Website Accessibility

Making an Accessible Website

The St. Cloud State University official website has numerous measures in place to ensure full accessibility for its consumers. Web editors contribute to web accessibility by way of thoughtful content and layout that is quicker and easier for all users to understand and use. 

Tips to Make Accessible Website Content

1. Use proper heading styles 
   1. The beginning of your content (under the header space) should start with an H2.
   2. Headings with an equal or higher rank start a new section, headings with a lower rank start new subsections that are part of the higher ranked section.
   3. Skipping heading ranks can be confusing and should be avoided where possible: Make sure that a H2 is not followed directly by an H4, for example.
2. Write meaningful link text
   1. "Click here" or "Read more" has little to no context
   2. "Click here to learn about digital accessibility" is a much better choice
3. Use bullets or numbered lists
   1. Bulleted and numbered lists like on this page allow people to scan and consume the information they are looking for quickly.
   2. Use the appropriate list type to organize related content clearly and logically.
4. Alternative (alt) text for images
   1. Alt text should be concise, accurate, and provide context
   2. Bad alt text: "image" or "studying"
   3. Good alt text: "Two SCSU students studying in campus library"
   4. There are a number of alt text generators available. Always review and revise as needed.
5. Table structure matters
   1. Tables should be used for tabular data only
   2. Do not use tables for layout purposes
   3. Do not split or merge cells
6. Fonts and styles
   1. Avoid underlining text unless it is a link
   2. Avoid italics or all capitals (harder to read for some cognitive disabilities)
   3. Left-align text (centered text is harder to read for some cognitive disabilities)
   4. Use bold sparingly as it slows down reading
7. Linked Content
   1. All content linked to a SCSU web page must also be fully accessible. This includes:
      1. PDFs and other documents
      2. Videos
      3. Website
      4. Social media
      5. Surveys/forms

Maintaining a Website

A website is a dynamic, ever‑evolving resource that requires ongoing care to stay relevant, effective, and user‑friendly. Regularly scheduling content audits and checking for broken links helps ensure your site remains accurate, functional, and welcoming to all visitors.

If you need assistance with your website or notice an issue on any SCSU web page, email web@stcloudstate.edu.