Accessibility Statement for Thespian Heights Acting Academy

Thespian Heights Acting Academy is committed to ensuring digital accessibility for everyone. We continuously work to improve the user experience for all visitors and apply the relevant accessibility standards.

Our Commitment

We are dedicated to providing a website that is accessible to the widest possible audience, regardless of technology or ability. We aim to conform to the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA.

Measures to Support Accessibility

Thespian Heights Acting Academy takes the following measures to ensure accessibility of our website:

• Integrating accessibility into our design and development processes.
• Providing accessibility training for our content authors and developers.
• Regularly auditing our website using automated and manual testing methods.
• Using semantic HTML to structure content logically.
• Ensuring sufficient color contrast between text and background.
• Providing alternative text for images and other non-text content.
• Making website content navigable using keyboard only.
• Ensuring forms are accessible and easy to use with assistive technologies.
• Providing clear and consistent navigation throughout the website.

Conformance Status

The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) defines requirements for designers and developers to improve accessibility for people with disabilities. It defines three levels of conformance: Level A, Level AA, and Level AAA. Thespian Heights Acting Academy is partially conformant with WCAG 2.1 level AA. Partially conformant means that some parts of the content do not fully conform to the accessibility standard.

Specific Accessibility Features Implemented

• Semantic HTML: We use semantic HTML5 elements to structure our content, providing a clear and logical structure that is easily understood by assistive technologies. This includes using elements such as <article>, <nav>, <aside>, <header>, <footer>, and <main>.
• ARIA Attributes: We utilize ARIA attributes to enhance the accessibility of dynamic content and complex UI components. ARIA (Accessible Rich Internet Applications) provides additional information to assistive technologies, such as screen readers, about the role, state, and properties of elements.
• Keyboard Navigation: Our website is fully navigable using a keyboard. Users can access all interactive elements and content using the Tab key, arrow keys, and Enter key.
• Alternative Text for Images: All images on our website have descriptive alternative text (<alt>) attributes. This text provides a textual alternative to the image, which is read by screen readers for users who are visually impaired.
• Color Contrast: We ensure that there is sufficient color contrast between text and background colors to meet WCAG guidelines. This helps users with low vision to read the content more easily.
• Form Accessibility: All forms on our website are designed to be accessible. We use <label> elements to associate labels with form fields, and we provide clear instructions and error messages.
• Resizable Text: Users can easily resize the text on our website without losing content or functionality. This can be done using browser settings or by using keyboard shortcuts (e.g., Ctrl + "+" and Ctrl + "-" on Windows, Cmd + "+" and Cmd + "-" on Mac).
• Skip Navigation Link: We provide a "Skip to main content" link at the top of each page. This allows users to bypass the navigation menu and jump directly to the main content of the page.
• Consistent Navigation: Our website has a clear and consistent navigation structure. The navigation menu is located in the same place on each page, making it easy for users to find their way around.
• Video Captions and Transcripts: All videos on our website include captions and transcripts. Captions provide a textual representation of the audio content, while transcripts provide a complete text version of the video.

Examples of ARIA Implementation

Here are some specific examples of how we use ARIA attributes to enhance accessibility:

• ARIA Landmarks: We use ARIA landmark roles (e.g., role="navigation", role="main", role="contentinfo") to define the different sections of our web pages. This helps assistive technologies understand the structure of the page and allows users to quickly navigate to specific sections.
• ARIA Live Regions: We use ARIA live regions to notify users of dynamic content updates. For example, if a form is submitted and an error message is displayed, we use aria-live="assertive" to ensure that the error message is immediately announced by screen readers.
• ARIA States and Properties: We use ARIA states and properties (e.g., aria-expanded, aria-selected, aria-disabled) to indicate the state of interactive elements. This helps users understand how to interact with these elements.

Feedback

We welcome your feedback on the accessibility of Thespian Heights Acting Academy. Please let us know if you encounter any accessibility barriers on our website:

• Email: [email protected]
• Phone: (323) 555-2020
• Visitor Address: 123 Hollywood Boulevard, Los Angeles, CA 90028

We try to respond to feedback within 5 business days.

Technical Specifications

Accessibility of Thespian Heights Acting Academy relies on the following technologies to work with the particular combination of web browser and any assistive technologies or plugins installed on your computer:

• HTML
• CSS
• JavaScript
• ARIA

Limitations and Alternatives

Despite our best efforts to ensure accessibility of Thespian Heights Acting Academy, there may be some limitations. Below is a description of known limitations, and potential solutions. Please contact us if you observe an issue not listed below.

Assessment Approach

Thespian Heights Acting Academy assessed the accessibility of our website by the following approaches:

• Self-evaluation: We conduct regular internal reviews of our website's accessibility using automated tools and manual testing.
• External evaluation: We engage third-party accessibility experts to conduct comprehensive audits of our website and provide recommendations for improvement.

Formal Complaints

If you are not satisfied with our response to your accessibility feedback, you can file a formal complaint with the following organization:

Disability Rights Legal Center
333 South Grand Avenue, Suite 4600
Los Angeles, CA 90071
Phone: (213) 741-0351
Website: https://drlcenter.org/

Distribution of This Accessibility Statement

This accessibility statement is distributed as follows:

• It is prominently linked from our website's footer.
• It is available on our accessibility landing page.
• It is included in our internal accessibility documentation.

Date

This statement was created on November 7, 2024 and last updated on January 1, 2025.