Video Captioning Policy

Effective immediately, the W3C Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.1 (WCAG), level AA, serve as the Web accessibility standard for the University of Detroit Mercy.

WCAG 2.1 Guidelines are categorized into three levels of conformance: A (lowest), AA (mid range), and AAA (highest). By conforming to AA, web content meets both the A and AA conformance levels. AA is the University of Detroit Mercy Standard. If a Web site conforms to Level AA, it means that it will be accessible for most people, under most circumstances.

To comply with the University of Detroit Mercy standard:

All prerecorded audio-video content must include captions. This is Guideline 1.2.2:

"Captions are provided for all prerecorded audio content in synchronized media, except when the media is a media alternative for text and is clearly labeled as such. (Level A)"

All live audio-video content must include captions. This is Guideline is 1.2.4:

"Captions are provided for all live audio content in synchronized media. (Level AA)"

Detroit Mercy Policy on Captioning of Video states that captioning of online video is required in the following situations:

• Uncaptioned videos create a barrier to instructional material for a student who has a disability (documented with Disability Resources) which would be accommodated by captioning.
• The video is being shared in an unrestricted way. An example of an "unrestricted way" is posting a video to the open web.