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The University of Louisville Libraries are committed to providing online services, tools, and resources that are easy to use for all members of the UofL community. We follow Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) standards and test our interfaces monthly with SortSite, an accessibility checker from PowerMapper. WCAG defines three levels of conformance: Level A, Level AA, and Level AAA. The University Libraries' site is partially conformant with WCAG Level AA. Partially conformant means that some parts of the content do not fully conform to the accessibility standard. Known issues are listed with our response on the Known Issues page.
The University Libraries have many content creators. The Head of Web Services provides content creators with training on web accessibility and created a reference guide on creating Accessible Web Sites. Creators are encouraged to test new pages via the WAVE web accessibility evaluation tool. Any errors or omissions by creators that slip past at this point are usually caught and corrected through the monthly review process.
While we are working toward universal access, there are gaps. If you are unable to access an online resource, please contact us using Ask a Librarian.
This accessibility statement applies to pages within the University Libraries' main website, ie. all pages that begin with https://library.louisville.edu/.
WCAG Level AA requires a color contrast ratio of 4.5:1 for regular text and 3:1 for large text (18pt or 14 pt bold).
We use WCAG Color Contrast Checker during development to test possible color combinations and Color Contrast Accessibility Validator to check color combinations on existing pages to ensure that pages meet this standard.
All images that provide content (ie. are not solely decorative) are given alt text that defines the content. Solely decorative images are given an alt="" to indicate that status to browsers. Any images that do not have alt text are caught by the monthly scan and corrected within a week.
The base style sheets for the site use responsive sizing (using rem or %) to define fonts and page elements. This allows the user to resize content seamlessly.
Occasionally, content creators will copy and paste content from another program (ex. Word, Excel) inserting fixed sizing. This is usually caught by the monthly scan and corrected within a week. If you see examples of content that does not resize correctly, please report it.
Content creators are highly encouraged to create links that include meaningful, unique text. Links with generic text such as "click here" or links with the same text as other links on the page are usually caught by the monthly scan and corrected within a week. The exception to this is multiple links to the individual library, the University Libraries or the University itself that occur in both the header and footer to improve ease of navigation. Some text links may appear the same visually, but include additional text visible only to screen readers.
Audio or video content created by the University Libraries and posted on its site must include captioning, a transcription, or a thorough description of the content. Materials embedded from third-party sources, such as YouTube, are defined using the title attribute. Any media without a title attribute is caught by the monthly scan and corrected within a week. If you find content that is inadequately described, please report it.
We strive to use HTML semantic structures according to their intended purposes. Heading tags must follow in order of h1, h2, h3, etc. on the page with only a single h1. If a page's headings are misstructured, they are caught with the monthly scan and corrected within a week.
We strive to ensure that our site is entirely navigable by keyboard only. Tabbing navigates through the links in the order they appear visually. Enter access links, tabs, and menus. If you notice pages where the keyboard navigation does not work as expected, please report it.
All pages contain a "Skip to Content" link that bypasses repetitive header information. Links are tab-able and the screen reader will read the links. If you experience pages where the screen reader navigation does not work as expected, please report it.
You can send us your feedback or complaints via our Contact Form and choosing "Web Site" under the "My comments concern" section.
Typical response time is within three business days (Monday - Friday).
While we aim to find solutions to complaints quickly, you are entitled to escalate a complaint to the national authority, should you be dissatisfied with our response to your issue.
You can use the searchBOX finder to look up a publisher or platform and find its accessibility statement rating.
ASPIRE verifies and accredits accessibility statements. It provides rating lists by platform and publisher of the accessibility statements provided.