The Universal Campus

Trey Thygerson

10/30/15

Table of Contents
Abstract 1
Introduction .. 2
Methodology 3
Discussion of Results ... 4
Final Recommendation 5
Bibliography 6

Abstract
The UNM.edu website has several defaults that require change.
We are passionate about the changes that need to be made in
order to improve the well being of the University of New Mexico
online users. We suggest that the problems be resolved through
the efforts of UNM students who will have appropriate opinions
concerning the changes. The results will include happier and more
interested users, which will impact the overall environment of the
university.

Introduction:
Universal design refers to broad-spectrum of ideas meant to produce buildings, products and
environments that are accessible to all people regardless of age, gender, or ability. The impact
Universal design or lack thereof has on society is far reaching. Leaving individuals either
confused or understood. The University of New Mexico has always tried to cater to the needs of
all students and faculty. The only issue is with a large university and population, complications in
design fall through the cracks. The purpose of this paper is to analyze the University of New
Mexicos Web resources to determine the needs that must be addressed to ease the access of
unm.edu. Websites are critical in the functionality of all Universities because they provide crucial
information to students, faculty, and potential students. Technology is very fluid, especially in
websites. They are constantly changing, progressing and adapting to meet peoples needs. These
technologies are relatively new in terms of the UNM culture. Therefore, there is room for
improvement and growth to help all be able to utilize the website in question. Within this paper
we will discuss web accessibility, based on the extensive research that has been performed. Then,
using an outline of the necessary steps, a final conclusion of the best options for the University
will be suggested.

Methodology:
Our inquiry considers the accessibility of the University of New Mexicos website.

Step one: Clearly define what universal design is, by researching the different forerunners in
the field.

Step Two: Develop evaluation criteria addressing what it means to be universally accessible.
Examples of accessibility include: text, design and errors reports. I will research the different
leaders in accessibility pursuits and patter our recommendations based on their findings.

Step Three: Through surveys (created from the universal design criteria) and personal
interviews I will speak with twenty users of UNM.edu to determine how they feel about the
resource. The individuals surveyed will be from one of the following categories: Elderly, Middle
aged, Young Adults, and Teenagers.

Step Four: It is necessary to gather all relevant information online which will require visiting
the top most ranked accessible websites. Also, reading articles on universal design and exploring
other resources on my own will be critical. Some of these topics will include text to speech and
the other accessibility resources such as Waveweb (wave web ). It will then be possible to
determine the accessibility for those with disabilities.

Results:
As I researched the universal design of the many websites involved, I found many overarching
themes of simplicity. Many of the authorities of these websites suggested ways in which we can
make the world more efficient. It is important to look out for the one and provide links to the fore
runners of design. As I researched I found a few leaders and their definitions of such an idea.
Universal design has two major components (Trace R&D Center Web Site):
1. Designing products so that they are flexible enough that they can be directly used without
requiring any assistive technologies or modifications. The people considered for this
modification are those with the widest range of abilities and circumstances as is
commercially practical given current materials, technologies, and knowledge.
2. Designing products so that they are compatible with the assistive technologies that might
be used by those who cannot efficiently access and use the products directly.
When I focused on these two components I was able to clearly create the criteria of Universal
design. The flexibility, efficiency and the accessibility all lead to a universally designed product.
With this criteria I created a survey and asked four categories of people: elderly, middle aged,
young adults, and teenagers. I asked 20 people (5 from each category) and found the following.

Satisfaction Percentage

100%

75%

50%

Below 25%

Most of the people experienced a lot of dissatisfaction with the current situation of the website.
With seventy percent of the people interviewed being below 25% satisfied. Following up with
the individuals that where dissatisfied, they explained that the website was Clunky,
unprofessional, confusing, and difficult to read
I then worked through unm.edu with all the tools of accessibility online on my own, to see if
these individuals had merit in their thoughts. I found the website a little difficult to navigate, hard
to read, and a little amateur. Despite general design issues I wanted to see how the website
functioned when using text to speech and other softwares to support those with disabilities.
As I researched I found errors within the software. When I used webwave, there was a report of
forty two errors. Most of these errors had to do with the overall design and linking issues. When
trying to use text to speech software on UNM.edu there is a large number of errors as well. These
errors include the text not registering at all as well as the text to speech being unable to
pronounce the words coherently. Present were also a lot of nominations.
Overall, the research taught me the impact that universal design can have on a product. If
universal design is absent users will become frustrated and not be happy. With unm.edu
specifically, the discontent is very evident. I personally found the website hard to use but more
importantly fifteen out of twenty people would agree with me. Something will have to be done in
order to improve this website.

Discussion of Results.
The question of whether or not UNMs website is universal designed can safely be answered
with a list of improvements. There are numerous options to improve unm.edu as a website. The
options include: completely recreating the website, correcting any outstanding errors, or keeping
the website how it currently is.
Recreating the website from scratch, option number one, may be a difficult task. There are two
different options in the creation of a new website. The first is by outsourcing the work to design
firms. Or another option includes using the Universities computer science programs as a
resource. The second option will be more cost effective and will provide all of the options that a
student would desirebecause it will be organized directly by those who are expected to use the
website, thus their preferences will be met. The site would be created by students for students.
The second option is having the computer science programs edit our current website following
the criteria of universal design. This will be the quickest turn around and will be a more well
received option. It will likely cost between two hundred to four hundred dollars.
The Third option is leaving the university website as is. This option is the most cost effective
costing the University no money. This option will however lead to the same discontent and
feelings of frustration from the websites users that already exist.

Final Recommendation:
Overall the best opportunity for the University of New Mexico is resolution two. It provides
opportunities to upcoming leaders and students. As these students work on the website design
and support the ongoing efforts at UNM the university will become one of the greatest
educational facilities in the United States. The students will feel a since of empowerment and
achievement. Their experience will provide meaningful opportunities in the future .Giving the
students a chance to serve and uplift the areas around them. This idea will add to the already
great heritage of UNM by making a sustainable website that suits our community intimately. The
design will be created to be accessible to almost all making UNM a spotlight and beacon to all
those looking to improve their scholastic endeavors. The website will be visually appealing,
simple to navigate and will function with all text to speech technology. It will be truly
universally designed.

Bibliography
laja, Peep. Conversion XL . 21 june 2014. Internet cite . 25 11 2015.
Lynch, Patrick J. Web Style Guide. 2008-2011. Document. 15 11 2015.
Merriam Webster . Merriam Webster. n.d. Internet Cite . 25 November 2015.
Trace R&D Center Web Site. Universal Design. 6 5 1996. Document. 14 11 2015.
UNM. University of New Mexico . n.d. Internet Site . November 2015.
wave web . Wave Web Accessibility Tool . n.d. Web Site . Nov 2015.