Director of Digital Accessibility

As Perkins moves towards the continuous adoption of Digital Accessibility standards and practices, you will bring central oversight, technical leadership and strategic thinking on accessibility compliance at Perkins. You will help manage and report on the organization's progress toward developing an accessibility practice and standards at Perkins.

As an organization, we encourage our employees to:

Think Courageously: Pave the way for change. Be creative, curious & resilient. Challenge yourself to try, fail and try again. Think big and embrace unconventional approaches.
Take Ownership: Don’t wait, initiate. Invest fully in your work. Own your choices. Deliver results. Have a bias for action and a dedication to quality.
Be Collaborative: Create a diverse and inclusive community. Foster positive relationships. Communicate openly & respectfully. Build trust and operate with integrity. Be willing to disagree, commit and keep moving.


Across all departments, these actions are fundamental in helping Perkins achieve its mission of building a world where people with complex disabilities and visual impairments can learn and thrive. If these sound like you, we encourage you to consider a career at Perkins.

Essential Duties, Responsibilities and Expectations include the following:

You will lead the organization's accessibility strategy across all departments, and act as the chair of the a11y Task Force ( IDEA - Inclusion Diversity Equity and Accessibility committee). Specific duties include the following:
Provide oversight for the collection, management, and evaluation of VPATs for instructional software and digital tools.
Meet regularly with individual department representatives who serve on the a11y Task Force, and / or department liaisons to monitor accessibility efforts and support department-specific needs.
Review and update various accessibility policies and procedures and communicate these policies across the organization.
Develop an accessibility review process for procurement of 3rd party tools and services.
Work with the CTO to establish a practice for verifying and tracking accessibility commitments from third-party platforms, including progress towards contractual agreements.
Work with the IT and Marketing Teams to ensure prompt remediation of accessibility defects in Perkins web assets .
Collaborates with IT to ensure computer equipment and other school support spaces are equipped with appropriate assistive technology.
Establish a knowledge base, including organizational policies and procedures, training, resources, and accessibility best practices and checklists.
Create and deliver a custom training program, using surveys and other customization methods, to support the diverse needs of the PSB community.
Manage accessibility budget.
Conduct accessibility audits through manual testing techniques and automated testing tools.
Collaborate with the a11y Task Force to provide quarterly reports on progress towards the Perkins Accessibility Strategic Plan.
Conduct usability testing with native assistive-technology users.
Provide expert guidance to PSB executive committee members related to accessibility standards and policies.
Create a response process for user-reported accessibility issues.

Knowledge and Skills

Deep understanding of web accessibility standards and guidelines (e.g., Section 508 and Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG 2.1) and reporting formats, (e.g. ACRs/VPATs)
Knowledge of accessibility best practices for digital content
Awareness of online learning environments and emerging educational technologies
Excellent organizational, project management skills and communication skills.
Ability to manage highly sensitive information with discretion.
Must have the ability to organize, track and communicate complex information with stakeholders across all levels of the organization.
Excellent interpersonal and verbal/written communication skills.
Professional knowledge of web technologies (HTML, CSS, JavaScript, ARIA) and platforms (Web content management systems and learning management systems).
Solid knowledge and experience with a wide range of assistive technology, including screen readers and magnification software.
Deep knowledge of manual and automated accessibility testing methods and tools
Professional knowledge of disability law.
Knowledge of application development best practices, techniques and tools. Understanding of bug tracking systems and processes.
Ability to communicate with web designers, developers and content creators.
Extensive knowledge and experience with digital accessibility and understanding of accessibility issues across web, mobile, documents, and related technologies.
Must have the ability to develop and maintain a cross-functional accessibility training program.


Education and/or Experience

Bachelor’s degree required; Master degree strongly preferred.
5+ years of experience in a related field
Certified Professional of Accessibility Core Competencies (CPACC) preferred
Web Accessibility Specialist (WAS) preferred
Certified Professional of Web Accessibility (CPWA) preferred
Accessible Document specialists (ADS)