ASPIRE, the first verification service for accessibility statements in the publishing industry, has awarded JSTOR a perfect 100% score. JSTOR is now ranked as one of the top resources in ASPIRE’s audit of more than 50 digital platforms.
ASPIRE was launched in 2018 to encourage platforms and publishers to provide clear information about their accessibility features. In their 2021 assessment, they write, “The JSTOR accessibility statement is a fantastic example of the art of creating a user-focused statement. The level of information is perfect, and it is clearly presented, well written, and avoids jargon. An accessibility statement naturally leans towards being technical and it is a considerable feat to create a document that is both useful and user-friendly. The JSTOR statement does just this in a thoughtful, balanced, and clear manner.”
JSTOR adheres to Section 508 and WCAG AA standards to improve the user experience for everyone; creating a clear and informative accessibility statement to communicate what this means is essential. “We believe accessibility is vital to our mission and worked hard to meet the needs of librarians and users who must evaluate the accessibility of resources,” said Justin Alexander, Web Accessibility Lead for JSTOR and other ITHAKA services.
“Enabling everyone to interact with academic resources in a meaningful way is an important aspect of our mission of expanding access to knowledge and education,” said ITHAKA President Kevin Guthrie. “We will continue to strive to improve accessibility for all, especially as reliance on JSTOR continues to grow, with students and researchers using it a record 288 million times last year.”