What You Need to Know About WCAG 2.1 AA

What if the internet had been designed for everyone from day one? You probably wouldn’t be juggling ADA digital updates, WCAG standards, and a whole lot of unfamiliar accessibility jargon, it would already be the norm. But here we are, with major ADA Title II updates right around the corner. Colleges, universities, and public entities are now figuring out what’s changing, what’s required, and how to build a realistic plan for compliance.

To understand why these updates matter, let’s start with a quick history refresher. When the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) passed in 1990, the internet wasn’t part of daily life yet, so digital accessibility wasn’t included. Fast forward to today, and the internet has become our main source for information, education, news, and connection. But it’s still not fully accessible for people with disabilities. That’s why a major update is long overdue.

ADA Title II Updates

The latest ADA Title II update officially brings websites, apps, documents, and media under the umbrella of digital accessibility.

• Who it applies to: State and local governments, colleges, universities, and any public entity.
• The required standard: WCAG 2.1 Level AA
• Compliance deadlines:
  • April 2026: Entities serving 50,000+ people
  • April 2027: Entities serving under 50,000 people
• What type of content does it cover:
  • Websites and student portals
  • Online forms, PDFs, and slide decks
  • Prerecorded and live video
  • Audio-only content

WHAT is WCAG?

WCAG, or the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines, is the global standard for making digital content accessible across all platforms. With 13 guidelines, 4 core principles, and 3 conformance levels, it’s no wonder many teams feel lost.

Inclusive Communication Services (ICS) hosted a webinar that breaks down this framework, which is built around four fundamental principles:

1. Perceivable: Users must be able to perceive your content. This includes captions, transcripts, audio descriptions, readable text, and appropriate contrast.
2. Operable: Navigation, controls, and interactive elements must be usable, including keyboard access.
3. Understandable: Information and interface must be clear and predictable with readable text.
4. Robust: Content needs to work across browsers, devices, and assistive technologies such as screen readers.

Where to Start: Perceivable Content

One of the strongest, most actionable takeaways from the webinar: When in doubt, start with what users need to perceive. Some of small changes that yield a big impact for all users include:

• Contrast and Text: Ensuring proper contrast and readable text
  • Resource: WebAIM Contrast Checker
• Media Access: Adding captions and transcripts, and using audio description for videos
  • Resource: CADET (Caption And Description Editing Tool)
• Structure: Formatting documents correctly for screen reader accessibility
  • Resource: Try downloading free screen reader technology to experience it for yourself
• Instruction Clarity: Avoiding instructions that rely solely on sensory cues
  • Resource: Arizona State University explains if color conveys important information, include another way to show it

Captions and AI

Another action item to tackle is auditing your captions, chances are they aren’t as accurate as they need to be. A simple test: watch your videos with the sound off and captions on. Automated captions often hit only 70–90% accuracy, and even 90% means roughly one wrong word per sentence. You can use AI to generate your first draft, but be sure to review and edit it carefully: check punctuation, clarify who is speaking, and ensure all spellings are correct.

Beyond legal compliance, captions benefit everyone (Morton, 2015). Research shows captioned content boosts brand retention and viewer engagement (Brasel & Gips, 2014). Plus, as Gen Z and younger audiences increasingly prefer captions (Youngs, 2021), often keeping them on by default. As they enter college and the workforce, they will be watching your videos with the captions on. It’s exciting to see captions becoming the standard!

Meeting Level AA requirements means that all live audio content must be  captioned in real time. This ensures that everyone, including Deaf and hard-of-hearing viewers, can access the information as it happens, not just after the fact. Implementing live captioning may involve using professional captioners as automated solutions often fall short in accuracy.

Audio Description

Another part of meeting Level AA requirements is providing audio description (AD) for prerecorded videos. Audio description is a narrated explanation of key visual elements, helping people who are blind or have low vision to understand what’s happening on screen.

Because audio description (AD) requires precise timing and clear, descriptive language, creating effective audio descriptions requires a trained professional. Make sure to include this task in your outsource column when planning your accessibility strategy.

Meeting Level AA Requirements

We’ve mentioned “Level AA” a few times, this refers to one of the three WCAG conformance tiers. But what do Levels A, AA, and AAA actually mean?

Here's the quick breakdown:

• Level A: The foundational, minimum bar for accessibility, addressing critical barriers.
• Level AA: The recommended standard, often legally required (like for ADA Title II), ensuring strong accessibility for most users.
• Level AAA: The highest, "gold standard" of accessibility, providing the optimal user experience.

Our webinar breaks it down the conformance levels with clear graphics and spotlights real examples of accessible media in an approachable way.

Watch the Webinar

Watch the free, full on-demand WCAG webinar and discover how accessible media can transform your digital presence and meet compliance requirements.