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Play 12: Educate the Workforce

Section 508 and digital accessibility conformance are core components of workforce development and agency culture. Raising awareness of the needs of users with disabilities—and the technical and legal responsibilities agencies have to meet those needs—is essential to ensuring equal access to government information and digital services. A well-informed workforce is more likely to support and actively contribute to the implementation of a successful, mature Section 508 Program. This play offers key considerations for developing effective workforce education strategies.

Key Questions:

  • What accessibility training does your organization currently offer?
  • How effective is this training in helping the workforce understand your agency’s Section 508 policies, procedures, and how to create accessible technology?
  • Which training is mandatory; for which roles?
  • How is participation in mandatory training tracked; and what metrics are available for analysis and decision making?

Checklists

This section provides checklists to guide systematic Section 508 conformance testing, planning, and process implementation for ICT throughout its lifecycle.

Table 1: Play 12 Basic Checklist
Item Actions
Review current accessibility training offerings.
Identify and prioritize training gaps. Refer to related training resources on Section508.gov. Consider the following:
Develop, obtain, or provide accessibility training to address core needs.
  • Ensure all training aligns with Section 508 Standards.
  • Leverage available training courses and other resources from Section508.gov and other federal sources to fill gaps.
Create an Accessibility Training Plan
Communicate and scale training efforts.
  • Publish a training calendar and promote offerings to agency leadership and staff.
  • Consider "train the trainer" models to scale instructor-led sessions.
  • Track employee participation and collect feedback to assess effectiveness.

Table 2: Play 10 Advanced Checklist
Task Resources
Provide advanced accessibility training to Section 508 Program team members.
Ensure web and software testers are formally certified as knowledgeable, using documented methods such as the DHS Trusted Tester Process & Certification Program.
Use metrics to review training activities, assess topic comprehension by learning activities, analyze for trends, and systematically use the data to determine how to improve accessibility training.

Key Performance Indicators (KPI)

This section outlines Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) to track and measure accessibility testing, remediation, and overall Section 508 conformance across web, intranet, and enterprise ICT solutions.

Generic KPI: By QX FY2X create training plans for XXXX, YYYY, and ZZZZ roles within the organization.

Generic KPI: By QX FY2X, work with relevant human resources and training personnel to make the Section 508 awareness training mandatory on a regular basis (either annually or bi-annually).

Generic KPI: In FY2X, offer accessibility related training for employees on content creation tools and best practices at least X times.

Generic KPI: Training Courses: By EOFY FY2X update the Top 5 most utilized trainings to ensure they meet all relevant Section 508 requirements.

Resources

Templates, Tools, and Resources

Reviewed/Updated: September 2025

*Disclaimer: Reference in this site to any specific commercial product, process, or service, or the use of any trade, firm or corporation name is for the information and convenience of the public, and does not constitute endorsement, recommendation, or favoring by GSA. GSA does not guarantee that outside websites or products comply with Section 508 (accessibility requirements) of the Rehabilitation Act.

Section508.gov

An official website of the General Services Administration

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