Apply

7 Quick Accessibility Wins in Blackboard

September 10, 2026
Submitted By: Office of Academic Technology & Digital Innovation

Making your course materials accessible doesn’t have to mean rebuilding your site from scratch. With Blackboard Ally, tiny adjustments can make a massive difference for all students—whether they use screen readers, study on mobile devices, or listen to audio on their commute.

Here are 7 simple, high-impact steps you can take today:

  1. Follow the Colored Gauges: Look for the dial icons next to your files. Red means urgent, orange needs a tweak, and green means you’re good to go. Click any dial for step-by-step guidance.

  2. Add Missing Alt Text to Images: Right inside Ally, add brief descriptions to images so screen readers can interpret visual context.

  3. Fix PDF Titles & Languages In-Browser: Use Ally’s built-in quick fixes to set missing PDF titles or language tags without needing Adobe Acrobat.

  4. Fix Low-Contrast Text: Eliminate hard-to-read light text on light backgrounds. Ally flags low-contrast colors instantly so you can swap them for clear, readable text.

  5. Use Built-in Heading Styles: Structure your Word docs and Ultra pages using Headings (Heading 1, Heading 2) instead of manually bolding or enlarging text.

  6. Swap "Click Here" Links for Descriptive Text: Replace raw URLs or non-descriptive links with context-rich anchor text (e.g., "Review the Fall 2026 Syllabus").

  7. Promote Alternative Formats: Remind your students that they can download your documents as MP3 audio, ePub, HTML, or Tagged PDFs directly through Ally.

Upcoming Faculty Workshops

Mission: Accessible—Simple Steps to an Inclusive Blackboard Course

A quick-hit checklist to ensure your course materials work beautifully for everyone. Now that your Blackboard course is built, let's make sure all your students can access it without a hitch. This low-stress session cuts through the compliance talk to give you a straightforward, high-impact checklist you can apply directly to your site. You will learn how to spot and fix the most common hidden formatting traps in your files, add quick descriptions to images, and ensure your links are clear, leaving you with a bulletproof, fully accessible Blackboard environment.

  • Wednesday, Sept. 9 | noon–1 p.m. | Woods Classroom, Harrison Libraries

  • Tuesday, Sept. 29 | 6:30 p.m.–7:30 p.m. | Virtual

  • Monday, Oct. 12 | 11 a.m.–noon | Woods Classroom, Harrison Libraries

  • Friday, Oct. 30 | 10 a.m.–noon | Woods Classroom, Harrison Libraries

  • Wednesday, Nov. 11 | 6:30 p.m.–7:30 p.m. | Virtual

To register, email actech@hartford.edu. For just-in-time tips, best practices, and resources, faculty and staff can self-enroll in our Digital Accessibility Resource Org.