Web Accessibility at
Michigan State University
Web Accessibility at
Michigan State University
No. This policy does not apply to what a faculty member teaches or how it is taught. Consistent with Section 2.2.3 of the Academic Freedom Report for Students, faculty have the authority and responsibility for academic policy and practices in areas such as course content, grading, and classroom procedure. This Policy addresses the formatting of academic materials, as opposed to the choice of materials or content of materials. The Policy also permits exceptions for situations where compliance with the Policy would fundamentally alter the nature of an academic program or activity or would impose an undue burden.
Not always. The Policy applies only to University Web pages used to conduct core University business or academic activities. Personal Web pages that do not conduct core University business or academic activities are not covered by the Policy. The Policy defines core academic activities to include activities such as admissions, registration, advising, and academic course work. Therefore, if students must access a faculty member’s Web page to participate in required course activities, those portions of the Website must be accessible. If students are not required to access the Website as part of required course activities, the Website is not covered by this Policy. However, in such situations, if the Website is generally available to students for non-required activities and a student enrolls who cannot access the Website, the information on the Website must be made available to the student in a manner that is “as effective” as the Website.
Web pages with general information about a faculty member, such as his/her name, academic background or interests, office location, or phone number, could be of general interest to students or others even if they are not enrolled in that professor’s classes. Therefore, all faculty are strongly encouraged to make their Web pages, especially their site’s “home page,” accessible.
It depends. Web pages with general information about research programs or activities could be of general interest to students or others, so authors of such Web pages are encouraged to make these types of pages accessible.
A faculty member’s “home page” that provides information about his/her laboratory or research might be considered a core academic activity. This determination is very fact specific and should be discussed with the Office for Inclusion and Intercultural Initiatives. Detailed research content on a Web page that is not used for instructional purposes, such as copies of papers or complex charts or figures, might not be considered core academic activity under the Policy and would not have to be accessible. Accessibility of such content would, however, be encouraged.