Accessibility Statement

Our Commitment

ASCEND serves individuals with autism and developmental disabilities. Accessibility isn't just a compliance requirement for us — it's a direct reflection of our mission. We believe everyone deserves equal access to information, regardless of ability.

We strive to ensure this website meets or exceeds the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines (WCAG) 2.1 Level AA standards.

Accessibility Features

• Comfort Settings panel — Reduce motion, enable high contrast, activate calm mode, use a dyslexia-friendly font, increase text spacing, or adjust text size
• Full keyboard navigation — Every interactive element is reachable and operable via keyboard
• Skip navigation links — Jump directly to main content, navigation, or footer
• Reduced motion support — Respects your system preference and can be toggled via Comfort Settings
• Semantic HTML — Proper heading hierarchy, landmarks, and ARIA labels throughout
• Descriptive alt text — All images include meaningful descriptions
• Focus management — Visible focus indicators and focus trapping in dialogs and menus
• Screen reader announcements — Page transitions and dynamic content changes are announced

Known Limitations

We are aware of the following limitations and are working to address them:

• Third-party donation widget — Our donation form is provided by Every.org. While we've added an accessible direct-link alternative, the embedded widget's accessibility is managed by a third party.
• Embedded Google Map — The interactive map on our Contact page is provided by Google and has limited keyboard accessibility. A text address is provided alongside the map.

Report a Barrier

If you encounter an accessibility barrier on this website, we want to know. Please contact us and we will work to resolve the issue promptly.