Accessibility at UC Hastings

UC Hastings is committed to making its programs accessible, usable, and user-friendly to people with disabilities. As required by The Americans with Disabilities Act and Section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act, we seek to provide accessible programs and services to students, staff, faculty, and members of the public.

Campus Accessibility

View the Campus Accessibility Map showing:

• ramps
• automatic doors
• street-level access
• accessible elevators
• accessible routes

All buildings have accessible restrooms.

Parking

Accessible Parking Spaces are available in the Hastings Garage, 376 Larkin. An interactive map shows the location of the garage at the corner of Golden Gate and Larkin.

Accessibility for Students

The Disability Resource Program (DRP) is committed to ensuring that all students have an equal opportunity for success.

Events at UC Hastings

Need reasonable accommodations to attend an event? Call or email Disabilities Accommodations no later than 72 hours before the event.

Disabilities Accommodations Hotline: 415.565.4848

Email: DAH@uchastings.edu

University Programs

Any activity open to the public must provide reasonable accommodation to any participant with a disability, including members of the community. All events open to the public must be held in accessible locations. Publicity for such events must include notice about how to request disability-related accommodations.

Accessibility of Electronic Resources

The Americans with Disabilities Act mandates that an educational institution make its programs, services, and activities accessible to, and usable by, people with disabilities. When faculty and staff use the Internet to provide information, they are required to make that information accessible to those using adaptive technology.

UC Hastings is committed to ensuring that all electronic resources (web pages, Word documents, Adobe PDF files, graphic images, online forms, etc.) are fully compliant with accessibility standards. We are working with the Center for Accessible Technology to develop guidelines and testing procedures for staff and faculty in creating these resources to be fully screen-readable. We invite comments from disabled users to help improve any issues that they may encounter.

Read the brief How to create accessible Word documents and PDF's. Accessible documents have tagging information that makes it easy for a screen reader program to read it out loud. The how to explains how to add alternate text to images and how to use styles and formatting tools. It also discusses the way you can use Adobe Acrobat to test and see if a PDF is accessible.

Refer to the Testing and Creating Accessible Web Pages PDF to see how to test for accessible problems. The document also explains key factors and how to make the web pages accessible.

Additional Resources

• Section 508 Guidelines: The federal government maintains a web site to educate the public about Section 508.

• The World Wide Web Consortium's Web Accessibility Initiative page has the most updated information on guidelines and resources for creating accessible web pages. They are the authority for creating standards on web accessibility, and have a robust and frequently updated website.

• Web Accessibility In Mind (WebAIM) is an organization dedicated to improving the accessibility of online learning opportunities for all people.

• The Federal Information Technology Accessibility Initiative offers information and technical assistance on implementing Section 508 (including a checklist for making websites accessible).
• The University of California Accessibility in the Electronic Environment initiative has information for web developers.
• Designing Accessible Web Sites helps web developers understand how to make their sites accessible, and to point them to useful tools and resources.

What are staff responsibilities for providing accommodations?

The entire campus is responsible for making itself accessible per state and federal laws. The Disability Resource Program oversees accommodations related to academics. Non-academic programs and events are the responsibility of each sponsoring department.

All staff members should be mindful of ensuring all services are equally accessible. If a student with a disability came to your office, are you prepared to assist them with or without accommodations?

• Is your office wheelchair accessible?
• If a blind student wanted to read your brochure, what would you do?
• If a deaf person asks for an appointment to meet with you, what steps would you take?
• What if a student’s disability affects his access to your online forms?

Grievance Procedures

UC Hastings policy prohibits discrimination on the basis of disability. Staff, faculty, students, and community members who believe they have been denied access or discriminated against due to their disability are encouraged to bring their concerns to the attention of the appropriate party who will make every attempt to address the issues raised and/or will refer the matter for investigation per campus policies and procedures. Read the grievance procedures for students.

ADA/Section 504 Coordinator

Contact Marie Hairston hairston@uchastings.edu - 415.581.8868 who reviews grievances and initiates the review process.