Dec 12, 2019
“Open and equal access to evolving technology is essential if the promise of the Americans with Disabilities Act is to be realized. By committing to caption content on a vast array of research and learning, today that dream came a step closer as one of the top universities in the world opens their digital doors to millions of deaf and hard of hearing people,” said Arlene B. Mayerson, Directing Attorney at the Disability Rights Education & Defense Fund.
The National Association of the Deaf (NAD), along with DREDF and other co-counsel, announced a landmark settlement on November 27 with Harvard University that establishes new guidelines to make the university’s website and online resources accessible for those who are deaf or hard of hearing. The settlement represents the most comprehensive set of online accessibility requirements in higher education and ensures for the first time that Harvard will provide high-quality captioning services for all its content over the Internet and expands upon Harvard’s new digital accessibility policy, which was announced in May.
As part of the agreement, Harvard must provide captions for all online resources, including school-wide events that are live-streamed, content from department sponsored student organizations and any new audio or video hosted by third-party platforms such as YouTube, Vimeo, and SoundCloud. In addition, Harvard has also entered into a consent decree, which requires the university to submit ongoing reports to ensure enforcement of the settlement by the court.
For years, Harvard has proudly promoted a wide range of educational content available for anyone with access to the Internet, yet its video and audio content lacked captions or used inaccurate “auto-captions.” Harvard had no comprehensive policies in place to ensure these learning tools were accessible to viewers who were Deaf and hard of hearing.
Background:
DREDF and co-counsel represented NAD and three Deaf plaintiffs in filing a class action lawsuit in 2015. Harvard fought the litigation over the past four years, filing two rounds of legal motions attempting to dismiss the case. After failing in its second attempt, Harvard announced a new digital accessibility policy in May.
“As Harvard learned through this lawsuit, universities and colleges are on notice that all aspects of their campus including their websites must be accessible to everyone. Captioning video content is a basic form of access that opens up academic learning to not only deaf and hard of hearing people but the world. The National Association of the Deaf asks all who develop video content for the Internet to ensure access through quality captioning,” said Howard Rosenblum, Chief Executive Officer, National Association of the Deaf.
Notice of Settlement of Class Action Relating to Captioning of Harvard’s Public Web Content
Thank you to DREDF members, colleagues and supporters who make our work possible!