Accessibility

If it’s digital and you create, send, share, upload, or post it, accessibility applies.

This includes digital content shared with students, families, staff, or the community — as well as materials shared internally with other employees.

What Should I Check?

Documents & Presentations
Use the built-in Accessibility Checker in programs such as Microsoft Word and PowerPoint. Review the issues it identifies and make corrections before sharing the file.

Images & Graphics
Important information shown in an image or graphic must also be available in an accessible format. Add meaningful alt text when appropriate, and don't rely on an image alone to communicate important information.

Links
Use descriptive link text that tells the reader what they will find when they follow the link. Avoid vague wording such as “click here” on its own.

Color & Contrast
Make sure there is enough contrast between text and its background. Color should not be the only way to communicate information or meaning.

PDFs
Make sure the text can be selected and that the content has a logical reading order. Simply saving or scanning something as a PDF does not automatically make it accessible.

Fix-It Friday 

Choose one digital item you created or shared this week.

Check it. Find one accessibility issue. Fix it.

Before you send, share, upload, or post digital content, ask: Can everyone access, navigate, and understand this information?

Week 2: Use Meaningful Hyperlinks

Hyperlinks should clearly describe where they lead or what the user can expect to find.

When adding a link to an email, document, presentation, website, or other digital content, avoid displaying long URLs or using vague phrases such as “click here.” Instead, use descriptive words that make sense on their own.

What Does an Accessible Link Look Like?

Long URLs may tell a web browser where to go, but they don't necessarily tell the person reading the content what they will find when they get there.

For example, an accessibility checker may flag a raw URL because the visible link text does not adequately describe its destination.

What an Accessibility Checker May Find

Alt text for screenshot: Accessibility checker flags two raw URLs because the link display text does not describe the destination.

In this example, the accessibility checker identifies both URLs as links that need more descriptive text.

How Do I Fix It?

Replace the visible URL with words that clearly describe the destination or purpose of the link.

Instead of displaying a Google Form URL:
Use: Complete the 2026–2027 Chromebook Agreement Form

Instead of displaying a Canva URL:
Use: Open the Monthly Newsletter Template in Canva

The descriptive words should be the clickable hyperlink. The web address can remain behind the descriptive text without being displayed to the reader.

Why Does It Matter?

People who use screen readers may navigate digital content by moving directly from one hyperlink to another.

Links with long URLs or vague phrases such as “click here” can make it difficult to determine where each link leads.

Descriptive hyperlink text helps users understand a link's destination or purpose before selecting it.

How to Check Your Hyperlinks

Read the hyperlink by itself, without the sentence or paragraph around it.

Ask: Does the link text tell the reader where the link will take them or what they will find there?

If the answer is no, replace it with more descriptive wording.

Fix-It Friday

Find one long URL or “click here” link in an email, document, presentation, or other digital item you have created.

Replace it with descriptive hyperlink text that clearly identifies its destination.

Remember: The goal isn't just to make a URL look cleaner. The link should make sense and communicate its purpose even when read on its own.