WCAG 2.1 AA Accessibility Compliance

Brown University requires full WCAG 2.1 AA compliance by May 2026.

Ongoing Compliance Checklist

For every future change to this site — new pages, layout edits, style changes, data updates — verify:

Heading hierarchy — Single H1 per page, logical nesting (H1 → H2 → H3)
Images — Meaningful alt text for content images; alt="" for decorative images
Links — Descriptive link text (avoid “here”, “click here”, bare URLs)
Color contrast — Text/background meets 4.5:1 (3:1 for large text ≥18pt or 14pt bold)
Keyboard accessibility — All interactive elements focusable with visible focus styles
ARIA — aria-label on icon-only buttons/links; aria-hidden="true" on decorative icons
Media — No auto-playing video/audio without user controls

Skip-to-main-content link (first focusable element)
Correct heading hierarchy (sidebar “CPSY 1950” changed from H2 to styled div)
<main>, <header>, <nav>, <footer> landmarks with role attributes
lang="en-US" on <html>; viewport meta
ARIA labels on all <nav> elements
Font Awesome icons: aria-hidden="true" for decorative; aria-label for meaningful
.sr-only utility class; :focus-visible styles for keyboard focus
Schedule table: <caption>, scope="col" on <th>, role="table"
External links: rel="noopener noreferrer", title="Opens in new tab"
Emoji icons wrapped in <span aria-hidden="true"> where decorative