Skip to main content
  • Calendar
  • Directory
  • Index
  • Map
  • myWestern
Refine search
  • Home
  • Accessibility Matters
  • Digital Accessibility Plan
  • Resources
    • Accessibility Training
    • Content Editor Resources
    • Developer Resources
    • Captioning and Audio Description Resources
    • WCAG Resources
    • Creating Accessible Email Signatures with Alt Text Images
  • Accessibility Blog
Western Washington University

Western Digital Accessibility

Notice Regarding Drupal 7’s Menu Sidebar Navigation

Notice Regarding Drupal 7’s Menu Sidebar Navigation

July 5, 2019

WebTech has implemented a mechanism that allows users to display all collapsible/expandable menu links in a list format. You can find an example of this menu on pages like the CSE Departments page or the CHSS Graduate Psychology Programs page.

Which users are affected?

The current collapsible/expandable menu has been determined inaccessible for the following populations of users:

  • Anyone using screen reader technology
  • Anyone that uses keyboard-only navigation to visit our website
  • Anyone that has overall difficulty using this menu system

Which sites are affected?

This menu is currently implemented on Drupal 7 sites. Some of the sites with this menu include:

  • Western college sites (CFPA, CSE, CBE, etc.)
  • Western departments and services (ATUS/STC, Budget Office, Counseling, etc.)
  • Western institutes (MERI, PCI, Energy, etc.)

How does it work?

When users encounter the dialog, they can choose whether to display all the links and remove the expand/collapse functionality of the menu, or keep going to leave the menu as is. If users choose to display all links, that decision is recorded in the browser and remembered. This means if a user exits a browser and goes to that site in a new site visit, or navigates to another page, the user will have the accessible version loaded instead of the default menu.

When this option is chosen, the option to turn the default menu back on is always provided, in case the user would like the default menu to load again.

Why isn’t the menu just being fixed?

While accessibility errors should be fixed, there were a number of factors that affected our ability to fix this menu in a timely manner:

  • Drupal 7 will be considered a legacy system by 2021, which means it is crucial we update to a more accessible platform. We are actively upgrading our Drupal sites from Drupal 7 to Drupal 8, which has a more accessible theme and user interface.
  • Fixing this menu potentially meant fixing an entire jQuery UI library, which could mean breaking other modules that rely on this library.
  • Similarly, this could’ve also been fixed by fixing the specific Drupal module responsible for this menu, but other modules could depend on this module and end up being affected as well.
  • Trying to implement any of the above fixes would’ve taken months to release a fix, instead of weeks to provide an option to improve the menu functionality.

Questions about this notice?

Please contact Carly Gerard (gerardc@wwu.edu) or David Engebretson (engebrd2@wwu.edu) with any accessibility questions or concerns. For general web assistance, please contact Web Communication Technologies at webhelp@wwu.edu.

Related

Carly GerardUncategorized

Quick Links

  • Report an Accessibility Barrier
  • Check a Webpage using WAVE
  • Get Started with SiteImprove
  • Use SensusAccess
  • Email for Accessibility Help

WebTech Accessibility Lab Hours

Come get help with accessibility, SiteImprove, or anything web related.

Wednesdays 2-3pm, Old Main 360.

Accessibility Empathy Lab Hours

Learn more about how your digital content interacts with a screen reader.

Monday 11AM-12pm, Old Main 360.

Recent Posts

  • Notice Regarding Drupal 7’s Menu Sidebar Navigation July 5, 2019
  • Become Part Of The Solution March 27, 2018
  • Increase Your Empathy March 20, 2018
Web Communication Technologies
  • Location: Old Main 360/365
  • E-mail: webhelp@wwu.edu
  • Phone: (360) 650-3096

Campus Resources

  • Academic Technology User Services (ATUS)
  • Student Accommodation Assistance
  • Employee Accommodation Assistance

Western Washington University

516 High Street
Bellingham, WA 98225

(360) 650-3000

Contact Western

  • Western Facebook
  • Western Instagram
  • Western Flickr
  • Western Youtube
  • Western Today RSS

Accessibility | Privacy