Accessibility in 2025: What Every Institution Needs to Know

What Is Web Accessibility?

Web accessibility means designing websites so that people with disabilities—visual, physical, cognitive, or hearing—can fully perceive, understand, and navigate them.

Imagine what it might be like for: 

• A user with colorblindness trying to read text on a low-contrast background.

• Someone with hearing impairment attempting to watch a video without captions.

• A person with a broken arm trying to navigate a site without keyboard shortcuts.

Accessibility ensures these scenarios don’t become barriers, creating inclusive web experiences for everyone.

WCAG 2.2: The Currrent Standard

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG), created by the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C), are the global gold standard for accessible design.

The latest release, WCAG 2.2 (October 2023) builds on earlier versions with new criteria, especially for users with cognitive and learning disabilities and those who rely on touchscreen navigation. 

Like its predecessors, WCAG 2.2 is organized around four core principles: perceivable, operable, understandable, and robust. It includes new guidance for users with cognitive and learning disabilities and those who rely on touchscreen navigation.

Each success criterion is rated at one of three compliance levels:

• A (minimum)

• AA (recommended standard)

• AAA (highest, but not required for most sites)

While AAA is the highest level of compliance, the accepted rule is that web services meet at least A but aim for the AA compliance level. 

Laws vs. Standards

Here’s where things get tricky: accessibility laws don’t always keep pace with evolving standards. In the U.S., many regulations still reference older versions of the WCAG guidelines. Public universities are now legally required to meet WCAG 2.1 AA under the Department of Justice’s 2024 rule, while private institutions are facing a growing number of lawsuits under ADA Title III. That means higher ed leaders need to pay attention to both compliance mandates and litigation risk.

• To future-proof your site, aim for WCAG 2.2 AA compliance. Adopting 2.2 ensures your site aligns with evolving best practices and avoids having to play catch-up when laws update.

• To meet U.S. legal requirements, you still need to demonstrate 2.1 compliance. Most U.S. regulations and settlements, including the DOJ’s 2024 rule, specifically cite WCAG 2.1 AA as the enforceable benchmark.

Why Accessibility Matters Beyond Compliance

Accessibility isn’t just about meeting regulations or avoiding lawsuits, it creates stronger, more effective digital experiences. When accessibility is built into your site, the improvements ripple across usability, performance, and perception. Here are some of the biggest benefits:

• Better SEO: search engines reward clear structure and metadata.

• Improved mobile usability: accessible sites are often more responsive.

• Brand trust: inclusivity signals credibility and responsibility.

• Improved student access and success: ensuring all learners can fully participate in digital academics, campus services, and community life.

How to Get Started

• Evaluate your site using WCAG 2.2 AA as your baseline.

• Conduct accessibility audits with automated tools and expert reviews.

• Address common issues like missing alt text, poor contrast, lack of keyboard navigation, and non-captioned media.

• Create an accessibility statement and offer ways for users to request accommodations.

• Train content creators and developers in accessible design and development.

By focusing on accessibility, you’re not only expanding access—you’re improving SEO, enhancing mobile usability, and reducing legal risk.