Website chat and video streaming software built exclusively for higher education achieves VPAT 2.0 AA compliance in support of student success

NEEDHAM, MASS. (PRWEB) AUGUST 07, 2018

Over the past several months PlatformQ Education, the leading provider of digital engagement solutions for higher education, solicited input from many of its over 200 partner colleges and universities and has worked diligently to ensure their technology, as a preferred vendor of digital engagement solutions, adheres as closely as possible to VPAT, the Voluntary Product Accessibility Template; a self-disclosing document produced by the vendor which details each aspect of the Section 508 standards for accessibility and how the product supports each criteria.

As part of their ongoing efforts to ensure college partners using their products remain compliant with all applicable laws and industry guidelines, PlatformQ Education ensures that the company’s Conduit platform adheres to WCAG 2.0 AA compliance. This includes recent enhancements to its live video streaming capability as well as the company’s Campus Connect site chat widget.

These enhancements include:

  • Screen reader and keyboard access to ensure all Conduit products can be read by a screen reader and accessible via keyboard navigation
  • Enhanced registration forms to ensure accessibility for new users
  • A comprehensive VPAT 2.0 document for each section of the platform that documents compliance

These enhancements come shortly after the conclusion of a company-wide effort to ensure compliance with the General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) in the spring.

“We are proud to have been through these enhancement processes in support of privacy and accessibility for students and our institutional partners.” Brock Tibert, General Manager of PlatformQ Education said, “Beyond the realities that many institutions seeking federal funding will be impacted if their software tools do not meet these standards, we recognize that the ways in which students engage with institutions of higher learning continue to evolve; and while many others may not have considered the impact their new digital tools have on the way students with special needs engage with an institution, our team has worked extremely hard to be at the forefront of success for all students using Conduit features being leveraged by our institutional partners.”

The latest enhancements to Conduit are available immediately to all PlatformQ Education partners. Additionally, the company is hosting free consultations to support institutions with existing video streaming and site chat software to advise on Section 508 compliance, including step-by-step processes to switch ahead of the peak of the college search season coming later this fall.

Institutions should visit http://www.platformqedu.com/switch to compare Conduit to their existing software and learn how to upgrade to best adhere to Section 508 standards.