trusted Tester methodology. We created a code repository providing detailed code examples of ways to integrate automated accessibility testing into the SELC using the open-source tools of Deque Axe, Pa11y Test Engine, and Google Lighthouse test tool.
  • Created an extensive code repository providing detailed code examples for integrating high-end, Continuous Integration/Continuous Development (CI/CD) tools and multiple development environments to include Jenkins CI, Amazon Web Services (AWS), Microsoft Azure, and Maestro (Atlassian Bamboo.)
  • Established a repeatable process for DHS Components to interpret and implement Section 508 remediation due to Section 508 findings cited on their Quarterly 508 Program accessibility Health Report results.
  • Trained hundreds of federal employees and private sector clients on accessibility. We continued to administrate the Trusted Tester trainings, and provided other unique accessibility trainings to our clients including in-depth InDesign training, Accessibility Basics, and Ask Anything, as well as one-on-one sessions with developers and eLearning creators. We created Playbook training solutions including how to address Section 508 during the acquisition process, how exceptions or exemptions apply to an IT acquisition, and how to address Section 508 during market research and in procurement technical evaluations.
  • Enhanced the DHS Trusted Tester trainings. We upgraded the training platform to Moodle Workplace to better serve its 2,000+ students, and delivered eight training videos that provide a visual and instructional explanation to the most difficult Test IDs in the Trusted Tester Process. We also created requirements for ‘User Story’ videos that provide an introduction to various disabilities (for example, limited vision) that influence how end users receive or do not receive information, including through the use of assistive technologies. Each video focuses on a disability aligned with a topic in the Trusted Tester Training for Web on Windows.
  • Helped the DHS Intelligence Training Academy (ITA) provide accessible eLearning to their stakeholders through a partnership with CENTRA Technology. New Editions conducted assessments and provided Section 508 training to development teams to aid them in implementing 508 requirements into eLearning courses at the beginning of the development lifecycle.
  • Provided expertise and support to the accessibility community through working groups and participation in industry events. Our staff participated in supporting the ongoing joint efforts of DHS, U.S. Access Board, and GSA to enhance and expand the use of the ICT Baseline and improve the accuracy, effectiveness, and enhanced alignment of the Trusted Tester test methodology with WCAG and Section 508 guidelines. We added significant information for the Web Baseline Test Case and Test File Developers Guide for GSA. We established a repeatable process for systemically identifying and correcting inconsistencies and inaccuracies in the test methodologies through coordination of the ICT Web Testing Baseline, Section 508 Guidelines (WCAG), and appropriate U.S. Access Board, GSA, and OAST Section 508 subject matter experts. We participated in the DHS Accessibility Day: Enhancing the User Experience Through Accessible Technology and GSA’s Annual Interagency Accessibility Forum.
  • Created, implemented, and honed a New Editions WCAG 2.1 AAA Software Test Process, New Editions WCAG 2.1 AAA Web Test Process, and associated test reports for new accessibility requirements. 
  • Provided continual staff development for accessibility subject matter experts through weekly meetings to share knowledge, train staff members on testing techniques, demonstrate new testing tools (automated, manual, and semi-automated), discuss best practices, and continue building our digital accessibility experience. Many New Editions’ subject matter experts earned the designation of Certified Professionals in Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC).
  • Completed a rigorous year-long testing effort, for UiPath to help make their suite of automation products more accessible. This included working closely with their development team, testing their software and web suite of applications and drafting VPATs.
  • Ensured accessibility for several applications with a significant social impact including an application supporting Afghanistan refugees seeking asylum, and the Voluntary COVID-19 Vaccination Program application. This application was created to collect vaccination information in response to President Biden’s Executive Order 14043 Requiring Coronavirus Disease 2019 Vaccination for Federal Employees to promote the health and safety of the Federal workforce.
  • Continued to improve accessibility at the DHS Transportation Security Administration (TSA). We partnered with the TSA Online Learning Center (OLC) development team to ensure that trainings developed by OLC are tested for section 508 compliance. Our 508 team implemented the Deque Axe Core automated testing tool in TSA’s development environment.
  • Established a strong accessible document program at TSA by providing continuous training and technical assistance on how to create and remediate accessible documents. The New Editions 508 team created and provided trainings for Word, PowerPoint, and PDF accessibility, as well as for ANDI Developers. Additionally, we assisted all TSA offices with documents review and remediation.
  • Helped TSA communicate and receive feedback from employees and constituents through creation of 169 accessible surveys to include shift bid, annual bid, staff nominations, as well as hiring applications; and provided 779 survey summary reports and survey data.
  • Expanded the reporting and tracking capabilities Home and Community-Based (HCB) Settings Statewide Transition Plan (STP) website to help system users to support individuals with disabilities and older adults in having the opportunity to be active participants in their communities.
  • Continued to expand the Rehabilitation Services Administration’s (RSA) National Clearinghouse of Rehabilitation Training Materials (NCRTM) library and resources to provide vocational rehabilitation (VR) professionals with valuable content to support their efforts to assist individuals with disabilities in acquiring gainful employment.
  • Helped ensure another successful Annual Disability Equality Index (DEI). The DEI is a unique, joint initiative of Disability:IN and the American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD). It serves as the most comprehensive benchmarking tool for disability inclusion, allowing America’s leading corporations to self-report their disability policies and practices. The DEI continues to see an increase in year-over-year participation (319 participants this year), with the number of top-scoring companies reaching 272. Read the 2021 DEI Annual Report for more details.
  • Continued to operate and maintain the Preadmission Screening and Resident Review (PASRR) Technical Assistance Center website. We inherited the system the prior year and this year we focused on improving its accessibility and functionality to support its end users in their aim to ensure that individuals are not inappropriately placed in nursing homes for long term care.
  • Expanded the Clearinghouse for Older Road User Safety (ChORUS) in partnership with Roadway Safety Foundation (RSF) to provide content and materials to help its end users learn ways to improve the safety of older drivers and road users. Support for ChORUS is provided by the U.S. Department of Transportation’s Federal Highway Administration (FHWA) and National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), with additional development and guidance supplied by New Editions and a panel of Subject Matter Experts.
  • Conducted business analysis to develop foundational requirements (i.e., business, system, technical, security, and functional) for the new version of ACL’s AGing, Independence, and Disability (AGID) Program Data Portal. These comprise business, system, technical, security, and functional requirements, as well as proofs of concepts (visual depictions of the new system). They will act as blueprints for the development of the future version of AGID.
  • Conducted heuristic evaluation and user stakeholder input interviews to identify improvements for the Alcohol Policy Information System (APIS) and provided operations and maintenance support for the existing system in partnership with the prime contractor, The CDM Group. APIS is a program of the National Institute on Alcohol Abuse and Alcoholism (NIAAA) and provides detailed information on a wide variety of Alcohol-Related Policies in the United States at both State and Federal levels, as well as policy information regarding Pregnancy and Drugs and the Recreational Use of Cannabis.
  • Enhanced NCRTM 508 resources to encourage users to ensure all materials they develop and use are accessible for individuals with disabilities. Revamped the Accessibility Resources Page and added brief tutorial videos and checklists on accessibility webinars (important in a COVID-19 world) and excel spreadsheets. The existing videos on accessible PDFs, Word, and PowerPoint documents are the top-viewed videos on the National Clearinghouse of Rehabilitation Training Materials YouTube Channel.
  • Provided Section 508 technical assistance to RSA Grantees so that they could learn how to review and correct their products so that they are accessible to all users.

 

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