Accessibility and Usability/ Commonwealth PSGs
Virginia Interactive is the Commonwealth’s expert on usability and accessibility for websites and online services. Over the past few years, Virginia Interactive was instrumental in assisting with the Commonwealth’s Policies, Standards and Guidelines (PSGs) for executive branch agencies. These standards were developed to ensure websites would be usable, share certain common look elements and comply with the American Disabilities Act, 508 Guidelines and the W3C Web Accessibility Initiative.
As our web development toolbox expanded to include screen readers and accessibility software, the demand for Virginia Interactive’s accessibility and usability services became even greater. Virginia Interactive can complete an accessibility and usability assessment at virtually any stage of the development process. This evaluation includes:
- Website Audit and Evaluation
Virginia Interactive will create a detailed and customized report of the site or service. The report will outline any specific accessibility problems, highlight what needs to be changed, and provide suggestions on how to make the change(s) in regards to ADA and/or 508 guidelines.
- High-level Usability Analysis
Virginia Interactive will evaluate the best method for a site or service to accomplish the goals set for it by the agency. General "best practices" approaches are outlined, including proper navigation design and information architecture.
- Coding
Virginia Interactive will make the changes required for a site or service to meet "best practices", ADA and/or 508 guidelines, as outlined in the above mentioned reports.