[Faith-Talk] Accessibility of Print and Digital Content in Communities of Faith

[Allen Zderad]

Hi again All,

                Wanted to follow up on the first inquiry I made in an
attempt to understand both the experiences of blind congregants in 1)
obtaining various content necessary for participation, and 2) to identify
best practices congregations have employed to ensure participation of blind
and low vision congregants.

                With the increase of at-home access to communities of faith
due to covid-19, web site access has become more important for participation
with fellow congregants and maintaining awareness of faith community events.
Web page/site access by blind and low vision computer and mobile device
users,       necessitates that these pages/sites be programmed in a manner
usable by screen reader, and related, software applications.  It may be that
those developing and maintaining faith community webpages/sites may not be
aware of programming requirements necessary to allow access via screen
readers and/or related mobile device software applications.

The reason for this latest email is to inquire of our Faith-Talk community
as to what webpage/site development, design, and tools have been found
helpful in creating accessible pages and sites.  Additionally, it may be
helpful to know of regional resources that congregations may contact for
obtaining webpage/site development assistance in order to ensure
accessibility via screen readers and related devices/software.  It may be
that there are companies, or organizations,  that specifically serve faith
communities in this area.

Thanks for your assistance,

Allen