AllyAccessible content shouldn’t be an afterthought
Blackboard Ally is integrated directly into teacher workflows to embed accessible practices that scale and improve over time.
“We’re on a journey with accessible content that hasn’t entirely been about legislative compliance. It’s been about making better content and improving the student experience. With [Blackboard] Ally, we’ve had such a positive experience, it’s the right partner on the road.”
Our Philosophy
Accessibility isn’t about compliance; it’s about people, and it’s about learning. Ally helps you create an inclusive learning space where all students and faculty can thrive.
Why Blackboard Ally
Quick fixes cost you more in the long run. Ally provides an optimal balance of instructor control and automation, creating a culture of accessibility that grows in effectiveness each semester.
With Ally, there’s no smoke and mirrors in your contract. No add-on costs for certain features or overage charges when features are heavily used. All our innovations, including our AI capabilities, are available in the standard license.
Accessibility is ultimately about people, and Ally is powered directly by our users. We collaborate with institutions to design our roadmap, while our online Community and annual Fix Your Content Day provide unparalleled opportunities to share best practices.
Ally is designed to complement all major LMS platforms, including Blackboard, Canvas, D2L, Moodle, and Schoology. Develop your accessibility strategy for the future, knowing that Ally will keep delivering results even if you choose to change LMS.
Ally is developed in line with the highest accessibility standards, including WCAG 2.2 Level AA, Section 508 (US), and EN 301 549 (Europe).
Learning in practice
Great institutions like yours are using Ally to support a true culture of accessibility.
Resources
Guide
Title II Strategy Guide & Playbook: A Resource for Every Stage of the Accessibility Journey
This resource is your guide, regardless of where you are in the process. We’ll walk through what the rule means for course materials in the LMS and suggest a clear framework built around four phases: Learn, Plan, Act, and Sustain.
Learn More
Blog Post
Looking Ahead: Highlights from the Ally Roadmap Session at Building Blackboard Together
At Building Blackboard Together in Dallas, the Ally roadmap session drew a standing-room-only crowd of educators, instructional designers, accessibility specialists, and administrators eager to learn more about what's ahead for Ally and to hear how their feedback is being put directly back into the product.
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Datasheet
Blackboard for LMS: A Culture of Accessibility
Most accessibility tools fix problems. Few prevent them at the source. Blackboard® Ally, the market-leading LMS accessibility solution, is built on a different premise. We believe that lasting accessibility comes from changing how content gets created, not just patching what already exists.
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Webinar
From Checklists to Check-ins: Accessibility, AI, and Human Judgement in EdTech
Join us for a timely and thought-provoking panel that brings together accessibility leaders from higher education to explore where automation genuinely advances accessibility, and where human judgment adds value that technology alone cannot provide.
Learn MoreAlly is the perfect complement to Blackboard LMS, adding premium accessibility capabilities to creative a truly supportive learning experience. Join great institutions like University of the Cumberlands, Savannah College of Art and Design, Edge Hill University, and University of South Carolina who have reaped the benefits from adding Ally to their Blackboard LMS instance.
Let’s make it official.
Want an honest conversation about whether Blackboard Ally is the right fit for your institution and what it would take to get there?
Book a demoFAQ
Accessibility in an LMS means creating a digital learning environment where every student and instructor can succeed.
At Blackboard, we build our LMS with accessibility mind – meaning that every workflow and feature is rigorously tested to ensure that all users can benefit from it equally. Common standards such as WCAG 2.2 Level AA form the baseline for our product development.
Blackboard Ally extends on this to support accessible content in the LMS. It allows students to download content in their preferred formats, instructors to easily remediate content to make it more accessible for their class, and administrators and institutional leadership to track accessibility across courses and devise strategies to best support their students and faculty.
Accessibility is important in online learning as it allows students and instructors from all backgrounds to participate and succeed. Inaccessible digital content causes frustration and stress for students, and can make them feel that they aren’t welcome at the institution. An accessible environment, in contrast, makes them feel supported and seen.
Blackboard Ally supports WCAG and ADA Title II compliance for institutions.
Ally is built using WCAG 2.2 Level AA standards as the baseline. You can review our public ACR, and find more information on our Trust Center and Help pages.
For ADA Title II and other regulations, Blackboard Ally provides a tool that helps institutions remediate their content at scale in line with the guidance in their area. It also provides detailed reporting so institutions can track their progress towards these objectives.
Accessibility software helps instructors create inclusive content by alerting them to opportunities for improvement as they’re preparing their courses. With Blackboard Ally, instructors can inline metrics on the accessibility of their content and actionable tips to make it more inclusive. This includes PDF files, which have traditionally been challenging to make accessibility.
Best practices for improving accessibility in online courses can vary depending on the context. Accessibility is fundamentally about people, and thus best practices are just as diverse and varied as modern student populations.
However, fundamental best practices include ensuring platforms and features are designed with accessibility in mind, automatic and consistent access to alternative formats for students, guidance for instructors as they’re creating courses, and ensuring actionable data at the user, course, and institutional level.
Finally, some of the most valuable best practices are shared between institutions. Our thriving online community allows institutions from all over the world to collaborate and advance accessible learning.
Institutions should evaluate accessibility software based on their long-term accessibility strategy, developing a partnership that can benefit their students and faculty for years to come. Quick fixes for short-term regulatory concerns ultimately end up costing more in both money and resources.
Blackboard Ally empowers instructors to build knowledge around accessibility and create a culture that lasts. It also provides simple inclusive pricing, so you know you won’t be charged extra when new capabilities are added to the platform.
Blackboard Ally improves accessibility in learning environments in three crucial ways.
