
We Need to Talk About the ADA
Changes to the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA)
The Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) has been applied to California State University, Northridge (CSUN) since its enactment, and to digital content since 1996. However, it’s still unclear about the specific requirements for digital content compliance.
Starting April 24, 2026, the ADA will incorporate the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines [WCAG] to specify criteria for making digital content accessible.
These changes to the ADA apply to:
- CSUN websites and web applications, including the portal, Canvas, and course websites
- CSUN mobile apps, including the Canvas apps
- Videos
- PDFs
- Word processor documents such as Microsoft Word
- Presentation files such as Microsoft PowerPoint
- Spreadsheets such as Microsoft Excel
- Official CSUN social media accounts
It’s a lot to take in. Academic Technology and other campus partners are working together to assess faculty needs and campus resources. We’ll keep you updated through this newsletter and other channels. We’re all in this together!
Since we have a little over one year, some steps you can take during the Spring 2025 semester include:
- Review your Course Accessibility Report for each of your courses in Canvas. From there, consider:
- Archiving (or deleting) unused files.
- Cleaning up the “easiest issues to fix” list.
- Focusing on one high-impact issue this semester, such as:
- Image descriptions (alt text). Add descriptions where they’re missing, and review other images to make sure their alt text conveys the information in the image.
- Link text. As with images, make sure each link has a unique, plain-language label that tells the students its destination.
- Headings. Each slide in a presentation should have a unique title. Word files with more than two pages should have structural headings; see our Word Accessibility page for more information.
- Take the on-demand Accessible Document Training course (by WebAIM, offered through the Chancellor’s Office). The four modules give you hands-on experience with document accessibility, and you get a certificate upon completion.
- Replace some scanned and “untagged” PDFs.
- Some older content may have a newer, better-quality version available (online, from the publisher, or through the University Library).
- The University Library has scanners that will produce a more accessible PDF than the old scanners. Library staff will assist you to use their scanners.
- Consult with your Subject Specialist and/or the Course Reserves team to find out if the University Library has more options for your PDF.
- Join one of the Universal Design Center’s (UDC) trainings: live workshops, videos, or Canvas courses.
- Check your course videos for captions. (Check the captions for accuracy.) If captions are missing or incorrect, submit the video to NCOD: Deaf and Hard of Hearing Services.
- Make an appointment with the UDC to get your questions answered, explore an accessibility topic in more depth, or look at course content (including PDFs) together.