Accessible documents, spreadsheets, slides, and emails are essential to creating inclusive digital spaces at the University of Washington. To make this easier, UW’s Accessible Technology team has developed Digital Accessibility Quick Cards for Microsoft Office applications: Outlook, Word, Excel, and PowerPoint.
Each card—available both as a web page and an accessible, printable PDF—offers concise, practical guidance for designing content that works well for everyone, including people who use assistive technologies. The cards highlight key accessibility practices such as:
- Using heading styles to structure content
- Writing meaningful link text
- Adding descriptive alternative text for images
- Ensuring readable color contrast
They also remind users to run each program’s built-in Accessibility Checker to identify and fix potential issues before sharing files.
Faculty, staff, and students can use these Quick Cards as at-a-glance references when creating Microsoft emails, documents, presentations, and spreadsheets. Whether you’re drafting a syllabus in Word, preparing a slide deck for class, or sending departmental updates through Outlook, these tips help ensure your materials are clear, organized, and accessible to all members of the UW community.
By incorporating these simple accessibility practices into everyday work, we advance UW’s commitment to equity and inclusion—helping ensure our digital environments are welcoming and usable for everyone.
Explore the Digital Accessibility Quick Cards on UW’s Accessible Technology website and share them with colleagues and students to help the University prepare for April 2026 and a more inclusive future.